Special Ed and Bilingual Teacher Shortages

The November 1 report on meeting the needs of students with requirements in Special Education in NYC schools brings to light some interesting data, among which:

• There are not enough Special Education Certified Teachers to meet demand
• Not all students receive all of the supports in their IEPs (though it’s getting better)
• The City needs more Special Ed and Bilingual certified teachers
• Teachers who get certification in bilingual and special education will see opportunities for jobs

Here is the complete report 

Teaching out of license? We can help.

• Bilingual Spanish Certification
• Special Education Certification (for professionally certified teachers)
• Special Education Certification (for teachers without professional certification)

Shortage areas:

An important aspect of the shortage of Special Education teachers: while teacher turnover is down in general for the city, in certain schools and subject areas, it is still a problem.

Subject shortages in New York (and throughout the country) are a constant source of frustration for administrators; it’s difficult to find certified educators in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) subjects, in ESL (English as a Second Language) and in special education. Kate Walsh, the executive director of the National Council on Teacher Quality, says teacher preparation programs do not tend to direct budding educators towards shortage areas.

Source: City Limits

Stats: Bilingual and Special Education teachers are teaching out of license

In New York City, 19 percent of bilingual education were not certified in the subject, compared to 10.2 percent on the state level. Additionally, 14 percent of the city’s special education teachers were not teaching with proper subject certification, compared to 1.1 percent on the state level (all the state numbers all exclude NYC statistics), according to the New York State School Boards Association.

Source: NYSSBA

Teaching out of license? We can help.

• Bilingual Spanish Certification
• Special Education Certification (for professionally certified teachers)
• Special Education Certification (for teachers without professional certification)

District 75:

District 75, a specialized district in NYC, has been hit particularly hard but he shortage in Special Education-certified teachers:

There have been 400 new teachers hired in District 75 schools since the start of the new school year, according to the DOE, and recruitment efforts include trips to universities and job fairs targeting appropriately-credentialed educators. Additionally, the DOE offers a multi-year financial incentive for new teachers who commit to work in a “Teachers of Tomorrow” high need school, which includes most District 75 schools.

“All students deserve a high-quality education, and we’ve made progress in in supporting our students with disabilities by hiring more staff, improving data tracking and staff training programs, and creating new partnerships with providers,” DOE spokesperson Doug Cohen says. “We know there is more work to do, and the chancellor is laser-focused on addressing the concerns of District 75 parents.”

Source: City Limits

Students are not receiving all services

According to the Nov. 1 study on all city schools:

Last school year, just over 78 percent of students received all of the supports required by their individual learning plans, which can include services such as  counseling or physical or behavioral therapy. That represents an increase from the 2016-17 school year, when 73 percent of students received all mandated services.

The report is the first under schools Chancellor Richard Carranza, who faced a special education crisis in his last job as head of Houston’s public schools. Since arriving in New York City, he has vowed to make special education a priority — though the city has struggled to pay special education therapists on time or even get students with disabilities to school.

Source: Chalkbeat

Improvements, year over year:

Though, the report indicates improvements:

SY 2016–17 reflected a substantial improvement over SY 2015–16: the percentage of students receiving their recommended special education programs in full increased to 72.8% from 59.2%, and the percentage of students not served decreased from 7.9% to 4.1%. So, while the problem is being addressed, there’s still a ways to go. in SY 2017-2018, the city made even more gains towards this goal.

The report mentions areas of need, where the city needs to recruit more teachers: bilingual education and special education. This means that there is an opportunity for certified bilingual and special ed teachers.

Source: Nov. 1 report

Teaching out of license? We can help.

• Bilingual Spanish Certification
• Special Education Certification (for professionally certified teachers)
• Special Education Certification (for teachers without professional certification)

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CITE is the Center for Integrated Training and Education. For over 25 years, CITE has trained:

TEACHERS (Early Childhood Masters, Childhood (k-6) Masters, Professional Certification, TESOL Certification, Special Ed Certification, Grad Courses, Bilingual Spanish courses for certification, DASA); COUNSELORS (School Counseling, Mental Health Counseling Masters, Advanced Certificate); and ADMINISTRATORS (SBL, SDL, Public Admin, Doctorate) in all five boroughs of NYC, Yonkers, Westchester, and Long Island.

CITE PD offers CTLE-approved in-school professional development tailored to your school’s needs and your vision. Info: citepd.com

We now also offer an undergraduate degree completion program in psychology.

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