carreer in special education????????

Question

i will be in college this coming fall of 2007. i am thinking of special education but i can"t find a site that explains the pros, cons, and responsibilities of the job. do you know any sites? thank you.

Answer 1

Pros:
job security (special education teachers are needed)

working for school districts provide you with good pension and benefits

You can specialize: learning support for learning disabled kids, autistic support, life skills, medically handicapped, resource room, early intervention, high school, middle school, elementary school.

Rewarding job that can be tough most of the time, but well worth the effort when you look into your student's faces.

Cons:

TONS and TONS and TONS of paperwork! Check into the IDEIA law.

Education reform law: No child left behind (it's leaving a lot of kids behind) and making teacher certification harder to get and maintain

Special education teachers tend to burn out very easily.

You must earn your masters degree or 36+ post bachelor credits to earn permanent certification (this could be a plus or a minus depending on how you look at it.

I recommend that you get dual or triple certification (special ed.. regular ed., secondary ed., or early childhood) that would give you a possiblity of changing positions if you would want. Multiple certifications would make you more marketable. If you want to learn more about special education go to the Council of Exceptional Children. It's a national organization for special education teachers and support professionals.

I work in special education and I can't imagine working in another job. It is truly my way of following my bliss. See if you can do some observations in a local school...you might love what you see....Good luck!!

Answer 2

I don't know any sites, but I am a special education teacher. I can give you my pros/cons/responsibilities

pros - work with kids, everyday is new and is a challenge, get to plan fun hands on lessons, work with social workers, gen. ed. teachers, educational assistants, if you can appreciate small progress it is very rewarding, summers and holidays off

cons - more meetings than I thought there would be, paperwork!, somedays can be frustrating - but I am sure that happens in any job, high bun out rate

responsibilites - plan lessons, collaborate with other teachers, report progress on individual education plan goals, have IEP meetings and do the paperwork, depending what area of special ed you are in you may be responsible to take some sort of non-violent crisis intervention training

***Overall, it is a great job. Maybe you could volunteer in a classroom where you live once in awhile to get a better idea for everything the job includes. .

Answer 3

I'm a special ed teacher. I teach high school level science to students with a multitude of disabilities (learning disabilities, emotional disturbances, etc).

PROS:
I love my kids. My worst day at school has not compared to my worst day in an office where I was miserable.

I get 5% above my base salary for being special educator.

My classes are small, state law mandates I can only have 10 students per class hour.

CONS:
There is additional paperwork, compliances, laws and deadlines that you have to be aware of. You have to have some sort of organization or you'll find yourself going in circles!!

Parents that think that because their child is in special education that their student can say or do anything and not be held accountable.

Not being appreciated by other teachers, administrators, etc.

If you aren't sure that it's something you really want to do, take some elective classes in Special Ed and see if you like it. I had a major in Psychology but took all my electives in SpEd. I wanted to be a psychiatrist, but life turned out differently and I had my SpEd to fall back on. Good luck in whatever you choose to do.

Answer 4

There are a lot of pros and cons to special education. It does give you job security, but there is a ton of paperwork and crap you have to deal with to do your job. But despite all of the bad things, you get to really make a difference in a child's life. A child with special needs get excited about every thing they do correctly. Breakthroughs don't happen too often, but when they do, they are amazing. You leave work thinking that you made a difference. I love my job so much. If I didn't have to work with the adults, it would be the best job in the world.
A site that would have good links for any questions is www.nea.org.
Good luck in your decision!

Answer 5

I am an Cross Categorical Teacher (primarily EBD/OHI):

Pros:
Work with kids individually.

Work with great parents.

Make a difference in a kids life.

Flexibility with programming and schedule.


Cons:
Your first year on the job...they can be tough.

The time it takes to learn the acronyms that are thrown around.

Some parents can be high maintenance and/or mentally ill.

PAPERWORK...almost everything needs a meeting or 10 pages of paperwork. YUCK! The worst part is...the paperwork is ALWAYS changing!

Lots and lots of poverty

Needed:
Excellent time management and self advocacy skills are needed in this profession. Often teachers "bite off more than they can chew" or are responsible for way to many kids (or at least more than they can handle). It can also help to work with a bigger school where you can get adequate training and learn under experienced teachers who are good team players and like what they do.

Classes that Helped Me:
Counseling Classes.
Testing/Evaluation and Assessment Classes

Answer 6

Some of the pros are that there will always be a job for you. It is the single largest area of job openings in education, and it pays pretty well due ot the demand.

The cons are that there is a huge burn out rate, it can be very stressful.

Speak to a special ed teacher at your school.

Answer 7

I don't know of any sites, but I can give you personal experience. Special education workers have to be extremely dedicated. It is a tough job. I am working in the preschool-age group, ages 18 months-5 years. I have worked with children who are blind, several cerebral palsy children, autistic children, children with extreme birth defects, microcephaly, hydrocephaly, behavior problems, speech disorders, FAS (Fetal Alcohol Syndrome), children with sensory integration disorder- just to mention a few. Some issues are hard to work with, others are easier. You have to be committed to tons of paperwork, working incessantly on each child's skills, and love challenges. You have to be able to adapt to situations, work with other professionals, and be an advocate for the children you work with. You have to be a self-starter, organized, and be passionate about what you do. You have to be able to take constructive criticism, and learn from your mistakes. Cons- emotionally exhausting, buerocratic crap working with the school districts, parents who are blocking their child's progression, paperwork, paperwork, paperwork. Pros- amazing children, you learn something new everyday, sense of accomplishment, you are needed and valued by those children, the smiles, the hugs, the kisses, the genuine heartfelt thanks from parents who are trying to have the best for their child, you get to work with and learn from amazing people, you find out that being different is incredible... the list could go on and on... It just depends on what you are willing to dedicate- this is not a job, but a passion. You have to love doing this or it is not going to work. I would suggest that if you are seriously considering this as a field of expertise, to observe. Find a few schools in your area that have children with special needs- preferably in different age ranges. This way, you can see a classroom in its workings, and determine the age range you'd like to work with. Some people do better/feel more comfortable with older students, others like me, love the little ones. Definitely look into it before you start- you may realize this is not the field for you. Then again, you may love it as much as I do and make it your life's work. Good luck in your endeavors!

Answer 8

certificates very completion is ordinarily for individuals who're regularly unable to end the needs of the state for eligible graduation. this does not advise they don't have abilities to get a job. The IEP has transtion centers that at age 14. This transition plan starts to describe the aptitude of the pupil and how they could be waiting to be mentioned to pass into into the group of workers. a character's skill is in easily fact what gets them a job. some individuals specially training are heavily impaired cognitively, socially, emotionally, and actual. LD infants do would desire to stand stringent testing because of the fact of No toddler Left on the back of. unfortunately, those assessments tend to somewhat have a detrimental result on the toddler. Standardized testing for LD infants is amazingly hectic and could not be an passable assessment. unfortunately, the alternative assessment in maximum states is for tremendously impaired persons and not maximum suitable for LD infants. infants with looking out disabilities would desire to in no way thoroughly seize up...for this reason they have have been given an IEP (character educational plan)....This meets their needs and enables them to get carry of as lots as they might. Passing with out studying analyzing, writing and math is a situation of the previous.

Answer 9

The pro's- very rewarding job
the con's-highly stressful, you need to be extremely patient, you risk injuries daily, low pay.

I work with children who have multiple disabilities and disorders- I love my job, it's hard some days and easy others but the little things the kids do make it all worth it.

Answer 10

You can get a carreer in special education!!!!!!!!!!!