Teaching special education is one of the most challenging and most rewarding jobs in education. Here are just a few of the factors that are weighing into more and more young people pursuing special education teacher jobs…
It is In-Demand
The truth is that if you just want to teach, get in line. There are only so many jobs to go around and literally thousands of people with teaching degrees. This is why you have so many substitute teachers in the school system who have yet to settle down with a class of their own. If you settle on a niche, though, especially one like special education, then chances are there will always be work for you in the school system. Any teacher can handle basic math, English and literature courses with the proper briefing, but only those with special training can handle special education.
It is the Essence of Teaching
The reason anyone really wants to be a teacher is to help students unlock their full potential, to realize their dreams, their ambitions, and to pursue. Special education students are, in many schools, largely ignored. There are a lot of special education teachers out there that really take no interest in their students beyond simply wanting to keep them out of trouble. A dedicated special education teacher, one who really believes in their students, is a teacher in their purest form.
It is Endlessly Challenging
No two special education students are the same. No two students have the same personality, the same disabilities, the same strengths or the same challenges. The uniqueness of every special education student is astounding. Nearly every single student is someone who will be unlike anyone you have known before. If you want a job that surprises, delights and challenges you every single day, this is it.
It Pays for Itself
Some degrees wind up being nothing but a money pit, something that winds up costing you money in the long run, rather than earning you money. Special education teachers make an average salary in the area of $53,000 a year, while the four to six years of training to earn such a degree might only cost somewhere between $2,500 and $7,000 a year depending on where you study. If you are just making ends meet, this may sound like a lot right now, but when you factor in the time you have to pay off a student loan, the grants and scholarships available to those training to become teachers, education related jobs available to those who are in training to teach and the fact that there are a lot of programs in place like the TEACH grant that hope to get more teachers into schools, it becomes clear that this is a strong investment, not merely an expense.