Special education teacher (SET) burnout is a significant concern, especially for SETs serving students with emotional-behavioral disorders (EBD), as they tend to experience higher burnout than other teachers. Working conditions, especially social support, have the potential to ameliorate burnout, but prior research has not articulated the sources…

Most students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) have significant reading difficulties, but educators have few in-service professional learning opportunities geared to reading instruction for these students. The "Integrated Literacy Study Group" was developed as an online professional development program to prepare elementary…

Special education teachers (SETs) are expected to use effective practices to improve outcomes for students with disabilities, yet even those who are well-prepared may not be effective in teaching these students, as problematic working conditions may limit their opportunities to teach effectively and their longevity in the profession. To complicate…

As of 2015, approximately one in five special educators received licensure through an alternative pathway. Although evidence suggests that emotional exhaustion contributes to special educator attrition, few studies examine firsthand the emotional experiences of novice, alternatively certified special educators. Guided by Tuxford and Bradley's…

The diversity of teacher roles has been a long-standing concern in the field of special education. Role complexity has been implicated in teacher burnout and attrition and in the inefficiency of service delivery models. Recent evidence suggests that new policy may be further complicating teacher roles and that teachers may not be prepared for such…

In this article, the author details the findings of a study of completers during their last semester of a Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) program in special education. The purpose of this multiple-case study was to understand how the extent to which the program was implemented, the participants' background and career trajectories, and the…

Forty-one special educators, who were followed over a five-year period following the receipt of their undergraduate degrees, exhibited slow but steady increases in emotional exhaustion over the time period. Teachers of older students with disabilities and teachers of students with behavioral disorders exhibited more emotional exhaustion. (JDD)

Role, stress, and burnout of 379 special education teacher trainees and 36 first year teachers were examined. Results indicated that the majority of such problems were significntly interrelated, not all backgound variables predicted significant stress and burnout levels, and different levels of problems were observed at various stages of…

Prevention of teacher burnout can be fostered at the preservice level by (1) the development of realistic expectations, (2) encouragement of detached concern, (3) a better understanding of classroom successes and failures, and (4) an introduction to stress reduction strategies. (Author/DB)

This study examined predictor variables in degrees of burnout among teachers of students with moderate to profound mental retardation. Results from the Maslach Burnout Inventory were compared with demographic data and perceived burnout ratings of 68 respondents. The magnitude and direction of significant predictor variables found for each subscale…

This paper reviews 12 studies of special education teacher attrition, concluding that research-based models for improving the retention of special education teachers do not exist. Guidelines for a research agenda to identify variables that influence the attrition of special education teachers are offered. (DB)

This study with 77 special education teachers examined degrees of burnout and number of heterogeneous disability categories, caseload size, and proportion of students with emotional impairments. Only the proportion of emotionally impaired students affected teacher burnout by increasing depersonalization. Burnout was also related to dissatisfaction…

A replication of a study conducted nearly 20 years ago investigated teacher burnout among 300 special education teachers. Teachers' age, amount of experience, and preparation had markedly increased since the previous study. Age, experience, certification status, and preparation were not as significantly related to burnout as in the past. (Contains…

A survey of 300 learning disability teachers in middle and high schools found teachers were experiencing high levels of emotional exhaustion, specifically those who team teach with a general educator. Role conflict, role ambiguity, perceived workload, and lack of principal support contributed to the teachers' feelings of emotional exhaustion.…

This article offers a conceptual model for studying teacher attrition and retention. The model incorporates historical, environmental, and external factors believed to influence teachers' decisions about whether to continue teaching. The framework is used to draw implications for future special education teacher preparation research. (Author/DB)