NCPSSERS

Wanted: More Special Ed Teachers, Apply Everywhere

By Tom Chorneau, Cabinet Report
Originally posted by the Cabinet Report, August 4, 2015

“In what is fast becoming a national crisis, school administrators throughout the country are scrambling to fill special education positions even as some states move to create new incentives…

…A report in March from the U.S. Department of Education found few districts in the country that have not experienced some shortage of applicants for special education jobs during the past five years and put the current deficit of highly qualified instructors for students with disabilities at about 11 percent nationally…”

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Post Navigation Report: Fixing CA Teacher Shortage Requires ‘Profound Shift’ in Thinking

By Craig Clough, LA School Report
Originally posted by the LA School Report, June 29, 2015

“Among the biggest challenges facing California school districts in the coming years is a growing teacher shortage. Enrollment in teacher preparation programs has plummeted since 2008, and more than 100,000 teachers are expected to retire in the next decade.

Despite the gathering storm, the state lacks any cohesive strategy to solving the problem, according to a new report from Bellwether Education Partners, a national non-profit that focuses on improving education, especially for high-needs students. The solution would require a “profound shift” in thinking and involve a multi-faceted approach that would bring more cohesiveness to strategies at the statewide and local level, the report finds.”

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How to Fix a Teacher Shortage

By Christopher Magan, Pioneer Press
Originally posted by eSchool News on March 4, 2015.

“Administrators argue that Minnesota’s strict licensing requirements and union rules make it difficult to attract and retain highly effective and diverse teachers. Teachers union leaders say that state law already gives schools flexibility and that the rules Minnesota has now ensure students get the best teachers possible… As lawmakers debate ways to address the state’s teacher shortage, some worry the proposed changes could lead to risky unintended consequences.”

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Retired Teachers to Fill CCSD Vacancies

By Trevon Milliard
Originally posted by the Las Vegas Review-Journal on August 28, 2014.

“Teachers in math, English, science and special education have been so hard to find that the Clark County School Board approved rehiring retired teachers Thursday to help fill 269 vacancies.”

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New Mexico Faces Teacher Shortage Two Days Before School Begins

By Joseph Kolb
Originally posted by Reuters on August 11, 2014.

“Just two days before classes resume, New Mexico’s biggest school district faces a shortage of almost 200 teachers, officials say, with the majority of the unfilled positions in special education and elementary grades.”

“…The elementary and special education areas are typically problematic, King said. ‘It’s not unusual for those departments to deal with teacher shortages all year,’ the [Albuquerque Public Schools] spokeswoman said.”

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School Districts Scrambling From Teacher Shortage

By Mark Brodie
Originally posted by KJZZ-91.5 on August 8, 2014.

“School is back in session this week for many districts across the state, but not all of them have as many teachers in the classroom as they’d like. The Arizona Department of Education says 60 percent of district superintendents report openings during the school year, and that the annual average retention rate is 65 percent.”

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Metro School Districts Try ‘Grow Their Own’ Approach to Hiring Special Education Teachers

By Kim McGuire
Originally posted by the Star Tribune: West Metro on May 5, 2014.

“A first-of-its-kind master’s degree program at the University of Minnesota promises to groom education assistants into special education teachers by training them on the job in the classrooms where they already work…”

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