??? for special educators

smmsm

Sun, Aug 12 2012, 7:08 pm

Anyone work with a masters in special education in the states but not in new york or new jersey? What jobs are available? How much is the going rate? Do u get paid from the board of ed in that place or privately?

sleeepyhead

Sun, Aug 12 2012, 7:12 pm

So I do work in ny/nj but I can still let you know that special ed outside of those areas is slim pickings, mostly just resource room jobs and some tutoring/p3 depending on the specific state...but rarely are there schools for just special ed outside of ny/nj. Hope that's helps Smile

smmsm

Sun, Aug 12 2012, 8:16 pm

Thanks! So does that mean theres less jobs available out of town and that a masters in special ed wont do u much good out there?

seeker

Sun, Aug 12 2012, 8:50 pm

Strange, I'm in NY but I never heard any such thing. As far as I know there is need for special ed just about everywhere.

groisamomma

Sun, Aug 12 2012, 8:52 pm

seeker wrote:

Strange, I'm in NY but I never heard any such thing. As far as I know there is need for special ed just about everywhere.

Although NY cut funding recently, they are still known to be overly accommodating and provide many more services than many other states.

amother

Sun, Aug 12 2012, 8:54 pm

sleeepyhead wrote:

This is simply not true. Both of my SIL's are special education teacher's who work for the BoEd in thier area.
There are many, many, many schools for children with special need's outside of NY/NJ!

seeker

Sun, Aug 12 2012, 8:55 pm

That's true; if you were asking where to move with a kid with special needs I'd say you'd likely get the best chance at services in NY. But even where they're less generous, they will still have kids in special ed placements and therefore need people to teach them. The schools might not be as nice or the services as accommodating as NY, I don't know specifically so I can't say, but they will be there.

smmsm

Sun, Aug 12 2012, 9:00 pm

Ya, I thought the same thing, Hashem didnt place all special needs children in ny Smile

so is there anyone with experience working as a special ed provider out of town?

sleeepyhead

Sun, Aug 12 2012, 9:23 pm

Am I the only one here who knows countless parents who have either relocated to NY or have their special-needs children commuting to NY? I can think of dozens such cases - simply because their needs are not being met out of town the way they are in town. Like I said earlier, there are resource rooms in many many schools across the country but RARELY (I didn't say never) are there fully special-ed schools. Therefore, this reflects the original question about the special-ed job market. Yes, a master's in Special Ed will still get you places out-of-town, but if I were looking into where to move, I'd first check out the special-ed job market and then decide, then figure out how to transfer my Special Ed certification to that state (which is never a simple task, sad to say). But yes, of course there are special-ed kids in other places than NY.

agreer

Mon, Aug 13 2012, 1:17 am

I live outside of NY/NJ (way outside!) Here, although other teachers/staff are getting cut back, there is ALWAYS a need for special education and math/science teachers. It's supposedly a great job.

miami85

Mon, Aug 13 2012, 6:51 am

New York is set up differently to cater to kids with special needs. From what I can tell based on experience as a preschool special ed teacher in NY, but originally from OOT is that NY definitely has a higher concentration of kids in special ed programs. I think that also the evaluation process is easier and more accommodating than other states. Special Ed is a federal mandate, but individual states interpret how they dole out the money--and NY is much more generous. In NY you see many preschools devoted to special ed services, OOT I have never heard of such a thing, these kids get pull-out services in their regular program unless they are autistic or physically handicapped and then there is like one program in the neighborhood--in NY there are several in each borough. I knew a family in my community where I was growing up that had a special needs son and they moved to NJ to get him services. I think, and I am not trying to be prejudiced just the way I see it, but a lot of the kids I see are immigrant/low SES which probably affects a)prenatal & infant care b)exposure/expectation to meet "American" standards that may be inappropriate for them. I had never considered special ed as a career but coming to NY I see how many opportunities there are (except now I need a job and can't find one). Finally, I know of someone who had a nice cushy special ed job for the board of Ed in NY and their family moved out of town--midwest, and she just couldn't find a job that was anywhere NEAR her salary in NY and they ended up moving back to NY. I know my sister who also lives in the midwest was telling me that to get her 2y/o child evaluated for services she would have had to pay--in NY an EI eval is free to parents. It has a lot to do with Red vs. Blue states. NY (and NJ) have a lot of Welfare programs--which probably also explains why there are such high concentrations of immigrant and low SES families in NY.

seeker

Mon, Aug 13 2012, 11:40 am

Salaries in all fields are lower out of town, the lower cost of living helps to balance that out. But it is true that there don't seem to be the really nice jobs like SEIT elsewhere. However, I also don't know many if any people even in NY who make a full time salary doing SEIT; if you're looking for a regular full-time classroom teaching position, they have those just about everywhere. Finally, NY has a lot of jobs in special ed but also that was never any secret so the field is quite flooded and the many jobs are not so easy to get. Just think how many graduates all the NY schools are churning out each year, add up the standard schools plus the certification programs like TTI and Sara Schenirer, that's your competition and they're mostly staying in NY.

I guess there are a lot of factors at play but the bottom line is that special ed is a fairly universal need.