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RILEY: INCLUSION NOT A REMEDY FOR SPECIAL ED. TEACHER SHORTAGE

August 19, 1999

Mainstreaming special education students into general education classrooms is not the cure for the special ed. teacher shortage threatening the country, U.S. Secretary of Education Richard Riley said this week. In a letter clarifying the Department of Education's position on both issues, Riley told the leaders of several advocacy organizations the department does not support simply shifting the responsibility of educating students with disabilities from special ed. teachers to their general ed. counterparts.

"Nothing could be further from the truth," Riley told Council for Exceptional Children Executive Director Nancy Safer, National Education Association President Robert Chase, American Federation of Teachers President Sandra Feldman, and Council of Administrators of Special Education chiefs Jonathan McIntire and Judy Montgomery. Riley's letter came in response to the organizations' criticism of the Department's "20th Annual Report to Congress on the Implementation of IDEA."

Riley acknowledged the report's "Special Education Teachers: National Trends in Demand and Shortage" section "appeared to suggest" the nation's move toward inclusion could alleviate some of the special ed. shortage.

According to the report, "One possible explanation for the observed decline in teacher demand from 1994-95 to 1995-96 is the increasing inclusion of students with disabilities in general education classrooms. Although few data are available to support this hypothesis, future studies should address this possibility because of its significance to policies regarding teacher preparation and supply." The department told Congress the impending shortage of special ed. teachers is "chronic," with an estimated 27,000 positions for students ages 3 to 5 going unfilled or filled by teachers not fully certified to teach special ed. Another 28,000 new special ed. teachers are needed each year for students ages 6 to 12, the department said.

AS TEACHER SHORTAGE LOOMS, SPECIAL ED PROGRAMS ARE ESPECIALLY HARD HIT August 13, 1999

Because of this unmet demand, the report stated, "To the extent that inclusion of students with disabilities into general education classrooms is achieved, responsibility for instructing them will fall largely upon general education teachers. While inclusion can be expected to decrease the demand for special education teachers to some extent, it will simultaneously increase the demand for general education teachers who are qualified to instruct students with disabilities."

Considering the nation also faces a general ed. teacher shortage, Riley noted, moving students from one type of teacher to another is not the answer. Nor does it adequately serve students with disabilities, who are not all expected to be able to get the appropriate education they need by attending general ed. classes full-time. "Inclusion does not diminish the need for qualified special education teachers. In fact, as special educators serve more students across a number of inclusive classrooms, the demands of their job have become more complex, demanding even greater expertise in collaboration and consultation," he said.

Mainstreaming means general education teachers must get better training to handle students with special needs, the secretary added, but school systems must also find a way to hire more special ed. and general ed. teachers to meet the overall demand. "We will continue our support of personnel preparation programs and other collaborative efforts aimed at helping the education field increase the nation's supply of highly qualified teachers in all fields, he concluded.8