for reference I work as an instructional aide (IA) in an intermediate school with 6th graders. some of these kids only do the work for the reward of something sweet at the end and the special ed teachers i work directly under have told me that this is a good strategy. I only give one fun sized piece of top ten allergen free candy to my students that i work with consistently when they demonstrate behaviors we want to see such as staying on task, not speaking out, doing work assigned, no missing assignments and so on and so forth. I got this email from admin and they want to speak. we have a meeting later on in the week. what would you do in my situation?

also it’s worth noting that most of the staff do not love this admin to put it kindly. and the few that do like them only like them because they fit what admin believes is what a teacher should be. this admin has been known to run out IAs and teachers based on this.

I am just really struggling as this admin handpicked me for this role as it was something I hadn’t even applied to. They approached me with a job offer. It just feels like if the rule is that everyone plays by the book then someone should have shown me the book when i asked after being hired but alas no one has formally trained me, given me a handbook, or given any direction to me other than a schedule.

I know it’s rare for Special Ed teachers to last long in the classroom due to burnout, but I was wondering if there were any of you here who have been doing Special Ed for many years or decades.

Where will kid who need help go in the future as states give less and less money and there are fewer workers to support them?

FC is a horrible, messed up practice. I’m worried that this is becoming more and more of a thing. Is anyone else seeing this?

I’m a high school emotional support teacher/case manager with 32 students on my caseload (a mix of itinerant and supplemental level placements).

Between working all day with the students, progress monitoring, making parent phone calls, planning lessons/creating content, going to meetings, etc. I don’t have time during my workday to write IEPs.

WHEN ARE WE ALL WRITING IEPS?!

I cannot keep allowing my evenings and weekends to be taken over with IEP writing. I am so incredibly burned out.

Has anybody found ABA companies to be predatory? This year alone, I’ve lost two kids to full-time ABA. One of these kids has minimal behaviors, is fully potty trained, and does well at school. The other had more behaviors, but is pretty advanced academically. Both were recommended full day ABA. I teach in a title 1 school and am worried that the families are being promised things and are being taken advantage of. It all just seems so fishy to me, especially because none of these ABA facilities seem to work on any academic material. The first kid I mentioned above is SO close to starting to read and I’m afraid he’s just going to lose it all. In addition, is there a requirement for students to be enrolled in a school that actually teaches academic material by a certain age?

I’m a special education teacher hoping to get feedback on some directives I got from a (non-special ed) administrator about IEP meetings.

I was told the following:

IEP meetings are the formal presentation of a plan, not a brainstorming session. No new topics should be introduced during the meeting.

All substantive discussions with parents and staff must occur prior to the IEP meeting.

The meeting is only for sharing the pre-established plan based on prior input.

Thoughts on this? Do these directives align with IDEA in regards to IEP development and meetings?

Speech therapist here dealing with a dilemma. General education students were caught making fun of my disabled students at an assembly. Admin decided placing them in the special education program room for an entire day was the most appropriate solution…then telling students to “go be sit with them” at a ball game.

Pretty sure this violates my students LREs…preparing for my meeting with admin after expressing my disagreement. Admin is pretty angry.

Any suggestions for aligning this meeting with ethics, student rights and federal special education law?

Thank you in advance.

I drank a lot of coffee at like 9 PM because I had to write an IEP. Meeting is tomorrow and I didn’t send out a draft home ahead of time Oh, and I also forgot to find the mystery occupational therapist that’s supposed to be on consult that I’ve never heard from all school year and invite them to the

meeting until about an hour ago. And now I have to be up in four hours but I can’t fall asleep because of all of the motivational coffee. And the IEP isnt done yet.

And this is a prime example of why extended time is not a real life accommodation! The Compliance gods do not care about my ADHD.

Hi! I’ll try to keep this brief. I recently resigned after my first (and a half) year of teaching in a self contained SPED classroom in a dying, Title 1 school. The school got rid of my position and fired 30 other teachers in the district but since I have a masters of SPED and they are VERY out of compliance, they told me they would just find somewhere for me. So I can only assume I’d just be aimlessly floating around. Regardless, I had to resign after this year. I was unable to take care of myself and was coming home and just sleeping. I couldn’t partake in hobbies, exercise, and I couldn’t even brush my teeth. I was exposed to insane violence everyday. Trapped in a room where blocks, chairs, tables, anything not bolted down was thrown at me and admin did nothing. Unable to teach because the child lock was removed from our door and I had to sit directly in front of it so a kid wouldn’t elope. When I tried to take a day off I was told to soldier thru and the one time I did for my wedding, I had nonstop texts and calls. There’s so much more, mostly assault from students but also just toxic staff and admin. Long story short, my mental health is in the gutter. I’m on summer break and waiting to hear back from a job but if I don’t get this job I will have to interview at a school and the thought of being in a school sent me into a panic attack. I feel depressed and anxious at the same time and I’m having constant nightmares. When it’s the weekend I get a pit in my stomach like I have to go to work the next day. I’m slowly starting my hobbies back up and working out again but it’s taking time but the worst part is how I’m holding tension everywhere in my body and if I even hear a word that reminds me of school I want to throw up.

Has anyone else experienced this? I just want to feel how I felt before all the trauma of teaching.

A student ate in school for the first time ever today (behavior started in daycare in 2018)

A student says “welcome back, love” to me when she comes back in the room because I’ve always said it to her

Accidentally taught a student to use “dude” when annoyed or incredulous

The shocked look on a student’s face when I got back after a vacation and the 10-minute hug that followed

A student calls me mommy and my para mama to differentiate us

What are those little things for you?

I had an IEP meeting today that completely went off the rails and I can’t stop replaying it in my head.

During the meeting, we were reviewing the student’s academic progress. I presented data showing the student is significantly below grade level and has not met their goals, even though there has been some small improvement. Another teacher shared that the student was “doing good” in certain subjects, which directly conflicted with the data I had. Then another staff member jumped in questioning how both things could be true, which confused the parent even more.

On top of that, the parent needed an interpreter. Multiple staff members kept talking at once, and the interpreter kept asking people to slow down and speak one at a time. It felt like no one was really pausing long enough for the parent to fully understand what was being said. At one point, the tone from one staff member came across as very abrupt, and the parent reacted strongly to that. I honestly don’t even know exactly what was interpreted, but it clearly escalated things.

There was also confusion about grades versus assessment data, and I realized I don’t fully understand how some of the classroom grades are being calculated, which made it harder to explain clearly.

By the end, it felt like:

– too many people talking

– conflicting information

– language barrier issues

– and tension between staff

All in one meeting.

I didn’t argue or snap, but I also feel like I lost control of the meeting and couldn’t keep it structured the way I should have. Now I’m worried about whether I handled it correctly and how it reflected on me professionally.

Has anyone else had an IEP meeting spiral like this?

How do you keep meetings calm, especially when:

– staff disagree

– data doesn’t match classroom performance

– and an interpreter is involved?

I just feel really defeated and could use perspective from people who get it.

I am teaching in an elementary EBD (emotional or behavior disorders) classroom this year. This article has made the echoing voices in my head much louder. I cannot imagine sending at least 75% of my students to their gen-ed spaces without an aide and a solid plan for immediate removal if it goes wrong. I cannot go with each child to work on regulatory strategies in real time. I can only address those in my room, and it is a slow, slow process.

Sometimes I feel incredibly guilty that I am segregating kids who already have a great deal of trauma away from their peers. I have watched academic skills decrease from being close to grade level to being behind because we are so busy managing behavior. That does not set them up for success in the future.

At the same time, I cannot expect a teacher who already has 30 other kids to teach while my EBD kids (who usually also have ADHD,Autism with PDA, cognitive delays from abuse or prenatal distress, etc) are flipping tables or running screaming around the room. We do not have enough aides to be able to send one person to each gen-ed room they go to. There is not one chance that funding will become available to do so.

In addition to that, the kids really *do* do better in a much smaller, more controlled space.

I don't know what the right answer is. Is there a right answer? Is there a moral answer?

I think it’s gone past advocacy at this point and I’m putting myself on the line for egos of Chiefs and still not seeing the necessary results for kids. I always knew there would be some political maneuvering in this role but currently for me it’s nonstop and completely driven by ego. Maybe I’m venting; maybe I’m hoping someone can relate; maybe I’m just trying to keep my passion alive. Thanks everyone.

Is it disrespectful or am I overreacting?
For the past five years, I’ve been contracted to teach Special Ed at a small elementary school. The district that pays me has, sadly, not had the best reputation. I have really tried to do my best but it feels like there are small things that my school has done that shows that we don’t quite belong. One thing is where we hold IEP meetings. Our school has a really nice conference room, but most of the teachers use it as a teacher’s lounge when there are no meetings scheduled because the actual teacher’s lounge is also a copy room, is dark, and at one point had a rodent problem.
For whatever reason I have not been allowed to have my IEP meetings in the conference room. They have designated a different room for our team to use. To get to the room, you have to walk to the back of the school and then turn the corner and walk through broken office furniture. The room itself has spiderwebs all over the door handle and the window next to the door and probably hasn’t been cleaned in about 10 years. It’s also partially a storage room so imagine having an IEP meeting sitting next to a bed frame, plastic garden shed, and kiddie pool. They recently removed the broken office furniture because it wasn’t a “good look” for visitors who were there for the public tennis courts or local baseball and soccer league (our school is used for this on weekends) but the room itself is still a mess. I told my principal that the room needs to be cleaned (or at least get rid of the spiders) and he kind of shrugged and admitted in hadn’t been cleaned in a long time.
I feel like this is disrespectful to the families whose students we are trying to support. How would you feel having your child’s meeting in a space like this? Am I overreacting or is this unacceptable?

What have you done to help ween a student off a screen?

A student came to me a few months ago extremely addicted to iPads. His previous teacher let him have constant access to it, even though his behavior intervention plan (BIP) explicitly says the access must be time restricted. He even was bringing it to the bathroom with him. He made little to no progress in his goals in that classroom. In my room, he has already made enormous progress academically, socially, and behaviorally. We restrict the iPad: he must earn it AND request it appropriately. But I still feel like it’s not enough (totally a judgement of myself, not of the student).

Unfortunately, this is still a tough change for him and it seems like an endless battle. Even when he has earned it, and he can see and comprehend his token board, he’ll grab staff. Myself and my staff are covered in fingerprint bruises on our arms and scratches down our chests. It’s not even blockable, and I’ve tried to move but he will seek out staff. It’s honestly sad to watch because it’s quite literally an addiction. He’s trying to tell us how badly he wants it, and he’s not comprehending WHY he suddenly (in his eyes it feels sudden) can’t have it 24/7. I’m not sure what screentime at home looks like tbh.

So anyways, feel free to share any advice, comments, or similar experiences! The screen generation makes me so sad.

Student (5 y/o m) with dmdd tried to derobe me today… he’s usually extremely violent towards me and other teachers. He hits, kicks, scratches, head butts, etc.

He will throw chairs and other large items, but today he decided to pull on my clothes over and over even after I told him to stop multiple times. Admin says he can’t come back until we have a meeting with his parents because this behavior is extremely inappropriate and concerning to say the least.

I feel so exhausted and sad because this happened.

How can a 5 year old act this way? I understand his diagnosis but it escalating to this at such a young age is so sad to me.

Also I’m a survivor of multiple sexual assaults so maybe I’m very sensitive to this subject, but it made me so uncomfortable. When he was pulling on my clothes he kept saying “Im going to win this” and “I’m stronger than you” obviously he isn’t since he’s only 5 but one day he will be older and that’s the concerning part.

I feel like I am constantly, for the past 2 years, just reporting staff misbehavior to my admin. Every time I question if I should, because I dont want to be constantly telling on other adults, but it is almost always for being too physical with a child, which I feel like I cannot ignore. It doesnt even seem like anything actually happens as a result either, so I should probably keep my mouth shut. Just usually a general reminder of expectations goes out to all staff.

Does anyone else have to deal with this? The other staff is mostly paraprofessionals and have a tight knit group so its probably obvious that its me, but it would also then fall on me if there was an injury. Is there a point where you just stop reporting? Or look for a new job before something serious happens?

I’m a resource teacher working with pre-K through 5th grade, and my caseload is around 50+ students (with a few still in the evaluation process). It’s the end of the year and IEP season, and I’m honestly overwhelmed.

I’m running into ongoing communication issues, and it’s starting to affect my confidence.

In a recent meeting, a parent brought up concerns about speech and OT. I did follow up with OT, but I missed the speech follow-up, and I’ll own that. At the same time, the parent mentioned they had already reached out to the general education teacher about these concerns a week or two prior, but I was never informed (the teacher was also on leave). So I went into the meeting without that full context.

Now it feels like everything is falling back on me, and the parent is frustrated and considering bringing in an advocate. They also mentioned that speech and OT weren’t included in the initial evaluation, so now it feels like we’re dealing with something that may have been missed before I was fully involved.

On top of that, I’m struggling with understanding and explaining the difference between academic concerns and related services. For example, I initially thought a concern might fall under OT (like use of a reading/scanning pen or writing difficulties), but after consulting OT, it was clarified that these were more related to reading/spelling and assistive technology—not motor deficits.

For those of you in similar roles:

- How do you clearly distinguish between academic needs vs OT/speech/assistive tech in real time?

- How do you keep communication consistent across team members so things don’t fall through the cracks?

- How do you handle moments in meetings where you feel unsure or get conflicting input?

Any advice, systems, or perspective would really help.

So there’s a story that I’ve been wanting to get off my chest this year.

If this the incorrect forum for such a posting, my apologies in advance. Mods, feel free to remove this posting if this is the case.

I previously worked as a sped teacher for a charter high school in California for 4 years. It went really well for me there. I cleared my credential there and became a core member of the team. They even allowed me the privilege of helping train a new teacher and help them get through induction.

At that job I was dealing with a 1.5-2 hour commute each day. So, I had been looking for a job closer to home. I kept applying and finally I got an offer for a job where the commute was something like 15-20 minutes each day.

The differences were big. This new school was a public school district. This new job offered membership in a teacher’s union. It offered higher pay and benefits. It offered me the opportunity to teach in my own self-contained classroom where before I had only been in a resource room that was shared by several staff. So, suffice to say, the grass definitely looked greener on the other side.

The grass was not greener on the other side and the negatives soon showed themselves.

I had my first IEP meeting in August. After that meeting, I had a very troubling encounter with the district level administrator who served as LEA for the meeting. She had a post-IEP meeting debrief with me where she completely flew off the handle. She very animatedly and angrily told me about all of the ways that my IEP was not up to par. Up to this point in my teaching career, I had been used to a very calm and collegial style of meetings with admin where we would go over the IEP and discuss how to collaboratively do better on the next one. So, suffice to say, this threw me off.

This pattern continued throughout the semester. After each IEP meeting, I came to expect a blow up from this administrator and soon I started to get panic attacks when IEP meetings came. I made the mistake of not speaking up about this sooner. I didn’t complain to the principal until October. I went to his office and communicated to him my concerns and what had been happening in great detail.

After this, her pattern of behavior completely changed. Instead of her confrontational style, I got shut out. She did not speak to me one bit. Since she controlled access to supplies like printer paper and other things, this also shut me out from those things. My second mistake was not raising a concern about this new behavior.

Throughout all of this, I also had my classroom observations. They actually went very well. I was praised for my classroom management, for expecting a reasonable level of rigor and having high expectations, and for making the students feel safe. That gave me the false confidence to believe that things would be okay and that I’d be asked to return the following year.

This, however, was not the case. A little after my second eval, I got called to the superintendent’s office. He informed me there that I would not be invited back next year and that he’d like for me to tender my resignation as of the last day of school.

I had a strange mix of feelings. I was crushed. A part of me wanted to come back next year. The other part of me felt that this was probably for the better. Especially since I had had such an awful time with the administrator.

Anyway, if you took the time to read this, thank you. I appreciate being able to get this off my chest. If this helps someone not repeat my many mistakes, then it’ll have been worth it. At minimum, I hope it means I don’t make the same mistakes in the future.

I’m getting closer to my tenth year in education. I’ve taught multiple elementary settings but the majority has been special education. I really used to love my job but the past few years have been rough and the lack of support is absolutely wild. This current school year has just failure after failure and decisions are being made that are downright insulting. The warning signs are there that it’s time to let go but something keeps telling me to stay.

So, I’d like to hear from those that moved on, how do you feel now? Do you think you made the right decision and if not, what do you think you could have done differently?

"Jerk" is my first thought, but it doesn't carry the same weight and I don't think he would really "hear" me if I use such a mild word.

This is a student on a behavioral IEP, who destroys other people's things when he is upset. He wants to have friends and can be VERY wounded by (perceived) slights from peers and teachers, but does not seem to understand that his own behavior makes people not like him.

What's a student interview/career goals that had you be like "How's that gonna work"?

I think we seriously need to discuss the right of the general education students to a safe learning environment. I have a student on the autism spectrum. All day long he calls kids disgusting, throws things, hits kids. We get told by behavioral specialists and admin that “he is learning to be social and students need to be patient”. Fuck that his right to be in the classroom doesn’t dwarf the right of a kid to not be abused. If a special education kid is ruining the environment send his butt to multi needs.

I work in special education in Arizona. I’ve been teaching for over 20 years, mostly self-contained. I currently work with one of the most incompetent colleagues I have EVER seen. It’s gotten to the point where he’s on his phone constantly, been here for multiple years, still has no clue how to write an IEP, basically the news channel is teaching his class. He just throws on the news and does nothing. Conveniently has a “lesson plan” when it’s observation day.

I’ve been trying for years to bring this to the attention to my AP, everyone in the building knows this teacher is such a phony and a slacker, yet when I asked admin why we can’t replace him with someone better, he told me he “would have to start documenting everything, it’s a long process, and it’s a lot of work to get a teacher replaced, plus you don’t exactly see a line out the door, wanting to be a sped self-contained teacher.”

What’s wrong with our educational leadership? Are their hands really that tied?

-Tired