PROPORTION OF SPECIAL EDUCATION DEGREES • In the early 2000s, special education degrees accounted for about 11–13% of all education-related degrees. • By 2020, that figure had fallen to around 8–10%, according to data from the NCES Digest of Special Education. Teachers are not only not entering the profession - but they are also leaving it at a historic rate. • Special Education Teacher turnover is roughly twice that of general education. Studies show that special educators leave the profession at nearly double the rate of general education teachers. In 2012, annual attrition was ~15% for special educators compared to much lower for general edu- cation teachers (edresearchforaction.org). • Special education teacher attrition is high: Multiple sources, including NCES and academic studies, report that approxi- mately 50% of special education teachers leave the profes- sion within their first five years (educationnext.org). • The annual departure rate is approximately 8.5%, with an additional 9.2% switching schools. One NCES report (2020– 21) showed 8.5% of public school teachers left the profes- sion entirely, while 9.2% transferred to different schools—a significant turnover burden for schools and districts (educa- tionnext.org). Given that fewer teachers are entering the profession - and staying in, we must ask a simple but difficult question: “Why?” • Why don’t we have enough qualified teachers in our class- rooms? • Why aren’t more students pursuing special education pro- grams in college or university? • Why aren’t we supporting and compensating special edu- cation teachers adequately, so they stay in the profession? Once in the classroom, special education teachers face nu- merous hurdles and are often not adequately prepared by the time they graduate. They are underpaid, have unhealthy levels of stress, not enough in-classroom personnel support, and often their administrators are not trained well on how to support them and their students. There are currently no college classes on “how to hire and/or manage qualified paraprofessionals” or “how to get more administrative support in my classroom.” Many classroom management skills are learned in the classroom during their first few years, leading to stress and a higher level of job dissatisfac- tion. LET’S DISCUSS THESE HURDLES IN MORE DETAIL. POOR PAY, STRESS, LACK OF SUPPORT The special education industry faces a critical teacher shortage due to high stress, insufficient pay, low prestige, and inadequate preparation and support. Current data shows that at the start of the 23-24 school year, 21% of public schools reported an inability
to be fully staffed in their special education department (edweek. org). According to the Department of Education about 8 percent of teachers who work with children, who qualify for services un- der the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), are not fully certified for their job placements (ed.gov). In the 2022-2023 school year, there were approximately 531,600 special education teachers employed in the United States, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. These teachers work with students from pre- school through high school, providing specialized instruction and support. Of these, there are ~42,000 special educators work- ing that are not certified for their current placement in the United States. Special education teachers must juggle case management, multi-grade and/or multi-level student/curricula issues, increas- ing paperwork and documentation loads, family meetings and knowledge of local, state and federal compliance laws. These added job responsibilities, lack of support and low pay lead to the “burnout” numbers and stress discussed above. LACK OF TIME, LACK OF RESPECT Special education teachers find themselves dealing with time constraints (limited prep time, not enough“in classroom”support/ guidance) and having to learn many skills during their first few years in the classroom. They are also asked to teach with little or no formal or district-adopted instructional materials. Often, they are creating or modifying their materials on nights and weekends to meet the needs of their students. The lack of materials and lack of time put special education teachers into a vicious circle. Besides the lack of time, special education teachers often must deal with social and perceptual stigmas that can include that they have an “easier job”, lighter workloads, more classroom support and less oversight by building and/or district administrators. These perceptions are often false, and in fact, often the opposite is true. Often special education teachers find themselves with very limited time to complete their work while in their school building and find themselves working extra hours on nights and weekends. “Nearly 9 in 10 teachers said they work more than the standard 40 hours each week, compared with less than half of all working adults.” (Edweek Publication). Therefore, from a pure financial and instructional support standpoint these teachers often find themselves struggling with time management and professional isolation, and their adminis- trators’ hands are often tied due to diminishing budgets or a pure lack of supplementing additional educators or paraprofessionals. Some simple solutions to address the lack of time and lack of re- spect are; Improving Lack of Time Reduce Administrative Burden (Boom Learning is a great solu- tion and will be discussed later in this article • Streamline IEP paperwork with better digital tools and tem- plates
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