Giving Compass' Take:
- Elizabeth Bettini, LaRon A. Scott, and Tuan D. Nguyen explain the importance of diversifying the special education teacher workforce.
- As the student population becomes more diverse, why is it important to diversify the special education teacher workforce, building pipelines to a career for prospective educators of color?
- Learn more about key issues in education and how you can help.
- Search our Guide to Good for nonprofits focused on education in your area.
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Teachers of color positively impact all students, including students of color with disabilities. Yet, the special education teacher workforce is overwhelmingly white, demonstrating the importance of diversifying the special education teacher workforce.
In our recent research, we found that special education teacher demographics are not keeping pace with changes in the student population.
In 2012, about 80% of U.S. public school teachers were white, including about 80% of special education teachers, while less than 20% were teachers of color. By contrast, in the same year, students of color constituted 47% of those diagnosed with disabilities.
In our recent study, we examined whether these numbers have changed. Analyzing multiple national datasets on the teacher workforce, we found the proportion of special education teachers of color has been static, even as the student population is rapidly becoming more diverse.
So, the special education teacher workforce is actually becoming less representative of the student population over time. Specifically, in 2012, 16.5% of special education teachers were people of color, compared with 17.1% in 2021. In that same span, the share of students with disabilities who are students of color rose from 47.3% in 2012 to 53.9% in 2021.
In fact, for the special education teacher workforce to become representative of the student population, U.S. schools would need to triple the number of special education teachers of color.
As scholars who study teacher recruitment and retention and teacher working conditions, we are concerned that this disparity will affect the quality of education students receive.
Why Does Diversifying the Special Education Teacher Workforce Matter?
For children of color, the research is clear: Teachers of color are, on average, more effective than white teachers in providing positive educational experiences and outcomes for students of color, including students of color with disabilities.
One study found that low-income Black male students who had one Black teacher in third, fourth or fifth grade were 39% less likely to drop out of high school and 29% more likely to enroll in college.
Moreover, teachers of color are just as effective as white teachers – and sometimes more effective – in teaching white students.
Read the full article about diversifying the special education teacher workforce by Elizabeth Bettini, LaRon A. Scott, and Tuan D. Nguyen at The 74.