What Special Education Teachers are Saying About Their Profession

The Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) conducted an Internet survey during 1998–99 to obtain perceptions of special education teachers about the status of special education programs in their schools. Almost 200 teachers from thirty-two states responded to the survey. On average, the respondents had been teaching students with disabilities for five and a half years and had a caseload of twenty students. A majority reported that they were spending increasingly more time on paperwork and meetings and less time for teaching their students. A large majority (83 percent) indicated that they did not have enough time to spend on each individual student. Many also complained about IEPs and the legalese of IEP forms, and teachers in both general education and special education said they wanted easier access to modified textbooks for students with disabilities rather than having to spend time adapting existing materials for individual students enrolled in special education programs.

Over 1,500 special education teachers responded to a more recent survey conducted by the Texas Center for Educational Research (TCER) in 2006. Educators who responded had an average caseload of twenty-five students, the majority of which (57.9 percent) were categorized as learning disabled; smaller percentages of students had disabilities in areas of emotional problems (9 percent), mental retardation (7.6 percent), autism (4.3 percent), speech and language (4.1 percent), and developmental delay (1.3 percent). Thirty-five percent of respondents had a master's degree or higher. In response to a severe shortage of special education teachers nationally and high turnover rates in the profession, the survey looked at how special education teachers felt about their job and special education in particular. Although the respondents were generally satisfied, approximately onethird of the respondents stated that they planned to leave their positions in the following year.

Why would special education teachers be inclined to leave their profession? Frustration with paperwork and non-teaching responsibilities were high on the list of reasons. The special education teachers who responded to the TCER survey indicated that they spent an average of 57.9 hours a month (approximately 1.4 weeks per month) engaged in non-teaching activities (for example, planning, paperwork, meetings, and committees). In addition, they specified other needs:

• More release time for professional development
• Adequate classroom space and equipment
• Access to reliable computers in order to complete paperwork
• Adequate support regarding legal issues
• Opportunities to meet with other special education teachers in the district

For the majority of special education teachers, elements that would increase job satisfaction included more time to work with students; improved classroom facilities; and a supportive school environment. Supportive school environments were described as having

• Teacher involvement in the decision-making process
• A campus administrator who provides information and advice and helps resolve classroom issues
• Policies that are consistently applied
• A principal who understands the challenges of working in special education
• Evaluative feedback to improve teaching
• An administrator who considers student and teacher capabilities when placing students
• A principal who is knowledgeable about special education laws

As a result of their survey, TCER made two recommendations on how to improve special education services and the quality of the school environment:

1. Find ways to inform parents and general education teachers about special education topics.
2. Create more opportunities for teachers to spend uninterrupted time with their students in adequate classroom facilities.