I have a hunch my answers are not just unique to me. Bet you can relate to them, too.

So, here they are...in no particular order...

#1: Government mandated paperwork.

Who knew being a special education teacher would be so, well, secretarial? Don’t get me wrong, secretaries are great (I sure could use one!), if that’s what you signed up for. Not so great when you signed up to teach. Any wonder that most special educators don’t even make it to year seven? Special-Education-Teacher-Resources will show you how to avoid the former-SPED-teacher statistical graveyard.

One of the big reasons that so many special ed teachers end up leaving the field is that special education pre-service programs teach us how to write programs and manage behaviors, if we’re lucky. What’s missing is training in how to manage all of the paperwork. It’s a full-time job just to make sure our caseloads are in compliance with NCLB, IDEA, and State regulations. Oh, and by the way, we’re supposed to teach at the same time. (Whatya mean that handshake from the Dean at graduation didn't infuse me with superpowers?! I wore that silly cape and superhero suit under my graduation gown for nothing!)

#2. Money. Specifically, the lack of it.

This one really gets on my nerves. Like a lot of you, I have a master's degree. If I had a master's degree in just about any other field, I'd be paid like a professional right out of the gate, especially if there weren't enough people to fill all the available jobs. Not so with teaching.

Even though there is a massive shortage of special education teachers across the country, the pay is lousy. When I started teaching in 1996, my starting salary was $19,000! That was in Utah. Now I'm in New England and I'll be lucky to see $60,000 by the time I'm eligible to retire in 20 years. It's just not right that more and more professional teachers have to take a second job just to make ends meet.

#3. Wellness and Personal Growth

You know, it's important to stay fresh, excited and always learning, if you're going to be an effective teacher and connect with the kids. We all know teachers or had teachers who've lost their spark. They are burned out. We need to head off the possibility of us burning out at the proverbial pass.

I supervise five paraprofessionals. They are great women to work with, but, to be really honest, management is not my favorite part of the job. This part of the job was never even touched on anywhere in my pre-service training. Probably wasn't for you either. That's totally crazy, too, because I don't know any special education teachers who aren't supervising at least one paraprofessional!

If I'd run across a website back when I first started teaching, one that was specific to these three big issues special educators face-- mandated paperwork load, poor pay and keeping well--I would have been ecstatic! But, just like when I needed a centralized website about homeschooling children with disabilities, there wasn't one anywhere. So Homeschooling Kids With Disabilities was born. That was in 1997, and even today it continues to help out a lot of people. So back to the drawing board I go to create a website focusing on what I think are three big neglected areas for special education teachers, in particular.

As the headline says, the site is under construction, so check back often to see what's new.

Happy Reading!

Deborah Walker