Special Education Teachers are the Ginger Rodgers of Education
Special education teachers do everything general education teachers do but “backwards and in heels” – just like the great dancer Ginger Rogers.
In addition to what their general education colleagues do, they:
- Develop custom education programs for each individual student,
- Ensure compliance with legal reporting under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA),
- Coordinate and support general education teachers (as most disabled students spend most of their time in general education classrooms),
- Coordinate schedules and support with multiple specialists,
- Oversee a team of aides,
- Create Individualized Education Programs (IEPs),
- Attend IEP meetings,
- And deal with very demanding parents.
- Too often get treated as second class employees by their fellow teachers, and administrators,
- Too often aren’t treated as “real teachers” by PTAs and parents
- … and probably a whole lot more
We have a severe staffing problem for special education across the US. Hawaii addressed their Special Educator staffing problem with a $10k stipend in 2020. It’s worked. Locally in Palo Alto, we’ve done the same for general education teachers who teach in a combined classroom with 2 curricula (as opposed to one custom program for every student). Better special education teachers will help us reduce our $1.65 million in legal settlements (in 2023) that increased modestly again in 2024.
The most fundamental problem is that All Teachers Are Special Education Teachers. Over 12 percent of all students in the US have an IEP. Most of these students spend most or nearly all of their day in general education classrooms… in a class of 20 kids, you are likely to have at least 2 students with disabilities.
However, our education system for teachers is itself segregated with general education teachers not being required to be able to teach disabled students – how can our classrooms be inclusive if all are teachers aren’t adequately trained?
In the interim, we can encourage general education teachers to become certified in special education (and keep that certification active with training)… perhaps with an annual stipend of $5000 per year.
Teachers who are currently teaching special education classes would get an additional stipend of $5000 per year… a model similar to that successfully used in Hawaii.
This structure could encourage more teachers to have an active special education credential providing schools with a larger pool of available teachers. It also increases the base level of skills available in all classrooms to support inclusive education (and probably help general education students as well)… and finally, it gives a graceful way for special education teachers to step back for a bit from the challenges of special education rather than quitting as too many do today.
