Reported are results of a 1970 survey of 1,996 public elementary and secondary schools, representative of the nation's 81,000 local public schools, to determine the numbers of professional staff serving the following groups of handicapped pupils: speech impaired, learning disabled, mentally retarded, emotionally disturbed, hard of hearing, deaf, crippled, partially sighted, and blind. Data are reported for three instructional situations: teachers of separate special classes, regular teachers who provide special instruction in regular classes, and specialized professional personnel who provide individualized instruction or assistance. Conclusions of the report include findings which indicate provision of special instruction for pupils with learning disabilities by an estimated 123,000 professional personnel of which two-thirds are regular teachers, provision of special instruction for the mentally retarded by an estimated 102,500 professional personnel, pupil staff ratios in special classes ranging from 69 pupils per staff member for the speech impaired to 6 students per staff member for the blind, and pupil staff ratios for individualized special instruction ranging from 15 students per staff member for the speech impaired to 2 students per staff member for the hard of hearing, the partially sighted, and the blind. Appendixes provide information on general methodology, sampling reliability and tables, and the relevant questionnaire items and definitions. (DB)