When the School District of Manatee County hired Carina Chindamo as an autism spectrum disorder teacher at Rogers Garden-Bullock Elementary in 2022, a principal had to file an out-of-field teacher request because she lacked certification in some of the grade-level materials required for the position.
While not the norm, this wasn’t rare.
Across Florida, 11% of courses are taught by teachers who aren’t certified in the appropriate field, according to the state Department of Education. It’s one way of managing teacher shortages that have persisted across the state in recent years and are especially acute in challenging subject areas, such as special education…