A survey of 158 rural special education teachers found that 57% expected to be in the same position in 5 years. A predictive model developed through logistic regression analysis suggested that administrative support and job requirements played important roles in teachers' five-year plans. (Author/DB)

For over a decade, University of Florida researchers worked with middle schools in a large urban and suburban south Florida district, as they developed and then worked to sustain inclusive reform. One middle school, Socrates, was notably successful, having built its inclusion model on a foundation of previous reform and a school culture…

This study used path analysis to examine the effects of work-related factors--including principal support, stress, role problems, job satisfaction, and commitment--on 542 Virginia special educators' expressions of intent to stay in teaching. The study concluded that these work-related variables should be included in strategies for retaining…

Survival analysis was used to examine and follow the career paths of 6,642 special education teachers hired in Michigan and North Carolina between 1972 and 1983. Educators most likely to leave teaching included those serving students with speech, hearing, or vision disabilities; teachers with high test scores; and teachers paid comparatively low…

A survey of 1,576 Florida special-education teachers examined factors that contribute to their propensity to leave or stay in the special education classroom or transfer to a new school. Teachers left special education teaching primarily due to insufficient certification, perceptions of high stress, and perceptions of poor school climate.…

This study of 92 special educators and related service providers evaluated two interventions (a series of stress management workshops and a peer-collaboration program) on factors correlated with turnover (burnout, job satisfaction, and organizational commitment). The interventions showed promise as a means of providing on-the-job support for…

This article considers links between instructional group size and student engagement, caseload and academic achievement, and caseload and special educator attrition. Findings indicate larger caseload and group sizes negatively affect math and reading achievement, student engagement increases when group sizes decrease, and high teacher attrition…

The authors focus on the need for administrators to deal with the problem of teacher burnout as it relates to the implementation of Public Law 94-142 (the Education for All Handicapped Children Act). (Author)