Needing to learn more

Here I am in my second year of teaching in a public school setting. Everyone that I know said the first year is always difficult, but that you should generally stick it out because it gets better. yeah ok. In my second year thus far, i feel like I have struggled more in two months than I did all last year.

I am struggling still to resolve issues that were unresolved at the end of last year. This is partly because I have half of the same students and the same paraprofessional. While I do see a lot of progress with the students I had last year, I struggle with the same students, with certain behaviors that continue to escalate and with an overall lack of support. Lack of support and resources for my students, lack of professional respect and support for myself.

I am struggling more with the curriculum this year than I was last year. Maybe I am bored with it. And if I am bored with it, are my repeating students? Is that what is leading to some of the behavior problems?Maybe I can simply think outside the box a little more this year than I was able to do last year. It is so limiting and some of it is not at all appropriate for students from low income families or from urban areas. I feel strongly that there needs to be a concrete connection between the literature and the activities, but the writers of the curriculum apparently dont. Also the curriculum does not address the needs and goals of students with IEPs.

That leads to other questions. How to modify curriculum and yet at the same time include students with disabilities? How do I set up my groups so that all students are learning, growing, and getting individual needs met?

I still have so much more to learn and so many questions to get answered. I want to start a degree program next fall but I am unsure of what to study. Here are some options that I am considering: please let me know what you think

Masters in special education leading to professional licensure in severe disabilities
Masters in Curriculum and instruction ( hopefully so i can write my own )
Masters in special education administration