Examination of the views of preschool teachers working in special education and rehabilitation centers regarding educational and managerial processes

In this study, it was aimed to examine the views of preschool teachers working in special education and rehabilitation centers regarding the educational and managerial processes. One of the qualitative research designs "Case Study" was used in the survey. The study group of the research consists of 28 preschool teachers working in Private Special Education and Rehabilitation Centers located in 12 different districts affiliated to the Ministry of National Education on the European Side of Istanbul between February 24, 2024 and July 25, 2024 in the 2024-2025 academic year, selected using the "Easily Accessible Sampling Method from Purposive Sampling Methods". In the study, "Demographic Form" and a semi-structured interview form titled "Opinions of Preschool Teachers Working in Special Education and Rehabilitation Centers on Educational and Administrative Processes" prepared by the researcher by taking expert opinion were used as data collection tools. The data obtained were analyzed using "Content Analysis", one of the qualitative data analysis methods. As a result of the survey, it was seen that preschool teachers encountered various problems during the education process they provided to children with special needs in special education and rehabilitation centers where they worked in the field of special education, which is outside their field. It was concluded that most of the problems were that the institution did not provide sufficient materials, they had difficulties in coping with problem behaviors and classroom management, and they had educational problems due to the inability of preschool teachers to show competence in the field. It was seen that preschool teachers preferred the field of special education instead of their own field mostly due to the desire to improve themselves in this field, financial reasons and the idea that preschool education is difficult. It was concluded that working in the field of special education in the majority of preschool teachers caused professional wear and tear, especially because children with special needs could not develop in a short time. It was concluded that the majority of the teachers participated in various certificate trainings to improve themselves in the field of special education. It was observed that the majority of the teachers had sufficient knowledge about children due to their long years of experience in the profession; they used methods and techniques such as family interviews, obtaining information from the child's other teachers and interview forms to get to know the children; and they used the evaluation form to evaluate the children. It was concluded that the majority of the participant teachers thought that the child's diagnosis in the CRC report was inconsistent with the child's educational needs. The reason for this is that the CRC (Counselling and Research Center) cannot accurately determine the needs of children, the CRC conducts quick and short-term evaluations, evaluates the child's current performance, does not conduct detailed evaluations, and is not suitable for the characteristics of the child's developmental period. When the communication status of the participant teachers with the family was examined, it was found that they usually communicated twice a week (at the end of each session), but 50% of the families did not cooperate in the education process of their children and did not fulfill their responsibilities.