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Special educators report feeling undervalued and not recognized for their contributions. They report frustration when used in roles that are not aligned with their training and overlooked for their expertise in specially designed instruction and intensive interventions.

Principals can address this issue by actively collaborating with all teachers, offering ongoing professional development for all staff on effective practices, closely monitoring classroom instruction, and ensuring the proper implementation of IEPs.

“...these teachers [special educators] had grown accustomed to sitting in school-based professional development year after year, hearing about instructional methods and management strategies that had no bearing on the work they did every day.”

- Adkins-Sharif, 2024 Source

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Principal Kassem

Learn from Principal Kassem as she enhances job satisfaction for her special educators and improves supports for students with disabilities by empowering her special educators and fully utilizing their specialized skills.

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Toolkit 3: Empower and Utilize Expertise

Explore strategies that research and best practices highlight, along with short, medium, and long-term solutions, as fundamental to recognizing and valuing the specialized knowledge and experience of special educators. 

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This tool was developed in partnership with the Collaborative for Effective Educator Development, Accountability, and Reform (CEEDAR Center), a federally funded technical assistance center working to build the capacity of state personnel preparation systems to prepare teachers and leaders to implement evidence-based practices within multi-tiered systems of support.