Itinerant teachers. Responsibilities, perceptions, preparation, and students served

Increased numbers of deaf and hard of hearing students live at home, attend their neighborhood schools, and receive major portions of their educations from general education teachers with support from itinerant teachers of deaf and hard of hearing students. Although the itinerant service-delivery model is used extensively, there is a paucity both of information about itinerant teaching and of research that has examined its effectiveness. The purpose of this study was to begin a database of information about the job responsibilities, perceptions, and preparation of itinerant teachers, as well as about the characteristics of the students they serve. Data from surveys returned by 319 itinerant teachers was analyzed. The responses indicate that itinerant teaching differs in numerous ways from more-traditional approaches to educating deaf and hard of hearing students. Results, implications, concerns, and suggestions for future research are discussed.