Addressing the Teacher Shortage in Rural Areas with Military Veteran Teacher Candidates
Overview & Synopsis
The United States is experiencing a drastic teacher shortage nationwide, in rural locations and in specialized areas like special education, science, and math. Rural special education teacher positions often go unfulfilled or are staffed with untrained, and often unqualified, individuals with little to no experience in education, leaving the most vulnerable students in a precarious educational placement. This position paper identifies one solution to address the special education teacher shortage in rural areas: recruit military veterans into special education teacher preparation programs. Characteristics of military veterans that make them ideal special education teacher candidates are identified, and a pathway is proposed for those interested in transferring the skills and dispositions attained during military service to the special education classroom.
eric.ed.gov)
Document Information
| Document Title | Addressing the Teacher Shortage in Rural Areas with Military Veteran Teacher Candidates |
|---|---|
| Author / Organization | Glenna M. Billingsley, Kathy Randolph, Kenneth F. Gaylord, Richard Earley, Olivia Jimenez |
| Subject & Discipline | Teacher Shortage, Rural Areas, Veterans |
| Categories | Education & Pedagogy |
| Publication Year | 2026 |
| License / Rights | Public Domain / Open Access Educational Resource |
| Resource Verification | Listed PDF (Verification Pending) |
| Original Host Website |
ERIC (Education Resources)
(eric.ed.gov)
|
| File Format | application/pdf (Portable Document Format) |
| Language | EN |
| Catalog ID | DOC-175675 |
| Original Source Link | Visit Source Page on eric.ed.gov » |