Complementary Review of the Literature on Attrition and Retention Patterns of Special Education Teachers of Color: What We Know and How We Move Forward
The attrition and retention of special education teachers of color (SETOC) is a concern for school district leaders who are seeking racially and ethnically minoritized teachers to work with students of color with disabilities. We reviewed 47 articles from 2002 to 2020 regarding factors related to the attrition and retention of special education teachers (SET) to better understand the racial characteristics of the participants in the studies and to compare and contrast whether SETOC provide reasons for why they stay or leave that vary from reasons provided by their White colleagues. We found that researchers examining SETs have mostly ignored race and ethnicity when analyzing factors in the attrition and retention of SETs. Although empirical research on the topic is scarce, the articles that were analyzed in this review that also included an analysis of the experiences of SETOC often was framed using a racial lens in understanding factors that may cause them to stay in or leave the profession. We conclude with a discussion of major takeaways from the literature and recommendations for promoting a more robust research agenda on this topic for future considerations.
Abstract
Contributor Notes
Author Bio
Dr. LaRon A. Scott, is an associate professor of special education, as well as the Executive Director of the Minority Educator Recruitment, Retention, and Equity Center at Virginia Commonwealth University. His research focuses on the intersections of race and gender in attracting, preparing, and retaining special education teachers—particularly those from underrepresented groups. His research also focuses on postsecondary transition experiences for youth of color with an intellectual and developmental disability (IDD). He is the coeditor of Inclusion, a peer-reviewed journal that focuses on evidence-based interventions and strategies that promote the full inclusion of people with IDD.
Ms. Christine Powell, is a second-year doctoral student in the special education and disability leadership program at Virginia Commonwealth University. Her research focuses on recruiting and retaining special education teachers of color. She also investigates special education teachers of color entry into alternative pathway programs and outcomes of these educators.
Ms. Emiola Oyefuga, is a postdoctoral research fellow at Virginia Commonwealth University in the Department of Educational Leadership. Her professional experience is in international development where she spent over 15 years working on education, gender, justice, security and conflict in Africa. She holds a Masters in Gender and Development from the Institute of Development Studies (IDS), University of Sussex, UK and awarded a Peace and Security Fellowship for African Women by the African Leadership Centre at King’s College London in 2013. Her research interests include social justice, social capital, gender and sexual abuse in schools.
Dr. Christopher J. Cormier, is a postdoctoral fellow at Stanford University in the Graduate School of Education. He is a former special education teacher who has taught all grades from first through 12th exclusively in Title 1 schools. His research program is the social and cultural contexts of minoritized learners and teachers in special education. He is also the current President-Elect for the Division for Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Exceptional Learners (DDEL) of the Council for Exceptional Children and also serves as chair for the Research and Professional Issues Committee.
Ms. Ira Padhye, is a third-year doctoral student in Special Education and Disability Leadership at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU). She is also the Project Director for the Virginia Project for Children and Young Adults with Deaf-blindness at VCU’s Partnership for People with Disabilities (a University Center of Excellence in Developmental Disabilities). Her research interests include training special education teachers and other school-based personnel in low-incidence-specific teaching strategies.
