How to Keep Your Special Education Teachers

Overview & Synopsis

Teacher burnout and attrition are epidemic in the field of special education. The annual attrition rate for special education teachers has been estimated to be between 8% and 10% (Whitaker, 2000), and special education teachers are leaving the field in much greater numbers than their peers in general education (Nichols & Sosnowsky, 2002). Nationally, there is a persistent annual shortage of approximately 29,000 fully certified special education teachers (Boe, Cook, Bobbitt, & Terbanian, 1998). High teacher turnover creates expense and hassle for schools and districts and it also affects students. The Study of Personnel Needs in Special Education (SPeNSE) (2002) reports that limiting teacher turnover enhances both student learning and teacher quality and urges school administrators to develop and implement plans to lower their teacher turnover rate. Several studies mention the role of principals in special education teachers' decisions to remain in or to leave the field. Researchers have also found principal support to be positively related to teacher retention. In this article, the author describes four strategies: (1) prioritizing collaboration; (2) being personally supportive; (3) handpicking mentors; and (4) emphasizing continued learning, which principals can use to increase retention rates for special education teachers.