Almost Every State Needs More Special Ed Teachers. How Can They Get Them?
Prior to 1975, there was no federal requirement that schools serve students with disabilities. From the beginning of the public schooling movement, there has been a shortage of people equipped to properly serve disabled students. Oftentimes, special education services are an add-on element offered without changing the school culture or making the campus a totally inclusive and equitable space. There was often the sentiment that children with IEPs or 504 plans need be to be segregated into their own space. Now, there’s been an increasing drive for properly inclusive schools - not just inclusive in name only. In the current system in the US, we have some schools that do inclusion quite well, and we have quite a few where inclusion and equity are just words, not actual policies and practices.
For example, the popular curricular offerings are typically not universally accessible. As a teacher, I may get a student a textbook and workbook. But, if I have a student who visually impaired, it’s very rare that the student package comes with an audio disc or file that I can use to help the student. I’ve taught students with emotional and behavioural and learning disabilities. I had students in fifth grade being at a kindergarten reading level. The assessments that came with our curricular materials were written in such an inaccessible way that I’ve had to read them aloud to students. In special education, one is always adjusting everything to scaffold the learning for students.
Schools and districts that do these things well tend to be much more affluent. In special education law, the mechanism for making schools change their systems is parent advocacy. If the parents don’t push the system, there’s no incentive to improve, and the parents who are well-equipped to do that are generally affluent parents who can hire lawyers.
You see, to effectively teach disabled students takes a tremendous depth of knowledge and skills. If you have a student who’s reading at a first-grade level in your fifth grade class, you have to have deep linguistic knowledge, knowledge of phonics and reading instruction, as well as behaviour management, because, probably, they’re going to be acting up if they’re struggling that much. As for being a good special education teacher, people often reduce it to just character traits like patience and love, but it takes really sophisticated knowledge and skill.
What’s the solution?
Pay is one small piece. Paying people more acknowledges the extra work they’re doing to address the fact that schools are not oriented towards their students’ needs, as well as the extra expertise and certifications required to teach students in the areas where they struggle. Schools and districts can also develop a support network for beginning special education teachers, where they get together virtually and in person. How about a whole special education teacher appreciation system honoring what special educators are doing. Supporting teachers requires a more comprehensive system of supports, not just a pay rise.
We also need to make the jobs easier. Remember, the special education teacher is also a special education case carrier. They often have to manage 15-25 IEPs in addition to their classroom duties. To be successful, we have to ensure that they get enough planning time. To have a situation where general education teachers and special education teachers receive the same amount of planning time is not equitable or practical given that special education teachers have dual roles - and double the work.
As far as helping things go right in the first place, why is any district buying curricula that are not accessible to every single student? Students with disabilities have a right to access general education curricula. Why not build that premise into every purchase?
My friends, these problems have been around since the 1970s. Whilst they have been getting better, and some working conditions are getting better, there’s a long way to go. The changes in DSM-V lead to an explosion of the SPED student population. That fact is part of the motivation that underlies the changes in DSM-V-TR. We would expect about a 2% SPED student population under a regular distribution. Some public schools are seeing a 10% - 20% SPED student population without a corresponding increase in funding for SPED.
There is also the problem of credentialing. States like California add certification tests to their credentialing process that make the path to a clear SPED credential longer and more complicated than their general education peers. For me, in my state and district, to clear my credential requires two additional certifications (RICA / CTEL) that add six tests to my journey. Not to mention the almost $800 in testing costs. For those whose teacher prep program did not prepare them for these horrid tests, there’s the additional hundreds or thousands to pay for private tutoring. Making these additional certifications optional, but incentivizing teachers to earn them through pay premiums, would go a long way to removing barriers to the becoming a teacher. But, doing this requires us to defeat a powerful mega-corporation with a huge lobbying budget. Making those tests optional would put a dent in Pearson Education’s profits, so they lobby hard for keeping these in place … and adding more.