Research focusing on retention is vital for addressing the shortage of qualified special educators. In this phenomenological study, therefore, 21 early career special educators in Wisconsin were interviewed to investigate what factors most motivated them to continue in their profession. The study also examined how early career special educators…

Annual goals are an essential component of Individual Educational Programs (IEP), which are developed for students with disabilities, and which are informed by data. However, the methods and practices that special educators use to make sense of data to inform the annual IEP goals represent a gap in research literature. This qualitative study was…

This study investigated the impact of technology on students with special needs. Technology is increasingly becoming more embedded in education and is used to help support a wide variety of student accommodations. As technology usage in education increases, it is important that research on its impact on student population groups includes special…

Special education teachers play a unique and vital role in the education system, facing challenges distinctly different from those encountered by their regular education counterparts. This dissertation explores the daily activities of special education teachers, who are heavily influenced by not only state expectations but also by federal…

This article examines the role of the Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCO) in primary schools in Ireland, an area that is under researched with little or no empirical data available. The current qualitative study, congruent with an interpretivist paradigm, provides narratives from four SENCOs offering insight into both the operational and…

Background: Through their leadership, principals have an important, yet typically indirect, effect on pupils' learning. This article focuses attention on principals' influences on teaching and assessment in special education in Sweden: specifically, in special schools for pupils with intellectual disabilities (SID). Whilst SID principals are…

The purpose of this study is to describe the lived experiences of teachers of color with disabilities. We anchored our study in the construct of funds of identity and the theory of intersectionality to explore how their lived experiences and multilayered identities transformed into resources and strengths for teaching children of color with…

Chronic and pervasive special education teacher (SET) shortages have interfered with state, district, and school efforts to recruit and retain effective teachers for students with disabilities. Unfortunately, these shortages have worsened post-pandemic due to early retirements, low unemployment rates, and career changes. The purpose of this…

The purpose of this study was to describe charter school special education teachers' perceptions of their level of preparedness, satisfaction with training, and frequency of implementation of specific transition competencies. Additionally, the study examined administrators' perceptions of preparedness to support the transition process for students…

This qualitative study examined perceptions of current special education teachers in one large school district outside a major metropolitan area and their willingness to stay in the field of special education. The number of fully certified special education teachers in U.S. schools has reached an all-time low. Special education teachers are more…

Our main purpose in this study was to investigate the levels of and the relationship between familiarity, confidence, training, and use of problem behavior interventions by special education teachers working with learners with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in school settings. A total of 80 special education teachers in South Carolina and Virginia…

In March 2020, the educational system experienced an unprecedented event in modern history, the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic affected all grade levels and content areas, including special education, and how teaching was delivered to millions of students. The problem was during the COVID-19 school closures; special education teachers had…

Traditional Professional Development (PD) models neglect to prepare educators for the new and innumerable challenges that accompany post-COVID-19 classrooms. The problem addressed was that since returning to the classroom post-COVID-19, in-service and experienced secondary special education teachers are demonstrating dysregulated responses to…

Field placements are arguably the most crucial component of traditional preservice special education teacher preparation. In field placements, cooperating teachers and university supervisors foster preservice special educators' sense of efficacy to teach, supporting their investment in continuing in the profession. Although ample research…

Down syndrome is the most common form of intellectual disability. However, there is a paucity of educational research focused on this vulnerable segment of learners especially in the present novel situation. This paper aimed to explore how teachers tailor remote special education for children with down syndrome amid the COVID-19 pandemic in the…