“It enables me to realise my fantasies regarding the practicum”: A preliminary study of an academia–school partnership in Israel

Models of collaboration between teacher training institutions and Professional Development Schools have become commonplace in general teacher education. These partnerships are less well documented when it comes to special education teacher training, and are particularly scarce with regard to models of collaboration with special education schools. This article presents an exploratory study of a 10-year-old partnership between a special education department at a Teacher Training College in Israel and a special school for children with developmental disabilities. The partnership is analysed utilising criteria that characterise successful Professional Development Schools. Strengths and weaknesses of the model are discussed and recommendations for future directions and research are presented.