Shortage of Special Educators in the Northeastern District of Columbia: A Qualitative Descriptive Study
Date of Award
Summer 2021
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Education in Organizational Leadership (EdD)
Committee Chair
Wanda Fernandopulle
Committee Member
Donis Toler
Committee Member
Bora Pajo
Abstract
This qualitative descriptive study explored how special education teachers described their retention practices in a specialized school in the northeastern District of Columbia. The most significant issue districts face in staffing schools with qualified teachers is not the lack of certified teachers overall but a chronic and continuous misalignment of teacher supply and demand. Two conceptual frameworks guided this study were: (1) Schematic Representation of Special Education Teacher Retention, Transfer, and Attrition and (2) Conceptual Model of the Influences of Teachers' Career Decisions. The study's guiding research question asks how special education teachers (grades 3 - 12) describe their own retention practices used in a specialized school? This study conducted semi-structured in-depth interviews with 12 special education teachers in the northeastern District of Columbia using convenience sampling. Data were analyzed using MAXQDA. Thematic analysis, with the use of a preliminary codebook, revealed the following themes: (a) training and preparation, (b) compensation and peer support, and (c) commitment to special education.
Recommended Citation
Johnson, Terence E., "Shortage of Special Educators in the Northeastern District of Columbia: A Qualitative Descriptive Study" (2021). All Doctoral Student Dissertations. 35.
https://fuse.franklin.edu/docpub/35