Exceptional Student Education (ESE), or special education – as it is often referred, is designed around the concept of individualized curriculum. Classes are smaller, and as the teacher, you will have the opportunity to get to know your students and their families at a much more personal level.

Upon being placed in an ESE setting, your responsibility will be to meet educational goals that have been tailored to the needs of a particular student and to write new goals each year, as you meet with a team that assesses the child’s progress and determines next steps in his/her education. You may have the opportunity to team-teach or access other teachers as a resource, building relationships throughout your school to better support your class. One of your many roles may even be to design individualized schedules so that your students have the opportunity to participate in academic classes with their grade-level peers for a portion of the day.

One of the most exciting aspects of an ESE placement is the opportunity to be both an advocate and a teacher. While you are first and foremost responsible for academic goals, you can also work to develop a positive school environment for your students with special needs. You can encourage them to participate in all aspects of school life, and you can become a liaison who ensures that your students receive the same opportunities as their counterparts who take a mainstream course-load. As a case manager, you will monitor students’ ongoing progress and report to families and other teachers. You will learn how to strengthen your organizational skills, develop individualized tracking systems, and manage case-related paperwork.

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Fellow profile: “I have a great bond with my students and I actually want to get up and go to work because I know that I am improving their lives!  I have never wanted to get out of bed early for anything!  Now, I can’t wait to wake up and get to the best job in the best city.  It is a very rewarding feeling when you see the eyes of your students light up when they ‘get it’ or when they tell you that they want to be you when they grow up.  I never thought that I would want to be a teacher.  Now, I could never see myself doing anything else.  Interviewing with the Miami Teaching Fellows was the best decision that I have ever made.”

-- Andrea Dempsey, Elementary Exceptional Student Education Teacher, Miami Teaching Fellows 2005-2006 Cohort, Recent College Graduate

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While there are many challenges in this placement – students are often far behind their academic potential, many have internalized negative assumptions about their abilities, and teachers need to balance the demands of teaching and case-management – there are also enormous rewards.  Most of all, ESE teachers are definitely needed at this time. As an ESE teacher, you will have the potential to see significant growth in your students’ abilities and to help them reach their true potential.

Most teachers of ESE cite strong personal relationships with students and their families – as well as smaller class sizes – as the top advantages of teaching in an ESE placement.

Fellows teaching ESE for M-DCPS are eligible for a $1,000 stipend after completing the school year. The annual salary also starts on a higher base level, or ‘step.’ Fellows can expect an annual starting salary around $38,000.

Apply now and challenge yourself while challenging M-DCPS exceptional students to reach their highest potential.  

For more information on teaching exceptional students from the National Association of Special Education Teachers, please click here.