Overview
This page provides a summary of Michael Kennedy’s professional background and highlights video resources focused on special education practices and teacher development.
About Michael Kennedy
- Michael Kennedy is a Professor of Special Education at the University of Virginia.
- His work centers on creating videos and resources for special education instruction and teacher training.
- He is based in Charlottesville, Virginia, and uses he/him pronouns.
- Contact via email: [email protected].
- Main resource websites: spedintro.com and highleveragepractices.org/videos.
Featured Video Resources
- COACHED Introductory Video: Overview of the COACHED program for teacher preparation.
- HLP 10: How to conduct functional behavior assessments and implement behavior support plans.
- HLP 9: Strategies for teaching social skills to students.
- HLP 21: Teaching students to maintain and generalize skills over time and across settings.
- (Legacy) HLP 1: Collaborating with colleagues to improve student success.
- Cognitive Load in Multimedia: Examines cognitive load theory and its impact on effective multimedia learning for students and teachers.
- Arizona CEEDAR Webinars: Focus on using COACHED and cognitive load theory to enhance teacher candidate knowledge and practice.
- School Administrators & HLPs: Guidance for administrators on mentoring, coaching, and collaborating around high-leverage practices.
- Co-Taught Math Lesson: Example of collaborative teaching in a middle school mathematics setting.
Key Terms & Definitions
- Special Education — Instruction designed to meet the needs of students with disabilities.
- High-Leverage Practices (HLPs) — Critical teaching practices shown to improve student outcomes.
- Functional Behavior Assessment — Process for identifying causes of challenging behaviors to inform support plans.
- Cognitive Load — The amount of mental effort being used in working memory.
- COACHED — Program or resource for supporting teacher knowledge and implementation of evidence-based practices.
Action Items / Next Steps
- Explore video resources at highleveragepractices.org/videos or spedintro.com.
- Review assigned HLP videos relevant to upcoming class discussions.
- Contact Michael Kennedy for questions or collaborations in special education.