Special Education Report Roundup

Special Education Faculty

By Nirvi Shah — October 04, 2011 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

The shortage of K-12 special education teachers stems in part from an ongoing dearth of college faculty members to train them, according to a report that predicts the shortage of college-level special educators could grow worse.

Four years of study by the Special Education Faculty Needs Assessment project found that the demand for special education professors continues to outstrip the supply. During the next five years, institutions of higher education that grant doctoral degrees in special education will lose one-half to two-thirds of their faculty members to retirement alone, research effort found.

To expand the pipeline into the field, the researchers’ recommendations include: increasing federal support for doctoral studies in special education so that students can pursue their degrees full time; providing more support from universities and the federal government for blended teacher-preparation programs that allow teacher-candidates to earn their degrees and teaching credentials at the same time; and recruiting culturally and linguistically diverse doctoral students interested in becoming faculty members.

The project is a federally funded effort involving researchers from three universities.

Related Tags:

A version of this article appeared in the October 05, 2011 edition of Education Week as Special Education Faculty

Events

Ed-Tech Policy Webinar Artificial Intelligence in Practice: Building a Roadmap for AI Use in Schools
AI in education: game-changer or classroom chaos? Join our webinar & learn how to navigate this evolving tech responsibly.
Education Webinar Developing and Executing Impactful Research Campaigns to Fuel Your Ed Marketing Strategy 
Develop impactful research campaigns to fuel your marketing. Join the EdWeek Research Center for a webinar with actionable take-aways for companies who sell to K-12 districts.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Privacy & Security Webinar
Navigating Cybersecurity: Securing District Documents and Data
Learn how K-12 districts are addressing the challenges of maintaining a secure tech environment, managing documents and data, automating critical processes, and doing it all with limited resources.
Content provided by Softdocs

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Special Education Video Inside an Inclusive Classroom: How Two Teachers Work Together
This model for inclusive education benefits students of all abilities, and the teachers instructing them.
1 min read
Special Education Using Technology for Students in Special Education: What the Feds Want Schools to Know
Assistive technology can improve outcomes for students in special education, according to the U.S. Department of Education.
4 min read
Black students using laptop in the lab with white female teacher- including a female student with special needs.
E+/Getty
Special Education Q&A Schools Should Boost Inclusion of Students With Disabilities, Special Olympics Leader Says
Schools have work to do to ensure students with intellectual and developmental disabilities feel a sense of belonging, Tim Shriver said.
6 min read
Special Olympics Chairman Timothy Shriver greets a child at one of the organization’s events.
Special Olympics Chairman Timothy Shriver greets a child at one of the organization’s events.
Courtesy of Special Olympics
Special Education Spotlight Spotlight on the Science of Reading for Students with Disabilities
This Spotlight will empower you with strategies to apply the science of reading to support students with learning differences and more.