A Study of the Status and Perceptions of the Department of Educations’s Efforts to Increase the Employment of Teachers with Disabilities

The purpose of this study is to analyze the number of teachers with disabilities, their types of disabilities, and their employment status by school level and subject in 17 cities over the past three years. A mixed-method approach was used, combining the analysis of employment status of teachers with disabilities with qualitative data from focus group interviews. The results showed that all 17 departments of education fell far short of the mandatory hiring rate of 3.6%, and the number of new teachers with disabilities has been declining over the past three years. Physical disability was the most common type of disability among incumbent teachers with disabilities (over half), followed by visual impairment, hearing impairment and hepatic impairment. Also, the highest proportion of teachers with disabilities were assigned to special schools. The Seoul department of education was the only one with an disability employment rate of more than 2%, while the Gyeongbuk, Jeonnam and Gangwon departments of education had very low rates. The main reasons for this were inconsistent selection rates of candidates in competitive examinations, lack of accommodations, and underrepresentation. Mid- to long-term plans, including follow-up research, and short-term solutions to the current situation were discussed.