Special education is an instruction that is specially designed to meet the unique needs of children who have disabilities. Special education and related services are provided in public schools at no cost to the parents and
can include special instruction in the classroom, at home, in hospitals or institutions, or other settings.
Although most special education teachers are qualified to work with ages up to 22, their respective teaching positions usually limit them to elementary, middle, or high school ages. Within their schools, special educators support student learning in various ways. Many of these duties are the same things that general educators do: plan and present lessons according to state standards, continuously assess students’ understanding of class content, reteach if necessary, monitor student progress, and maintain a grade book. But a typical special education teacher's job description includes some key distinctions.
Much of what special education teachers do revolves around Individual Education Programs IEPs. In general, an IEP is a personalized plan for each public school student with special needs. It lists a student’s annual academic and behavioral goals, and the educational resources and services that he or she will receive. For each academic subject, and even for school-sponsored extracurricular activities, the IEP shows any accommodations that the student must receive. Accommodations are meant to level the playing field to allow students with special needs to be successful. Common accommodations include providing print-outs of class notes rather than requiring a student to copy them out by hand, allowing extra time to complete assignments, and reducing the number of homework questions.