La motivación para elegir Pedagogía Especial importa. Razones de estudiantes para elegir una carrera desafiante

This research addresses the assessment of the motivations that students have to train as special/differential education teachers. Its objective is to reveal the reasons for their choice to train as Special Education teachers. There is little empirical evidence on the factors that influence the choice of this specific area. The theoretical framework covers theories on motivations, the development of special education in Chile and regulations that support teaching. A qualitative approach of descriptive scope was used with an instrumental case study design, in which semi-structured interviews were applied to twelve students of the Special Education Pedagogy degree. The results indicate that the motivations are mostly intrinsic, linked to family support, and its technical-instrumental approach limits attention to social and cultural diversity, which raises the need for a paradigmatic change in the teacher training of specialist teachers who work mainly in educational communities located in the territory of the Araucanía region, Chile.