Content area
Full text
Dr. Bonnie Jones is an education program specialist in the Research to Practice Division of the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP), U.S. Department of Education. Dr. Jones has keen interests in teacher collaboration, portfolio assessment, and teacher development, She has spent the majority of her career focusing on issues related to high school students with disabilities, such as improving their school outcomes and their successful transition to postschool employment and postsecondary education, as well as improving professional standards for teaching. Her various interests are a result of her combined background in general and special education and her former work in curriculum development while in district- and state-level positions.
Initially, Dr Jones was prepared as a general educator at the upper elementary and middle school levels. She spent the first 3 years of her teaching career working in self-contained special education classrooms at middle schools in Connecticut and Florida. Through this experience, she became interested in students with disabilities and went on to complete a master's degree in learning disabilities (LD) at George Mason University.
As a master's student, Dr Jones acquired valuable knowledge about the impact of disability on learning, making instructional adaptations for students with disabilities, and applying that knowledge to her teaching. After receiving her master's degree and spending a few more years as a high school resource teacher for students with LD, Dr Jones realized that students with disabilities needed a deeper curriculum than she could provide. In the mid-1970s, long before inclusion became common, Dr Jones decided, with the support of her administrators, to co-teach high school English and world history with general education colleagues and included her students with disabilities in the classrooms. This experience was a pivotal one for Dr Jones. She recognized how important it was for students with LD to be taught by educators with content expertise, as well as by those who could adapt and organize instruction for a wider range of learner needs.
Dr Jones has spent over a decade working in administrative positions. At district and state levels, she has been extensively involved in developing and implementing curricular and system changes that included teacher professional development, primarily for improving high school transition.
Her interest in portfolio assessment stems from her previous teaching experiences...