Career Profile Project Logo

The Career Profile Project

About Blog Contact Home

Career Profile Home

Career Profile Project
Special Educator

Job Title and Job Description

Special Educator

I am a teacher in a Multi-handicapped Severe/Intensive Special Needs Class. The class consists of 7 special needs children with a variety of neurological, medical and physical disorders, eg. Spastic quadraplegia, cerebral palsy, seizure disorders, cytomegalio virus, vesicoureteral reflux, hearing impairments, absence of rostrum of corpus callosum, behavioral disorders, communication disorders, eye/sight problems and feeding issues (diet/feeding G-tube). The children are in wheelchairs and require lifting, proper positioning and stretching and strength exercises. I facilitate a comprehensive communication program during each activity, throughout the day. The staff and I teach the children ?Intellikeys and Boardmaker? and other programs with switch devises. We are all trained in ALS (aided language stimulation), VOCA (switch/latch timers devises) devises, augmentative language communication and simple signing, PT stretching, equipment usage, lifting techniques, seizure protocol, CPR, CPI and first aid. The field is rewarding and there is so much to learn. The learning process is never-ending.

What are some related career opportunities and job titles in your company or in your career area?

I feel that in the future there will be an increasing demand for aumentative communication via computer and other electronic devices. There is a high turn-over of special educators and therefore is always a demand for teachers in this field.

What education or training did you have to prepare for this career?

Bachelors degree, two MASTERS DEGREES IN SPECIAL EDUCATION AND a dissertation away from my doctorate.

What education or training do you recommend for students today who want to enter this field?

Read, study, ask questions and participate... Volunteer for all special education populations... Hands-on experiential learning is the key.

When you were in high school, did you know that you would enter this field?

No...I was interested in physical ed and dance. It wasn?t until I volunteered in a class for behavior/autistic children that I realized what I wanted to pursue.

Skills Profile

Skills UsedRating (5=Most Important thru
1=Not Important)		Comments
Artistic 5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important 
Athletic / Physical 4-Very Important4-Very Important4-Very Important4-Very Important 
Bilingual 3-Somewhat Important3-Somewhat Important3-Somewhat Important 
Computer Technology 5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important 
Coordination / Using Hands, Tools, and Equipment 5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important 
Creative Thinking 5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important 
Interpersonal 5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important 
Investigative / Fact Finding 5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important 
leadership and Supervising 5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important 
Logical Thinking 5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important 
Math 4-Very Important4-Very Important4-Very Important4-Very Important 
Mechanical Understanding 1-Not Important 
Sales and Negotiation 2-Less Important2-Less Important 
Scientific and Experimental 3-Somewhat Important3-Somewhat Important3-Somewhat Important 
Social Service / Helping Skills 5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important 
Teaching / Instructing 5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important 
Verbal Communication 5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important 
Understanding Nature, Plants, Animals 3-Somewhat Important3-Somewhat Important3-Somewhat Important 
Understanding Yourself 5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important 
Writing 5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important5-Most Important 
 

Interview By: Dawn, Special Educator