I have worked for the public school system as a Special Education Teacher for grades Kindergarten through the fourth grade. Let me tell you. The experience was very eye-opening to me. 

Being a Special Education Teacher in the Public School System  

I hope to shed light on a problem I saw that would affect you whether you are a : 

• New teacher
• Parent of a special education student
• Special education teacher 
• Paraprofessional in the school system

My Responsibilities as a Special Education Teacher

As a new teacher, I started with a caseload of almost 20 special education students. These students each had multiple academic goals to reach. Their goals are each based on their own Individualized Education Plans.

For one special education teacher to reach all of these goals (in my opinion) is completely impossible. This is because I only saw these students forty minutes to eighty minutes each academic school day. Their time with me is based on the amount of time they required special education services, as listed on their IEPs. 

This is just not enough time to work with students to meet their academic goals. But special education teachers are also required to complete paperwork as well as hold meetings with their students’ family members and other teachers. The meetings are to discuss their child’s Individualized Education Plans. 

I had to revisit these Individualized Education Plans every six months and update them annually. Therefore, the required meetings were almost continuous. 

Sometimes, these meetings even interfered with times I should have been holding class and working with my students on their academic deficiencies.

An Impossible Schedule

When working as a special education teacher, a lot of my days started at 6:30 in the morning and didn’t end until 8:00 at night or even later. 

This was because I had to complete the necessary paperwork associated with each student I taught. I also came up with lesson plans for each student to work towards achieving their academic goals as listed on their Individualized Education Plans.

As a result of the number of hours I put into the job, I realized that it would be impossible for one Special education teacher to meet 20 students’ multiple academic goals. 

Remember, I only saw these students for about 40 minutes to 80 minutes each academic day. 

Something Had to Change

As a result of all of this, I knew I had to change my career endeavors. I wanted to follow my dream of being an exceptional educator and have a positive academic impact on academically struggling students. 

This decision eventually led me to work with SpecialEdResource.com. I believe their approach to education is a very efficient one. It is a much more efficient approach because it is much easier for one teacher to work one-on-one with students to improve their academic deficiencies. 

This is instead of one teacher having multiple students in a classroom at one time and having to meet each students’ individual academic goals. 

How Special Ed Resource Makes a Difference

If you would like to see a positive academic impact on your student’s or child’s academic abilities, I would definitely consider enrolling him as a student in SpecialEdresource.com. 

At SpecialEdResource.com, each tutor designs an individualized education plan to meet any academic deficiencies your child may have. The tutors employed by SpecialEdresource.com work on your child’s educational goals. 

They do this with patience and efficiency to see a positive impact on your child’s academic progress and abilities. It is a pleasure working with SpecialEdResource.com. I strongly believe in their approach to learning, and I hope you will as well.

More Resources to Help You Succeed as a Special Education Professional

What experiences have you had as a special educator in the public school system? Please share your experience with us below in the comments. 

Here are a few other resources you may be interested in reading: 

• Top 5 Stressors of a Special Education Teacher & How to Deal
• How to Succeed Remote Teaching of Special Ed
• Real Stories by Teachers- I Went Back

Feel free to checkout out more information about becoming a tutor at Special Ed Resource.

You can also get weekly tips and techniques from a fellow Special Educator and parent of a special needs child.

Would you like to provide your students with that one-on-one special education tutoring that can be done from anywhere? Our special education experts conduct their sessions online! Share this link with them to get started with a free consultation!