Near half of MCPS full-time teacher voids fall within Special Education

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Since almost every student requires special services these days, maybe every teacher should be a special ed teacher. I think that's the only way to solve this given the way things are trending

The few teachers I know who are dual certified don’t ever let admin know that fact[b]. They have zero desire to be moved into special ed.

I'm a MCPS admin - we have a report we can pull that lists all of the certifications of our staff members. I know I pull it every spring when it's hiring season and consider moving teachers to different grade levels.

Awesome but if you did that and expected gen ed teachers to switch to special ed, you’d run the risk of them quitting. Nobody I know would stay if that happened to them. There’s a good reason that special ed has such high vacancy rates.

PP here who is an administrator. I would never force a classroom teacher certified in SPED into that job role. Just because someone has a certification doesn't mean they want to hold the position. It's a completely different animal and skill set to be a special education teacher. The last thing anyone wants is to have someone in a position they don't desire.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Since almost every student requires special services these days, maybe every teacher should be a special ed teacher. I think that's the only way to solve this given the way things are trending

The few teachers I know who are dual certified don’t ever let admin know that fact[b]. They have zero desire to be moved into special ed.

I'm a MCPS admin - we have a report we can pull that lists all of the certifications of our staff members. I know I pull it every spring when it's hiring season and consider moving teachers to different grade levels.

Awesome but if you did that and expected gen ed teachers to switch to special ed, you’d run the risk of them quitting. Nobody I know would stay if that happened to them. There’s a good reason that special ed has such high vacancy rates.

PP here who is an administrator. I would never force a classroom teacher certified in SPED into that job role. Just because someone has a certification doesn't mean they want to hold the position. It's a completely different animal and skill set to be a special education teacher. The last thing anyone wants is to have someone in a position they don't desire.

Administrator PP,

I wish I worked at your school. I’ve been forced into a sped role. I’m struggling to hold down my other classes as well as that class. It’s too much work and I feel extremely behind in both preps now. In short: I’m miserable. I don’t think I’m serving any of my students the way I should be. I spend weekends trying to catch up, but I never get there.

Thank you for supporting your students AND teachers.

[Anonymous]

This is how they force people back into SpEd. By reducing their preferred teacher role to a .6 or .8 position.

I am SpEd certified but have never handled the paperwork and testing/meeting side. So, luckily they would probably be a fool to give me a caseload.

[Anonymous]

My sister teaches in another state. Spec Ed teachers are paid 10% more.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Many sped teachers are fleeing to ESOL
You are still helping students but the work load is easier

There’s less paperwork, but many EMLs in MCPS are twice-exceptional. Last year, all but two of my EML students had an IEP and all but two of my IEP students were an EML. Often, it is unclear whether limited language proficiency or a LD is the cause of a failure to grasp a particular skill or piece of content. I was very happy to be the general students.

I have EML students who have significant special needs that are beyond language learning. The whole system is designed to deprioritize these students. An intervention for testing at the International office needs to be institutionalized. Instead, these students are simply passed along to schools.Without IEPs, these exceptional students have the rights as any mainstream student. They need more, but it takes up to two years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My sister teaches in another state. Spec Ed teachers are paid 10% more.

Not enough.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Many sped teachers are fleeing to ESOL
You are still helping students but the work load is easier

There’s less paperwork, but many EMLs in MCPS are twice-exceptional. Last year, all but two of my EML students had an IEP and all but two of my IEP students were an EML. Often, it is unclear whether limited language proficiency or a LD is the cause of a failure to grasp a particular skill or piece of content. I was very happy to be the general students.

I have EML students who have significant special needs that are beyond language learning. The whole system is designed to deprioritize these students. An intervention for testing at the International office needs to be institutionalized. Instead, these students are simply passed along to schools.Without IEPs, these exceptional students have the rights as any mainstream student. They need more, but it takes up to two years.

Seen it happen where kids who were EML and it took years for them to qualify for services if they had been monolingual they would have been getting services a lot faster

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My sister teaches in another state. Spec Ed teachers are paid 10% more.

Not enough.

50% more would be more appropriate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How can schools meet the needs of students with disabilities without filling these positions? Some schools do not have any Special Education
Teachers:

https://moco360.media/2023/09/21/nearly-half-of-all-current-mcps-full-time-teacher-voids-fall-within-special-education-data-shows/

Proper use of educational technology can help solve this popular school management problem.

Assign the right app to meet the student’s special need.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Many sped teachers are fleeing to ESOL
You are still helping students but the work load is easier

There’s less paperwork, but many EMLs in MCPS are twice-exceptional. Last year, all but two of my EML students had an IEP and all but two of my IEP students were an EML. Often, it is unclear whether limited language proficiency or a LD is the cause of a failure to grasp a particular skill or piece of content. I was very happy to be the general students.

I have EML students who have significant special needs that are beyond language learning. The whole system is designed to deprioritize these students. An intervention for testing at the International office needs to be institutionalized. Instead, these students are simply passed along to schools.Without IEPs, these exceptional students have the rights as any mainstream student. They need more, but it takes up to two years.

Seen it happen where kids who were EML and it took years for them to qualify for services if they had been monolingual they would have been getting services a lot faster

+ 1 - I am a middle school ELD (ESOL) teacher who has two students with significant exceptional needs - no IEPs for either yet. We are going on two years with these students in mainstream classrooms. One neurologically diverse male student is taking an interest now in girls. He has closely followed one girl physically on several occasions and I keep a close eye on him in my mainstream classroom to stop this. I am concerned that he will try to touch her. I tell my AP and document these occasions in Synergy, but please God, have a school psychologist examine this student and have the school district find him a place in the appropriate learning environment.