VIDBE-Q 2025 Volume 70 Issue 1
Most research has considered TSVI's and O&M specialists' caseloads. In
research studies conducted over the past 20 years, TSVIs and O&M specialists
have consistently reported caseloads ranging from 1-100 students, with a mean of
approximately 20 students (Hebert & Savaiano, 2021; Meador, 2015; Zebehazy et
al., 2023). In Zebehazy et al.'s. (2023) study, itinerant TSVIs and O&M specialists
again reported caseloads of 20-300 students. However, approximately 14% of
vision professionals reported caseloads of 30-200 students. Accordingly, many
TSVIs and O&M specialists report large, unmanageable caseloads, as well as
concerns about the resulting quality of service students receive (Meador, 2015;
Wall Emerson & Anderson, 2014; Zebehazy et al., 2023).
Research indicates that as the number of students on a teacher's caseload
increases, teaching quality declines (Bettini et al., 2017; Wall Emerson &
Anderson, 2014; Wilton, 2017). In particular, as caseloads increase, use of
individualized instruction and accommodations for students with visual
impairments decline (Wilton, 2017). Large caseloads contribute to teacher stress
and may eventually lead to burnout, impacting a teacher's physical and mental
health, and ultimately lead to attrition (Bettini et al., 2017; Hogue & Taylor, 2020;
Texas Action Committee for the Education of Students with Visual Impairments,
2020; Wilton, 2017). The RAND Corporation (Doan et al., 2023), in its State of the
American Teacher Survey, found that teachers are twice as likely as other workers
