10/14/2021
We need more special education teachers. Not just in my state of Virginia in the USA, but, world wide.
We are losing them faster than any other teacher position…the retention rates for general education teachers are falling and special education is significantly worse (tons of research out there on the ‘webz’ for your googling pleasure).
Why?
That is the big and exceedingly complex questions to answer.
I just spent two days at the Virginia State Special Education Advisory Committee in Richmond, VA (state capital). We are an advisory board (no decision making) and are appointed by and assist the state board of education. I love being on this committee because we get direct communication and interaction with the people that service our most vulnerable students (special ed).
Here is my take on the problem and why the LinkedIn community should care:
1. We don’t pay teachers enough and we especially don’t pay special education teachers (the most complex and daunting teaching position) enough.
2. Lower pay means we have fewer and less qualified teachers. This results in higher student ratios in the most complex and demanding situations and guarantees two sub-optimal resutls: more stress & burnout for teachers in special ed and less effective instruction because of the lack of time.
3. Too many school systems rely on federal funding to provide the majority of their special education funding. It is great that we have federally mandated requirements for serving special education students and some funding to help with that…but, it is the floor of the need…not the ceiling. States need to begin supporting this beyond the federal money.
4. When we fail to provide quality education to our most vulnerable populations a couple of bad business outcomes happen:
(a) we create an adult population that requires more services and/or we deplete the working population as parents/relatives are required to either leave the workforce or take lower paying positions to be at home to provide care for their dependent adult children
(b) we show and demonstrate a lack of empathy as a society and that will inevitably degrade our business climate.
Personally, thanks to years of great help and service from amazing teachers my son has reached a level of function that is allowing me to grow my business again and I will be hiring employees.
I couldn’t have done it without special education teachers and I have significant resources when compared to most families. I had amazing financial and family support and am just now getting back to contributing after 15 years. What does that mean for the average family and their ability to contribute to our society/world?
For me this isn’t political…it is more. From a fiscal point of view, the numbers show that more investment in education for special needs people vastly decreases the expenditures needed over the rest of their lives.
Be Social, Be Human
Mike
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We need more special education teachers. Not just in my state of Virginia in the USA, but, world wide. We are losing them faster than any other teacher... 22 comments on LinkedIn
