EXAMINING TEACHINIG STYLES AND STRATEGIES: AN INTERVIEW

STUDY AMONG SPECIAL EDUCATORS

An interview is a two-way conversation in which the interviewer asks questions

and the interviewee responds. The term "interview" is commonly used to

describe a one-on one conversation between an interviewer and an interviewee. The

interviewer asks the interviewee questions to which the interviewee responds,

usually to transfer information from the interviewee to the interviewer (and any other

audience of the interview). Information can sometimes be transmitted in both

directions. It is a form of communication that, unlike speech, produces a one-way flow of

data.

Interviewing is a type of questioning characterized by the use of

verbal questioning as the primary data collection technique. Interviews are a common

occurrence in everyday life, but they are unique as a tool for social research or, more

accurately, as a method of data collection. This is true in terms of its preparation,

construction, and execution, first because it is planned and carried out in a systematic

manner, second because the researcher oversees it to avoid bias and distortion, and third

because it is tied to a specific research question and purpose. Regardless of the

underlying methodology, most research designs use interviews as a data collection

method. Unstructured interviewing techniques, such as intensive interviewing and

focused interviewing, are used in qualitative studies, whereas structured interviews are

used in quantitative studies. Both qualitative and quantitative studies use semi-

structured interviews.

Types Of Interview
There are many different types of interviews, each with its own structure,

purpose, interviewer's role, number of respondents involved in each interview, and

administration form and frequency.

Structured Interviews

They are similar to questionnaires in that they are based on a strict procedure and a highly

structured interview guide. The instrument does not allow for changes to any of its

elements, such as content, wording, or question order. This type of interview follows

a set schedule, and strict adherence to the questions and instructions is critical.

The interviewer should maintain a neutral tone of voice, give the respondents the same

impression, use the same style, appearance, prompts, probes, and so on, and show no

initiative, spontaneity, or personal interest in the research topic. The goal is to minimize

interviewer bias and achieve the highest level of procedure uniformity possible.

Unstructured Interviews

They don't have any of the above-mentioned strict procedures to follow. There are no

restrictions on the way the questions are phrased, the order in which they are asked, or the

interview schedule. In this context, the interviewer is free to act on the basis of certain

research findings, formulating questions as needed and employing neutral probing. The

structure of these interviews is flexible, and the restrictions are kept to a minimum,

with the majority of them being presented as guides rather than rules.

Semi-structured Interviews

They were a hybrid of structured and unstructured interviews. While some are closer to

structured interviews, others are closer to unstructured interviews, they all contain

elements of both. The degree to which interviews are structured is determined by the

research topic and purpose, available resources, methodological standards and

preferences, and the type of data sought, which

can be obtained using quantitative or qualitative methods. The interviewers, or

researchers, play a crucial role in the research process. The following tasks must be

completed by them:

 Choosing and/or contacting respondents

 Arranging the interview time, date, length, and conditions.

 Following the instructions when conducting the interview.

 Managing the interview situation so that resistance, suspicion, prejudice, and other

negative forces are reduced or eliminated.

 Working towards a goal while avoiding bias.

 Accurately recording the answers.

 Creating and maintaining positive relationships.

Focused Interview

Focused interview is related to those people or interviewee, who themselves have seen

any accident, movie or have heard any special commentary. In such interview stress will

be given only to those situations whose analysis has been done before the interview. In

such type of interviews, there is an interview guide that contains two things in it. First

contains the description of all those areas to be covered during interview. Second contains

that hypothesis on the basis of which the data has to be collected. This type of interview is

totally dependent on the personal experiences, attitude and emotional reactions of the

interviewee about the situation taken for study. Along with this the interviewee has the

full liberty to express his views about the situation of the interview.

Non-directive Interview

The interviewer in this type of interview acts as a catalyst. He/she prompts the

respondents to give information on the topic under investigation. Like in focused

interviews here, questioning is very less. However, the area(s) to be covered remains
under the control of the interviewer. He/she is supposed to give a free environment to the

respondents so that they can express their views freely and to the point; the interviewer

simply supports the views expressed by the respondent instead of approving or

disapproving them.

Clinical Interview

This type of interview also comes under the category of unstructured interview. Adams

and Schvaneveldt (1985) reported that this type of interview has been used in social care

work, counseling, and prison settings, and is also called personal history interviews. This

type covers the feelings, and life experiences, of the respondents. The interviewer has the

freedom to interact freely with the respondents to elicit information on the given topic.

This type of interview is flexible and it includes introductory questions as well. Here the

respondent can also give new information on related factors and elaborate on them. It

may prove very helpful in predicting, analyzing, and concluding in some areas. The area

under investigation, its objectives, and its scope are the main determinants of the selection

of question areas to be covered in the clinical interview.

Telephonic Interview

As the name suggests this type of interview is conducted by phone. It is best suited for

market types of surveys, polls, etc. The main advantage of this type of method is to get

data very fast without wasting time on visiting the respondents. It does not require special

skills to conduct the interview session. Telephone interviews are a faster and cheaper

method for obtaining information. Extra staff i.e., field staff is not required in this

method. Moreover, it is very flexible in comparison with the mailed questionnaire

method. The non-response percentage is very low in telephone interviews. On the other

hand, long-distance calls, number of calls, and length of call time add to its cost.
There is a possibility that many respondents do not have a connection. The voice quality

or the connectivity may also pose problems. For short conversation, it may be ideal but

lengthy conversation may not be liked by the respondents. It is very difficult to find

doubtful information provided by the respondent. Like a mailed questionnaire, the

personal touch will be missing in this type of interview. If respondents do not wish to talk

to the interviewer or do not cooperate it may turn into a disaster for the researcher.

Choosing the Interviewer

Due to the importance of the interviewer in the research, investigators select the

interviewer using a very systematic process.

• Honesty, trustworthiness, and self-control are usually considered important criteria.

• Intelligence, maturity, and friendliness are all desirable qualities.

• Social acceptability and sociability

• Attentiveness, awareness, and the ability to concentrate.

• Reliability and accuracy

• Objectivity and a lack of bias.

• Flexibility, self-reliance, and initiative.

• Verbal ability as well as the ability to pay close attention to others.

• An interest in and knowledge of the research topic.

• Ability to work as part of a group of experts.

Following selection, interviewers typically receive training that is tailored to the

interviewer's skills, experience, and the nature of the topic.

• Developing and practicing interviewing skills, primarily through observation, practice,

and criticism, is a common feature of the training.

• Learning how to present oneself to respondents, including appropriate

manners regarding the subjects' lifestyles as well as presentation and

appearance.

• Mastering the essential persuasion techniques required to persuade

uncooperative respondents to participate.

• Developing knowledge and skills in obtaining and accurately recording

relevant information.

• Establishing value neutrality, ethics, anonymity, and confidentiality standards

Advantages of Interview in Research

Opportunity for feedback- interview can provide direct feedback to the respondent, give

clarifications

Probing complex answers- interviewers can investigate if the respondent’s answer is too

brief or unclear. This gives interviewers some flexibility in dealing with unstructured

questions is especially suited for handling complex questions

Length of interview- if the questionnaire is very lengthy, the personal interview is the best

technique for getting respondents to cooperate, without overtaxing their patience

Complete questionnaires-respondent will answer all questions asked, unlike in telephone

interview where the respondent may hang up or in mail questionnaire where some

questions may go unanswered.

Props & visual aids- interviewers have the opportunity of showing respondents items such

as sample products, graphs and sketches, which can aid in their answers.

High indexing participation- interviewing respondents personally can increase the

likelihood of their participation, many people participate already.

Disadvantages Of Interview In Research

Cost- personal interviews are usually more expensive than mail, telephone and internet

surveys. Factors influencing the cost of interview includes the respondents geographical

proximity, the length and complexity of the questionnaire and the number of non

respondents.

Lack of anonymity- respondents are not anonymous in personal interview and may be

unwilling to disclose certain information to the interviewer.

Necessity of callbacks- when a person selected for interview cannot be reached the first

time, a callback has to scheduled which results in extra cost and time spent.

Dishonesty- interviewers cheat to make their life easier and save time and effort.

Personal styles and interview techniques- the interviewers approach and individual

questioning demeanor may influence the respondent’s answer.

Reliability and Validity

Interview's might introduce numerous sources of bias, particularly if the interviews are

relatively unstructured. Reliability of interviewers is usually discussed in relation to

interrater (interviewer) agreement.

When interviewers were given narrow areas to assess and were trained in

interviewer strategies, interrater reliability in-creased. The consensus was that highly

structured interviews were more reliable. Research on interview validity has typically

focused on sources of interviewer bias. For example, halo effects result from the tendency

of an interviewer to develop a general impression of a person and then infer other

seemingly related characteristics. For example, clients who are considered to express

warmth may be seen as more competent or mentally healthy than they actually are. This

clustering of characteristics may be in-correct, thereby producing distortions and

exaggerations. Similarly, first impressions have been found to bias later judgments.

Confirmatory bias might occur when an interviewer makes an inference about a client and
then directs the inter-view to elicit information that confirms the original inference .In a

clinical context, physical attractiveness may result in practitioners' either deemphasizing

pathology or on occasion, exaggerating pathology because of discomfort the interviewer

may feel over his or her feelings of attraction .In addition to the interviewer's perceptual

and interactional biases, the interviewees may distort their responses. For example, they

may present a overly favorable view of themselves, particularly if they are relatively

naive regarding their motivations. Distortions are most likely found in sensitive areas

such as sexual behaviour. Inaccuracies based on retrospective accounts have been found

to most likely occur related to psychosocial information (e.g., family conflict, onset of

psychiatric symptoms) compared with variables such as change of residence, reading

skill, height, and weight.

One clear finding is that validity increases as the structure of the interview format

increases . For example, a meta-analysis by Wiesner and Cronshaw (1988) found that

unstructured interviews had validity coefficients of .20, structuring the interview

increased the validity to .63, and structured interviews by a panel using consensus ratings

increased validity coefficients to a quite respectable 64. However, the validity seems to

vary according to the type of variable that is being assessed. Situational employment

interviews (asking the interviewee what he or she would do in a particular situation) had

higher validities (.50) than interviews used to assess past job-related behavior (.39)

adding structure to interviews and paying close attention to the procedure by which

decisions are made typically results in higher levels of validity.

Special Education Teacher

A special education teacher is a teacher who works with children of all ages who

have special needs, whether these are cognitive, emotional or physical. These

professionals may work in classrooms or resource centers that include only special needs
students, or they may work in inclusive classrooms where they assist general teachers in

providing special needs kids with the individualized attention and unique approaches they

need to develop to their full potential.

These teachers often develop Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) to set

goals and track each student's progress. Furthermore, special educators coordinate with

other teachers and counsellors to prepare lessons and write reports. They also regularly

communicate with the parents of students about their child's progress.

A special education teacher may use the following skills to perform their job well:

 Time management: These professionals often use their time-management skills to

perform multiple tasks on a given day. This includes assisting children, evaluating

their progress and making reports.

 Positive and energetic approach: As children with special needs may take extra

time to understand a concept, special educators need to use a positive approach

towards students.

 Critical thinking and social perceptiveness: Special educators need to determine

effective methods to improve a child's learning experience.

 Communication: Special education teachers need to have strong communication

skills to instruct children with a variety of special needs and communication

styles. These professionals also need this skill to communicate with other relevant

parties, such as general teachers, parents, physical therapists, social workers and

counsellors.

In addition to teaching academic subjects such as math, reading, and writing,

special education teachers may also focus on teaching life skills such as

communication, social skills, and self-care. They may adapt teaching methods and

materials to accommodate their students' learning styles and abilities and provide
 accommodations such as extra time on tests, visual aids, or assistive technology. They

also work closely with parents or caregivers to ensure that their students receive the

support they need both in and out of the classroom.

Special education teachers may spend a significant amount of time preparing

lesson plans, grading assignments, and developing assessments to track their students'

progress. They may also spend time outside of the classroom attending meetings with

parents, participating in professional development opportunities, and collaborating

with other professionals to develop strategies for supporting students with disabilities.

While the job of a special education teacher can be challenging, it can also be

incredibly rewarding. Special education teachers have the opportunity to make a

significant impact on the lives of their students, helping them to achieve academic

success, develop social and emotional skills, and reach their full potential.

Aim

To understand the teaching strategies adopted by special educators by semi- structured

interview method.

Objectives

 To identify the learning needs and challenges of students with special needs

 To assess the effectiveness of strategies in meeting the goals of inclusive

education.

 To examine how special educators tailor strategies to meet the individualized

goals and requirements of students with special needs.

Method

Participants

The interview was conducted in 10 special educators working in various institutions.

Sampling Method
Convenience sampling method was used.

Tools

Semi-structured Interview questions

Procedure

A semi-structured interview was prepared with 15 questions probing about the reason for

the choice of this career, the significance of inclusive education and it’s challenges,

teaching strategies, the use of teaching aids, specific methods for specific problems, and

so on. The questions were verified by the guide.

The interview was conducted in person by four students from the PG Department of

psychology. The teachers were contacted, asked for their consent and the interview was

agreed to be conducted according to their time convenience. The teacher was seated

comfortably and rapport was built. The responses were voice recorded after getting prior

permission from the teacher to do so.

Scoring

The responses were then systematically coded under each theme and subthemes. The

frequency was counted and percentage was calculated. Then the table was made including

the themes, subthemes and percentages and scores were entered.

Table 1 : Themes and subthemes of the study, total number of indicators and percentages

Sl. Themes Subthemes Frequency Percentage

No

1 Career Choice  Interest 4 1.7%

 Suggestion 3 1.3%

 Responsibility 3 1.3%

3 1.3%
 Passion
2 Strengths  Patience 5 2.1%

 Understanding skills 4 1.7%

 Confidence 3 1.3%

3 1.3%
 Knowledge

 Management skill
3 1.3%

3 Teaching  Individualized

strategies learning plans 5 2.1%

 Activities 2 0.8%

 Simple to complex

method 2 0.8%

 Positive reinforcement
2 0.8%

4 Different  Games 4 1.7%

methods for  Writing activity 4 1.7%

different  Reading activity 3 1.3%

disorders 3 1.3%
 Group activity
2 0.8%
 Occupational therapy
2 0.8%
 Object picking
2 0.8%
 Videos
2 0.8%
 Colour identification
2 0.8%
 Multisensory learning
5 Parental  Awareness class for

involvement parents 5 2.1%

 Parental help 4 1.7%

 Homework 4 1.7%

 Parents feedback 3 1.3%

2 0.8%
 Collaboration

6 Ensuring  Evaluation of chid 4 1.7%

support skills 3 1.3%

 Parental feedbacks 3 1.3%

 Teacher’s help

 Individualised 2 0.8%

education program 2 0.8%

 Evaluation and

outcome

7 Teaching aids  Pictures 5 2.1%

 Beads 4 1.7%

 Puzzles 3 1.3%

3 1.3%
 Painting
2 0.8%
 Flash cards
2 0.8%
 Videos
2 0.8%
 Reading

8 Communicatin  Staff meeting 3 1.3%

 g with  Teaching 3 1.3%

mainstream  Plans 2 0.8%

teachers

9 Maximizing  Positive reinforcement 4 1.7%

learning  Child interest 3 1.3%

experience  Activities 5 2.1%

2 0.8%
 Simple to complex
2 0.8%
 Teaching aids

10 Biggest  Management problem 4 1.7%

challenge  Hard to maintain

discipline 4 1.7%

 Social acceptance 3 1.3%

 Dealing with ADHD

and autism child 3 1.3%

 Child unaware of their

2 0.8%
needs

11 Most Difficult  Did not find it as

cases difficult. 6 2.6%

 Autism cases 3 1.3%

 ADHD cases 2 0.8%

12 Strategies for  Provide training 4 1.7%

difficult child  Equal participation 3 1.3%

 Teamwork 3 1.3%
  Pay attention 2 0.8%

 Role play activity 2 0.8%

13 Importance of  Imitation of good

Inclusive behaviour 9 3.9%

education  Companionship 4 1.7%

 Social acceptance 4 1.7%

14 Incorporating  Inclusive schooling 5 2.1%

with  Training teachers 3 1.3%

mainstream  Awareness class for

children normal children 3 1.3%

 Giving leadership 2 0.8%

roles

15 Challenges of  Unsupportive teachers 5 2.1%

Inclusive  Lack of skilled 5 2.1%

education teachers. 3 1.3%

 Unsupportive parents. 2 0.8%

 Need extra attention

Discussion

The aim of the study was to examine the teaching styles and strategies among

special educators.

A special education teacher is a teacher who works with children of all ages who have

special needs, whether these are cognitive, emotional or physical. These professionals
may work in classrooms or resource centers that include only special needs students, or

they may work in inclusive classrooms where they assist general teachers in providing

special needs kids with the individualized attention and unique approaches they need to

develop to their full potential.

The table shows different themes of the questions and the sub themes identified

from the responses of the special educators.

Carrier Choice:

Under this theme the subthemes were interest, suggestion, responsibility, and

passion. Most of the special educators chose this field because of their interest. Some

special educators reported having personal experiences with individuals with disability

such as family members, or friend which inspire their interest in this field.

Teaching strengths:

Under this theme the subthemes were patience, understanding skills, confidence,

knowledge and management skill. Most of the special educators shows patience while

dealing with students exhibiting challenging behaviors. It is crucial to have patience in

managing and addressing these behaviors in a supportive and constructive manner. They

also require skills for understanding their children needs, ability, talents, feeling and

difficulties to provide emotional support and build strong relationship with their students.

And also in order to work with these children confidence and sufficient knowledge are

required.

Teaching Strategies:

They mostly prefer teaching strategies according to the need of each child. Based

on the need of children they develop individualized learning plans and modify according

to each needs of the children. Some starts from simple activities and later make complex

one. Other strategies include positive reinforcement, conducting games, activities,

interactive sessions and so on.Positive reinforcement for desirable activities can enhance

learning and good behavior.

Tailored Approaches for specific conditions:

The most frequent methods used for treating different disorders like ADHD and

LD were games and other activities like beading, color identification, object picking,

group activities etc. They also use multisensory learning to encourage the learners to use

more than one senses.

In order to build and improve their interpersonal relationship, group activity and

occupational therapy is really effective. For attention deficits children virtual learning

method by playing videos. Videos are used to demonstrate concepts or tasks making it

easier for students for understand and learn through visual examples.

Parental Involvement:

Parental support in teaching the special need children is very important. It’s a

team work including special educators, special need children and parents. If parents are

actively Involve in their education, students tend to achieve better academic and

developmental outcomes. To aware them about the importance of this, they provide

awareness classes regarding the condition of child. Timely feedback from the parents

helps the special educators to understand and use new methods and to implement

according to the child current condition.

Ensuring Support to Children:

Majority of them evaluate the child’s performance by ensuring that they are

receiving the right support. Parental feedback is also very important in dealing with the

special kids, because these children spend most of their time at home. So their behaviour

at home is crucial to understand their difficulties and needs. This helps them to change the

plans and strategies or modify them accordingly. Individualized education program also is
a common method used to ensure that education is tailored to the child’s ability and

challenges.

Teaching Aids:

The most frequented teaching aids were reported to be visual images, charts,

beads, puzzles, paintings, flash cards etc. These are excellent tools to provide visual and

sensory stimulation that can engage students and enhance their understanding of concepts.

Different teaching aids include pictures, puzzles, paintings, flash cards, videos, reading.

For the children who have attention issues, playing videos, flash cards are helpful to seek

their attention. They may need extra support to understand new concepts and ideas.

Visual aids can help make the learning experience more effective for these children.

Teaching aids can concentrate students’ focus, reinforce important points, and create

tangible representations of abstract concepts.

Communication With Main Stream Teachers:

Having open lines of communication with the regular education teachers is

essential to the process. The two teachers must exchange information so that both are

fully advised. To make this possible, they conduct staff meetings with them. And while

making teaching plans for each child, they work together so that both will have a clear

idea about the child.

Maximizing Learning Experience:

Providing a supportive learning environment and engaging students with a variety

of activities that they are interested are great way to maximize their learning experiences.

Teacher rewards child with attention and praise. Establishing trust between the students

and the teacher is vital to creating a positive learning environment. Educators who

understand and communicate with their students are more likely to foster a trusting

environment. Using different teaching aids are also effective.

Biggest Challenge:

Apart from all benefits, there are some challenges and difficulties to be in a

position of special educator. One of the main difficulties they face is managing special

need children, especially those with ADHD and ASD. Social stigma and social

unacceptance are another issue. Managing kids and handling parental expectations will

provide with many unique hurdles in day-to-day work.

Most Difficult cases and their Strategies:

According to the responses the majority of them did not find this task as difficult.

It may be because of their experience or their interest in this field. Five responses were

received explaining the difficulty in dealing with ADHD and ASD. In cases that are not

possible to handle, they refer these to other centers. The strategies they follow to deal

with difficult children include providing more training, ensuring participation in

teamwork, paying more attention to these kids and engaging in activities like role play.

Importance of inclusive education and its Challenges:

Generally, people support the idea of inclusive education. So the theme

‘importance of inclusive education’ and ‘challenges of inclusive education were included.

Acceptance from typically developed children and society can be enhanced by the

concept of inclusive education. The high frequency under this theme is ‘imitation of good

behavior. They reported that the behavior of special children can be modified by the

interaction with other children, thereby good behavior can be learned through imitation.

This concept also helps to build awareness among the typically developed children. Still

the inclusive education has so many challenges such as lack of support from the teachers,

because they are not aware about the learning speed and capability of the special children,

so thereby it can lead to more stress to these children. As they need extra attention,

inclusive education setup has low chance in getting more attention and care to these
children. Unsupportive parents is also a challenge in including them with mainstream

children.

Incorporating with main stream children:

It was reported that special needs children can be effectively incorporated with

mainstream children in an inclusive educational environment through planning and

support. Providing professional development and training for teachers can help them

understand and address the diverse needs of special children. Awareness class for normal

children can help change attitudes and perceptions about special need children it includes

educating teachers, students, parents and the community about the value of inclusivity

and reducing stigma. Further giving leadership roles to special children can make

mainstream children to understand their capabilities of these children and foster inclusive

mindset promoting acceptance and respect.

Conclusion

A special education teacher is a teacher who works with children of all ages who

have special needs, whether these are cognitive, emotional or physical. It was understood

that special education is helpful in developing the confidence of disabled students by

ensuring that they get the same educational benefits as their normal peers in a regular

classroom.

It was found that, special educators mainly focusing on individualized plans and

procedures. It’s important to give attention to the student’s personal needs and planning

the strategies accordingly. Majority supports the inclusive education, it helps to develop

build socialization ability. So it was inferred that special education teachers have the

opportunity to make a significant impact on the lives of their students, helping them to
achieve academic success, develop social and emotional skills, and reach their full

potential.

REFERENCES

Adams,Gerald,R. & Schvaneveldt , J.D.(1985). Understanding Research Methods.

Newyork:Longman.

Ranjit, K. (1999). Research Methodology . a step by step guide for beginner. Sage

Publication.

Sociology Group . (2019, May 24). Advantages and Disadvantages In Interview In

Research.

https://www.sociologygroug.com/advantages-disadvantages-interview-research/.

Tutorialspoint.(n.d). Interview Methods In Research Psychology.

https://www.tutorialspoint.com/Interview-methods-in-research-psychology.

Indeed .(2023, January 27). What is a special education teacher?.

https://www.indeed.com/carrier-advice/carrier-development/what

/is/a/special/education/teacher

Appendix-A

Socio demographic details

Name:

Age:

Gender:
Educational qualification:

Experience:

Marital status:

Teaching subject:

Appendix B

Interview questions

1. Why did you choose to work with special needs children?

2. What are some of your strengths as a special education teacher?

3. Which teaching strategies do you prefer the most and why?

4. What are the specific methods for specific problems as in each case of LD, Autism,

ADHD?

5. How do you encourage parental involvement in the student learning?

6. Tell us how you ensure that each student receives the right type of support.

7. Do you make use of teaching aids in your class? If yes can you describe some. If no

what are the other methods used?

8. How do you communicate with teachers about the needs of special education students.

9. How did you maximize their learning experience?

10. What are the biggest challenges as a special educator?

11. Describe the most difficult child you had to ever work with.

12. How did you work with them and were you successful?

13. What is the significance of inclusive education?

14. How effectively are you able to involve the special needs children with the

mainstream kids?

15. What are the challenges of inclusive education.