Top Special Education Schools
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Special Education Teacher Jobs
A special education teacher must have a specialized education over and above a regular teaching degree. They must be organized, patient, and able to motivate students, and be understanding of their students’ special needs, accepting their differences.
People with special education teacher jobs are trained to work with various age groups with disabilities that can range from learning disabilities to physical or emotional disabilities. Often these children are separated from the general classroom, although in some instances, can be integrated into classes with students without special needs.
Your responsibility as a special education teacher will be primarily teaching them life skills and basic literacy. The majority of special education teacher jobs require work with children with mild to moderate disabilities, where the general education curriculum is modified to meet the child’s individual needs. Instruction of children will be from preschool and elementary, through secondary school level.
Education Required
All states require teachers to be licensed and have a Bachelor‘s Degree in Education with additional course work or field work in special education. Some states are stricter, requiring a Master’s Degree in Special Education, with at least one year of additional coursework, including a specialized field such as emotional or physical disabilities.
Many States have reciprocity agreements, allowing those with special education teacher jobs to transfer their licenses from one state to another, while others require that even experienced teachers must take continuing education classes in order to retain their certification. Because of the difficulty obtaining teachers with a special education certification, many states offer alternative licensing programs.
Benefits and Salary
Special education teacher jobs are rising due to increased enrollments of students and the reported shortages of qualified teachers. Helping these students is highly rewarding, but the work can be emotionally demanding and physically draining. Expect heavy workloads and administrative tasks with substantial amounts of paperwork, documenting each student’s progress showing parents that their child is receiving an adequate education.
Salaries for special education teacher jobs will vary not only by tenure in the profession but also from state to state. Pay can range from $35,000 to $80,000 per year.
