Here’s a case illustration of the need for qualified—let alone “highly qualified”—special education teachers, as reported by Heather Bremner of the Gilroy (CA, US) Dispatch. The lead is so much better than I can do in summarizing her treatment of the topic that I shall quote more than I usually quote:
Special education teachers are so rare that even without an emergency credential, Katrina Strand landed a job at Gilroy High School.
The Gilroy Unified School District board unanimously approved the move at a recent meeting. Strand, who is teaching the GHS special day class, worked as a long-term special education substitute in another district, but she has yet to earn a teaching credential or enough units in special education to apply for an emergency permit.
GUSD Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources Linda Piceno said she had to make the recommendation because special education teachers are “just not out there.”
“The demand is certainly exceeding the supply,” she said.
Of the district’s 33 special education teachers, three have emergency credentials and one has a waiver.
Ms. Bremner goes on to explain how this situation will be exacerbated by the provision of No Child Left Behind, which requires that special education teachers be highly qualified in subject areas they teach. It is an insightful report on this important subject, worth reading.
Link to Ms. Bremner’s article
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