The teaching profession in general and the field of Special Education teaching in particular is in trouble. One out of every three teachers in the United States leaves the teaching profession for another career (U.S. Department of Education, 1992). In addition, fewer individuals are choosing to become teachers (Chapman & Green, 1986). Also, increasing numbers of Special Education teachers are changing to regular education classrooms or leaving the teaching profession entirely (U.S. Department of Education, 1992).
In 1986, it was predicted that more than one million teachers would leave the profession in less than a decade, with the majority of these being sincerely dedicated to teaching (McLaughlin, Pfeifer, Owens-Swanson & Yee, 1986). In the cases of Special Education teachers in particular, the primary reason cited for their exodus from the field was burnout defined by Bishop (1980) as emotional and mental exhaustion arising from job pressures and stresses. This drop in Special Education teachers owing to burnout as well as the evidence of present and future teacher shortages in the field of Special Education have contributed to the concern of many educational administrators to identify factors that contribute to the problem.
Gold and Roth (1993) have stated that there is a need to better understand teacher burnout and how it contributes to the decline of teachers in the Special Education field. The problem examined in this study focused on burnout among Special Education teachers. Specifically, the study examined for demographic differences as well as differences in attitudes and feelings about several organizational and school-related factors among three groups of Special Education teachers: (1) teachers who have made the switch from Special Education to regular education; (2) teachers who have remained in the field; and (3) teachers who left the teaching profession altogether.
In the effort to better understa...