TFA Teacher of Students with Moderate Disabilities

Hi everyone! I was accepted into TFA today to teach in the Boston area. My subject assignment is "Teacher of Students with Moderate Disabilities" --- does anyone have clarity on if this means a self contained classroom, what age range I'd likely have, other staff support (aids?) that would be in the classroom, etc? Would anyone who has had this placement be willing to share more about their experiences? I'm less concerned about working with the students, though I'm sure that come with challenges, and more concerned about increased workload navigating IEP paperwork, etc.

I have a little bit of background with special ed since some of the swimmers I coached were on the autism spectrum. I took a special education course at my college and had a fieldwork placement in a local special ed classroom where I observed/helped out a bit, and the students in that classroom had a wide range of needs. My current internship focuses on disability advocacy, but I don't work with any special education students directly with that. So I'm not completely inexperienced, but definitely not sure if I have the right background for this placement. Has anyone in this position asked for a subject switch, and was it successful? I'm not totally opposed to doing special ed, but I do think I'd be a better fit in gen ed elementary, or middle/high school English of Social Studies.

Posted Dec 3, 2025, 1:36 AM UTC

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