Chicago Teaching Fellows :: Making a difference in our city's classrooms.

Teaching Special Education

The Need for Special Education Teachers in CPS
Consider this fact:

30% of our nation’s positions for college professors in special education go unfilled every year; 3,000 fewer special education teachers are trained as a result. Multiply by sixteen children per teacher, and our nation is looking at 48,000 children affected by a lack of classroom teachers in one year alone (1)

Many educators agree that while a special education teacher needs additional training, good special education teachers are just very good teachers— consistent, creative, and committed to implementing strategies and tracking student progress. While it is preferred that candidates interested in teaching special education have professional or life experiences working with individuals with special needs and/or academic coursework in fields related to human development and/or behavioral science, individuals from all academic or professional backgrounds can apply to become Chicago Teaching Fellows in special education.

Chicago Public Schools needs teachers to take on the role of educator, advocate, and specialist in a classroom for children with special needs. Approximately 55,000 children in the district receive special education services and need a teacher who will work hard for them.

For more information about teaching special education in Chicago Public Schools, please visit the Office of Specialized Services website at http://www.oism.cps.k12.il.us/dept_oss.shtml.

What Do Special Education Fellows Teach?

Chicago Teaching Fellows is excited to provide Fellows with a unique opportunity to become special education teachers through alternate means. Currently, the State of Illinois does not have any approved special education alternative certification programs that allow participants to teach special education during their first year. However, in order to increase the number of highly qualified special education teachers in Chicago’s high need schools, CTF has designed a program so that Fellows will be able meet state requirements by teaching special education in their second year.

This two-year program requires that Fellows first earn their Initial Alternative Elementary Certificate by taking elementary coursework and teaching in a general elementary classroom during their first year of teaching. In their second year of teaching, special education Fellows will earn an endorsement in special education and will teach special education in an elementary school.

What Is Special Education?

Special education is a legal definition for programs that provide greater support for certain students. “Special education” does not refer to a specific location or fixed concept but rather includes a broad range of student services from a smaller, more individualized learning environment, to assistive technology, to a modified curriculum that capitalizes on a student’s particular strengths. Under the law in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), all students are provided services that support their needs.

Every teacher in the public education system works with children with disabilities and needs a basic understanding of the system. Special education teachers work largely or exclusively with students who qualify for specialized services.

For more information on the history of special education and the movement to provide all children with a free and appropriate education (FAPE), visit the website for the Council for Exceptional Children at http://www.cec.sped.org

For additional resources for teachers, parents, and students, visit the website for ID OnLine at http://www.idonline.org

Benefits of Teaching Special Education

Special education is designed around the concept of individualized curriculum. Classes are smaller, and the teacher has the opportunity to get to know students and their families at a much more personal level. The teacher’s job is to meet educational goals that have been tailored to the needs of a particular student and write new goals each year, as (s)he meets with a team that assesses the child’s progress and determines next steps in the student’s education. Fellows teaching special education will likely have the opportunity to team teach or use other teachers as a resource, building relationships throughout the school building to support the classroom. Fellows in this setting may also design individualized schedules, so that students participate in academic classes with their grade-level peers for a portion of the day.

One of the most exciting aspects of teaching special education is the opportunity to be both advocate and teacher. While teachers are first and foremost responsible for academic goals, they also work to develop a positive school environment for students with special needs. Teachers encourage students to participate in all aspects of school life and become a liaison to ensure that students receive the same opportunities as their counterparts taking a general education course load. As a case manager, special education teachers monitor students’ progress and report to families and other teachers, while at the same time relying on organizational skills to develop individualized tracking systems and manage case-related paperwork. In addition, special education Fellows will receive specialized training and support through their certification program.

While there are many challenges in teaching special education—students are often far behind their academic potential, many have internalized negative assumptions about their abilities, and special education teachers need to balance the demands of teaching and case management—there are enormous rewards. Teachers in a special education setting have the potential to see significant growth in students’ abilities and join a civil rights movement to ensure that all children have access to an outstanding education.

Most special education teachers cite strong personal relationship with students and their families, as well as smaller class sizes, as top reasons for teaching in a special education setting.

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(1) Smith, D.D., Tyler, N.C., Pion, G., Sinedelar, P.T., & Rosenburg, M.S., “The Shortage of Special Education Faculty: Why It Is Happening, Why It Matters and What We Can Do About It,” 2001