A program that places recent college graduates in teaching positions across the country after just weeks of training says it will beef up its focus on special education.

Teach for America said it will “strengthen” training that its participants receive on “ability-based mindsets and inclusive practices.”

The group also said it plans to expand alliances with local organizations in the communities where its teachers work in order to better serve students in special education.

Currently, more than 10 percent of Teach for America’s 11,100 teachers are working with students in special education in the nation’s schools, often through inclusion environments, the organization said.

Due to shortages in the field, advocates say that special education is more reliant on alternative training programs than many other teaching specialities.

However, critics have voiced concerns about a lack of transparency in the level of expertise that Teach for America’s teachers have. Under current federal policy, rookie educators can often be dubbed “highly qualified” even as they work to complete their teaching certification.

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