20+ Professional Development Activities for Special Ed Teachers
Sep 01, 2021
If you are a certified teacher or paraprofessional, then you know professional development can help you learn about and refine the best practices that you use to guide your teaching and support for students. And while there are roughly 34,891 different conferences, professional developments, and training opportunities for special education teachers, but most don’t cover the best niche in special education- transition!
Our young adult students aren’t ‘kiddos,’ we don’t need any guidance on implementing accommodations for state testing, and we definitely won’t benefit from trainings on ACT/SAT prep. Our needs as transition teachers serving high school and older young adults are unique and thus, opportunities can be limited.
Professional Development for Special Education Teachers
Certified teachers typically have a minimum number of 'professional development hours' they have to complete every handful of years or so to keep their certificate active and in good standing. For example, a certified teacher may need to complete 120 hours of professional development in a 5 year span to maintain good standing, which comes out to 25 hours per year, or just over half of a work week per school year.
The world of 'professional development' for teachers is wwwiiidddeee because you can choose to step-up your teaching skills by focus on learning specific subject areas, like geometry if you are co-teaching the subject, or you can learn about new strategies for addressing student behavior if you are struggling with classroom management, or you can complete college coursework after hours to level-up in the educational world. Professional development isn't just sitting and listening to a lecture anymore, it can cover different areas of focus such as classroom management, time management, or even how to use a new online program or curriculum.
And, the longer you teach the more of your professional needs may change. You might learn about ways to increase student achievement, like new technologies (i.e., Boom Learning), or engage in training to be more efficient in the 1.5 million tasks you have to do every day (i.e., using AI for task efficiency).
However, the hope is you aren't forced to attend blanket professional development that only speaks to general education educators because that can feel like a waste of your valuable teacher time.
Effective professional development means something different for every teacher. Being able to handpick what you need to best serve in your roll is essential to getting the most out of a training.
Professional Development for Paraprofessionals
Paraprofessionals have a direct impact on student learning and student outcomes because of the invaluable direct support they provide to students on a daily basis. It is imperative that the staff who work alongside special education staff receive the support, training, and professional development they need to foster student success.
To ensure the most effective professional development for support staff, it is important that the training is specific to the paraprofessional role. Below, I've shared a few professional development opportunities, including those from organizations that are highly regarded by those in the special education and teaching professions.
Below is a list of 20+ professional development opportunities specifically for special education transition teachers and staff:
1. ARC of (insert your state) Annual Conference
I reside in Illinois and our ARC chapter is very active with trainings and conferences. They hold 1 hr lunch-break learning style sessions for via webinars throughout the year and a variety of annual conferences. Many of these opportunities cover topics specific to the transition population as they often work closely with statewide adult agencies. The best part, many sessions are FREE Check out your state’s ARC chapter and be sure to check out their upcoming trainings, events, and annual conference!
2. State Transition Conference
Conduct a basic Google search to see if your state has a state-wide transition conference. A professional development day specific to your state can help you learn about local initiatives, stay up-to-date on state happenings, and network with fellow educators.
The Illinois Statewide Transition Conference is held each fall and typically spans 2 days. Topics usually include improving student advocacy, success stories from around the state, college level supports, updates from the Medicaid wavier, and more!
3. Division on Career Development and Transition (DCDT)
If you can convince your school leaders to fund a trip out of state, then check out the DCDT conference. DCDT holds an annual multi-day conference each year. Session topics include independent living, employment, mental health, self determination, post secondary education, and a whole lot more! If travel is an option for you, then this may be worth the time and investment for high quality professional development.
This conference visits a new city each year and can be valuable for special education teachers and other team members in your department, like a vocational coordinator.
4. Confused to Connected Professional Development
I may be biased because I created this opportunity myself, but I designed it after seeing a gap in education for our high school and transition special education teachers.
Helping students and families get connected with government and community benefits, like SSI, Medicaid, Medicaid Wavier, public transportation, housing, guardianship/supported decision making/power of attorney and more, can feel like learning a foreign language! Thankfully, these benefits, services, and supports CAN be learned and educators can get connected with local experts and providers to best support their students and families in applying. These benefits will often provide opportunities for young adult students to use the skills they learned in school long after they exit from special education services.
I also offer an introductory FREE training, to help get you in the Benefit Taskmaster Mindset!
5. Virginia Commonwealth University- Work Incentive Planning and Assistance (FREE)
If you are interested in learning more about federal benefits, such as SSI, SSDI, Medicaid, and more, then consider completing the FREE training session from Virginia Commonwealth University. Register for an upcoming session and once the training opens up, be ready to learn!
The program offers only a few seats to small groups every few months and you complete the work in a specific window of time. So, if you wouldn't have time to complete the trainings during the school year, consider opting for a summertime session. I completed this program during spring break one year and came away feeling far more confident answering families questions and being able to guide them in next steps.
This is one of those non-traditional professional development courses that is very niche and isn't specifically geared towards teachers, but I promise you will learn a wealth of information and have a healthy list of videos, resources, and websites to reference in the future.
6. Autism Internet Modules (FREE)
You can learn about autism through the Autism Internet Modules. If you are looking for a safe space to learn about the basics of autism through online modules that you can do anytime (or anywhere), AIM might be a worthwhile professional development option. Each module has case studies, instructional videos, pre- and post-assessments, discussion questions, activities, and more, so you'll be actively engaged in learning.
You can also obtain graduate credit by completing specific AIM modules and completing other identified work.
7. Autism Focused Intervention Resources & Modules (FREE)
The AFIRM website offers multiple modules for both educators and paraprofessionals looking to strengthen or learn new skills. At the time this blog post is published, there are 28 different educator modules, ranging from prompting and visual supports to music-meditated intervention. Most modules are 2 hours, with a few lasting 3 hours. If you are looking for CEU credits, you can register, pay a small fee, and receive a certificate of completion.
8. IRIS Center (FREE)
The IRIS Center through Vanderbilt University offers PD Certificates for Educators at zero cost through (at least) December 2026. The PD sessions offered cover topics such as behavior intervention plans (BIP), functional behavior analysis (FBA), autism basics, classroom management, progress monitoring, universal design for learning (UDL), and many more. The PD lesson plans for learners consist of a pretest, module, post-test, and certificate of learning. Most sessions range between 1.5-2 hours for completion.
9. Assistive Technology Industry Association (ATIA)
ATIA offers a Learning Catalog for educators who want to focus their professional growth in assistive technology. With over 200 videos to watch and learn from, you could curate your own multi-day professional development training from the comfort of your office desk. There is the option for CEU credit, if you need hours towards recertification.
Tip: Click the down arrow for "Experience Level' on the left-hand side to see Introductory, Intermediate, and Advanced level courses!
10. Crisis Prevention Institute (FREE)
If you are seeking training to address specific needs related to descalation of behavior, check out Crisis Prevention Institue's free Prevention First online training course. While Crisis Prevention Institute (CPI) offers a full program to safely train educational staff in de-escalation and crisis intervention training, they offer a free 'intro' course specific to prevention. While there are other safety training programs that an educator may be trained in throughout their teaching career, such as Devereux and Safety-Care, CPI is the only program that offers a free beginner level course.
11. National Assocition of Special Education Teachers
NASET is one of those professional organizations for special education teachers that is highly respected, so if they are offering a professional development program, you can bet you'll walk away having learned something new! NASET offers a Special Education Bootcamp for educators who are just beginning their teaching career in special education as the course covers what new teachers might not have learned in college and the basics of special education and classroom set-up. You can also check out their mini-trainings about an array of specific topics, which may cater to educators with a few years of teaching under their belt.
12. Council for Exceptional Children
Learn how to best utilize the paraprofessional staff supporting your students in and out of your classroom from the Council for Exceptional Children's Supporting Paraeducators: Successful Systems & Strategies for Admins and Teachers online learning module. For a fee ($99 for non-CEC members), educators will engage in 9 hours of learning of how to best utilize the paraprofessionals to support student's needs.
CEC is one of those highly regarded educational institutions, so check out their other professional development opportunities, including their annual conference, online learning, and in-person learning. There is bound to be valuable learning opportunities for both new and veteran special education teachers.
13. Epilepsy Seizure Training (FREE)
The Epilepsy Foundation offers free online and in-person training sessions for educators and staff to learn about epilepsy and seizure safety. These trainings are a great way to help your (for the online training) or your whole team or department learn (for the in-person training) about the unique needs of students in your class or program in the comfort of your own classroom. There are also CEU credits available, if you need hours.
14. Google's AI for Educators (FREE)
Google offers a training specifically for educators seeking to learn how AI can be used to improve their time management and teaching craft. Learn skills you can use in your classroom and complete an assessment to earn a certificate.
15. Sexual and Relationship Health Educator Training
If you teach teens and young adults, then you know that relationship and sexual health is a delicate and important topic that isn't covered adequately in undergraduate teaching programs.
Learn how to address valuable relationship and sexual health skills to meet the unique needs of teens and young adult students with the Elevatus Training online training modules. As noted on the Elevatus website: "This six module, self-study course offers a proven, nuts-and-bolts approach to discussing sexuality and responding to behaviors. You’ll come away feeling more skillful, comfortable and confident when discussing sexuality with those you serve."
16. Boom Learning
Boom Cards are digital task cards and are a resource that can meet a lot of different needs. You can use them for whole group review, independent practice, for homework, assessment, as part of sub notes, and more. And, because of their versatility, if you don't currently use them in your classroom, then committing some of your professional development time to learning new programs like the Boom Learning online platforms can expand both your teaching skill set and provide new learning opportunities for students!
17. Having Hard Conversations
Do you freeze up during confrontation or avoid uncomfortable conversations? If you want to have more skills in your mental toolbox when working with students, conversing with parents and guardians, or working with fellow staff or administration, then consider dedicating some professional development time to learning how to have hard conversations.
You can set up a group training for your whole team, department, program, or building to learn how to have hard conversations with former educator Jennifer Abrams. In my experience, she can provide valuable training during faculty meetings or professional development days.
18. Transition Coalition
The Transition Coalition offers various training options, some of which are free, on an array of topics specific to transition-age students grade level (14-22+). There are modules, DIY videos, short courses, and even a self-study course. The modules, for example, cover topics such as best practices for transition planning and pre-employment transition services. If you have a group of team members looking to commit to a professional development program, then check out the self-study option!
19. Paraprofessional Training Manual for High School & Transition Staff
After having worked with dozens of amazing paraprofessionals, both new to the job and veterans, I realized there wasn't a resource for teachers to train paraprofessionals through a manual that included group-friendly worksheets and class needs specific discussion. And, after so many years in the classroom, I created my own professional development, the Paraprofessional Training Manual, that could be used during back-to-school, at weekly staff meetings, or as an independent study.
I share more about the Paraprofessional Training Manual in my blog post, but it's worth highlighting the 12 hypothetical scenarios in the manual that allow for your paraprofessional staff to offer their different perspectives for how to handle the situation. These scenarios would offer the opportunity to discuss the best ways to handle the problem in your unique classroom and can trigger meaningful discussions with your staff through no-stakes situations.
20. National Resource Center for Paraeducators, Related Service Providers, and Interveners (FREE)
NRC offers a series called Saturday Mornings trainings. These are, as mentioned on their website, "monthly, low-cost, professional development webinars for paraeducators, related service providers, interveners, teachers, administrators, parents and others." For the 2025-2026 school year, topics included bullying, accommodations and modifications, transition, and an array of other subjects.
21. NASET Paraprofessional Skills Preparation Program
As mentioned above, NASET has a Special Education Bootcamp, but they also offer a Paraprofessional Skills Prep Program (scroll past the Board Certified program). The Paraprofessional Skills Prep program covers roles and responsibilities of paraprofessionals, the basics of special education services, providing support in the classroom, effective communication, and, in my opinion, one of the MOST important modules, confidentiality, professional behavior, and ethical responsibilities.
22. Practices for Paraeducators (FREE)
Council for Exceptional Children, which I mentioned above, also offers a free Paraprofessional training option. The free training teaches what CEC calls 'effective and high leverage practices in Collaboration, Assessment, Social/Emotional/Behavioral, and Instruction.' After completing the training, paraeducators can complete a certificate of completion.
23. Parent Training on Autism (FREE)
While this isn't training for special education teachers and paraprofessional staff, you might be interested in the free training for parents on special education. The Autism Distance Parent Education Training covers strategies for teaching life skills, including prompting and chaining, and positive behavior systems to reinforce desired behavior, and is offered in English, Spanish, Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese.
