Special Education (SPED)

SPED201
Introduction to Special Education

Prerequisites: Open to all majors/minors. Admission to Teacher Education Program for teaching majors in the College of Education and Human Sciences that do not have a Special Education focus area.

Description: Introduction to basic concepts related to the education of exceptional learners. Historical factors, legislative statutes, and instructional models.

This course is a prerequisite for: SPED 310; SPED 312; SPED 362; SPED 454; SPED 861, SPED 461

Course details
Credit Hours:3
Max credits per semester:3
Max credits per degree:3
Grading Option:Graded with Option

Credit Hours:3

ACE:

SPED310
Collaborative Practices

Prerequisites: SPED 201.

Description: Conceptual foundations, strategies and techniques for communicating effectively with educational personnel and parents. Roles of educational personnel in inclusive settings, pragmatic issues involved in designing and implementing collaborative efforts, techniques for increasing interpersonal problem solving, modes of communication, and skills for dealing with conflict and resistance.

Course details
Credit Hours:3
Max credits per semester:3
Max credits per degree:3
Grading Option:Graded with Option
Experiential Learning:Case/Project-Based Learning

Credit Hours:3

ACE:

SPED312
Assessment Techniques for Diverse Learners

Prerequisites: SPED 201 and sophomore standing

Description: Emphasis on knowledge and experience with interpreting norm-referenced, criterion-referenced, curriculum-based, and other data sources in making educational decisions. Use of assessment data for instructional planning and evaluation. Knowledge of the range of assessments used by other professionals in making educational decisions

Course details
Credit Hours:3
Max credits per semester:3
Max credits per degree:3
Grading Option:Graded with Option
Course and Laboratory Fee:$20

Credit Hours:3

ACE:

SPED362
Early Childhood Special Education

Prerequisites: SPED 201; parallel SPED 397; CYAF 374 or 474 or parallel; admission to the Inclusive Early Childhood Education major (IECE)

Description: History and trends in early childhood special education. Methods for educating children with and without disabilities in inclusive classroom settings. Focus on classroom-wide adaptations, individual accommodations, and the development and implementation of a functional intervention plan for one target child.

Course details
Credit Hours:3
Max credits per semester:3
Max credits per degree:3
Grading Option:Graded

Credit Hours:3

ACE:

SPED397
Professional Practicum Experience III

Prerequisites: Admission to Teacher Education Program.

Description: Guided observations and/or clinical experiences in schools and/or agencies offering programs for children and/or youth.

Course details
Credit Hours:1-10
Max credits per semester:10
Max credits per degree:10
Grading Option:Pass No Pass
Experiential Learning:Student Teaching/Education Practicum

Credit Hours:1-10

ACE:

SPED397D
Professional Practicum Experience III Unified Primary K-3

Prerequisites: Admission to Teacher Education Program.

Description: Guided observations and/or clinical experiences in schools and/or agencies offering programs for children and/or youth.

Course details
Credit Hours:1-10
Max credits per semester:10
Max credits per degree:10
Grading Option:Pass No Pass

Credit Hours:1-10

ACE:

SPED401A
Accommodating Exceptional Learners in the Elementary School ClassroomCrosslisted with SPED 801A

Prerequisites: Admission to the Teacher Education program. Co-enrollment in TEAC 308 or 311.

Must be taken concurrently with a practicum course

Description: Legal and ethical requirements for educating exceptional learners; identification, referral, and placement procedures; development and use of the Individual Education Program; strategies for teaching and accommodating academic and behavior of a range of exceptional and other at-risk learners in the elementary school.

Course details
Credit Hours:3
Max credits per semester:3
Max credits per degree:3
Grading Option:Graded with Option

Credit Hours:3

ACE:

SPED401B
Accommodating Exceptional Learners in the Secondary School ClassroomCrosslisted with SPED 801B

Prerequisites: Admission to the Teacher Education program.

Must be taken concurrently with a practicum course.

Description: Legal and ethical requirements for educating exceptional learners; identification, referral, and placement procedures; development and use of the Individual Education Program; strategies for teaching and accommodating academic and behavior of a range of exceptional and other at-risk learners in the secondary school.

Course details
Credit Hours:3
Max credits per semester:3
Max credits per degree:3
Grading Option:Graded with Option

Credit Hours:3

ACE:

SPED403
Seminar: General Special Education

Prerequisites: Parallel with SPED 497

Description: Concepts, instructional strategies, and attitudes related to the education of exceptional learners. Peer- and instructor-generated topics that are relevant to the student teaching experience.

Course details
Credit Hours:3
Max credits per semester:3
Max credits per degree:3
Grading Option:Pass No Pass
Offered:FALL/SPR
ACE Outcomes: ACE 10 Integrated Product
Experiential Learning:Student Teaching/Education Practicum

Credit Hours:3

ACE:ACE 10 Integrated Product

SPED406
Reading and Writing Disabilities: AdolescentsCrosslisted with SPED 806, TEAC 806

Prerequisites: SPED 212 (required for undergraduate students only). Parallel with SPED 406A/806A.

Description: Theory and techniques for assessing and teaching word identification, vocabulary, comprehension and writing skills in grades 7 to 12.

Course details
Credit Hours:2
Max credits per semester:2
Max credits per degree:2
Grading Option:Graded

Credit Hours:2

ACE:

SPED406A
Reading Center Practicum IICrosslisted with SPED 806A, TEAC 806A

Prerequisites: SPED 212 (required for undergraduate students only). Parallel with SPED 406/806.

Requires two hours per week in a Reading Center.

Description: Teaching and/or tutoring experience evaluating and instructing students with reading problems in a Reading Center. Assessment, instructional planning, delivery of instruction, writing diagnostic reports and parent communication.

Course details
Credit Hours:2
Max credits per semester:2
Max credits per degree:2
Grading Option:Graded
Course and Laboratory Fee:$15

Credit Hours:2

ACE:

SPED408
Methods and Instruction for Secondary Special EducationCrosslisted with SPED 808

This course is taken concurrently with a practicum experience.

Description: Principles of Classroom Instruction That Works and Explicit Instruction are instilled as a framework for instructional planning at the secondary level. Co-teaching with content teachers and transitional planning for secondary students with disabilities will also be addressed.

Course details
Credit Hours:3
Max credits per semester:3
Max credits per degree:3
Grading Option:Graded

Credit Hours:3

ACE:

SPED414
Instructional Methods for Students with Mathematics Learning DisabilitiesCrosslisted with SPED 814

Prerequisites: SPED 201; sophomore standing

Description: Understanding characteristics of students with math learning disabilities and potential causes. Evidence-based instructional strategies in math for teaching students with math learning disabilities and those who are at-risk.

Course details
Credit Hours:3
Max credits per semester:3
Max credits per degree:3
Grading Option:Graded with Option
Offered:FALL/SPR

Credit Hours:3

ACE:

SPED415
Reading and Writing Disabilities: Elementary StudentsCrosslisted with SPED 815

Prerequisites: SPED 201, TEAC 311, TEAC 313 for elementary education majors; SPED 201, CYAF 383, CYAF 316A, CYAF 397D for inclusive early childhood education majors; SPED 201, SPED 212, and SPED 414 (or equivalent) for SPED majors. Must be taken with: SPED 415A/815A.

Priority will be given to students who will be student teaching the following semester.

Description: Theory and techniques for assessing and teaching early literacy skills in small groups and one-on-one for children who struggle with literacy.

Course details
Credit Hours:2
Max credits per semester:2
Max credits per degree:2
Grading Option:Graded

Credit Hours:2

ACE:

SPED415A
Practicum in Reading and Writing Disabilities-ElementaryCrosslisted with SPED 815A

Prerequisites: SPED 201, TEAC 311, TEAC 313 for elementary education majors; SPED 201, CYAF 383, CYAF 316A, CYAF 397D for inclusive early childhood education majors; SPED 201, SPED 212, and SPED 414 (or equivalent) for SPED majors. Must be taken with: SPED 415/815.

Priority will be given to student who will be student teaching the following semester.

Description: This reading and writing practicum is taken parallel with as SPED 415 or SPED 815

This course is a prerequisite for: SPED 415, SPED 815; SPED 415A, SPED 815A

Course details
Credit Hours:2
Max credits per semester:2
Max credits per degree:2
Grading Option:Graded
Course and Laboratory Fee:$15
Experiential Learning:Student Teaching/Education Practicum

Credit Hours:2

ACE:

SPED454
Behavior Management

Prerequisites: SPED 201 or SLPA 150; TEAC 297A or EDPS 297; Sophomore standing

These courses may not be taken concurrently with SPED 454, they must be completed prior to taking SPED 454.

Description: Techniques for managing children's challenging behaviors. Functional assessment of behavior problems, strategies for preventing behavior problems, techniques for increasing prosocial behavior, and non-aversive procedures for decreasing problematic behavior.

Course details
Credit Hours:3
Max credits per semester:3
Max credits per degree:3
Grading Option:Graded
Experiential Learning:Case/Project-Based Learning

Credit Hours:3

ACE:

SPED461
Infants with Disabilities and Home VisitingCrosslisted with SPED 861

Prerequisites: SPED 861: Admission to Graduate Degree or Certificate program in Special Education SPED 461: SPED 201, CYAF 271 and admission to the Inclusive Early Childhood Education major; CYAF 380 or parallel

SPED 861 requires a practicum in home visiting.

Description: Assessment and intervention strategies for developing appropriate early intervention programs for infants and toddlers with disabilities. Rationale and principles for conducting home-based, family-centered, and transdisciplinary services.

Course details
Credit Hours:3
Max credits per semester:3
Max credits per degree:3
Grading Option:Graded with Option
Course and Laboratory Fee:$10

Credit Hours:3

ACE:

SPED480
Educating Students with Low-Incidence Disabilities

Description: Provide a broad overview of the psychological, social, and educational aspects of low-incidence disabilities, including autism, physical disabilities, intellectual disabilities, various degrees of vision and hearing loss, and multiple disabilities.

Course details
Credit Hours:3
Max credits per semester:3
Max credits per degree:3
Grading Option:Graded
Experiential Learning:Student Teaching/Education Practicum

Credit Hours:3

ACE:

SPED494
Independent StudyCrosslisted with SLPA 494, SLPA 894, SPED 894

Prerequisites: Prior arrangements with faculty member and permission.

Description: Individual or group projects that are extensions of course work, such as preparation of teaching materials, review of literature, observation/exploration of practices, design of curricular or clinical tools. Topic, scope and grading parameters are under guidance of a department faculty member, but topic can be student-initiated. These projects are generally relevant to the student's professional practice and advance the student's and possibly others' knowledge on a topic. Such projects may result in professional presentations.

Course details
Credit Hours:1-3
Max credits per semester:3
Max credits per degree:6
Grading Option:Graded with Option
Experiential Learning:Research

Credit Hours:1-3

ACE:

SPED496E
Field Experience: General Special Education
Course details
Credit Hours:1-6
Max credits per semester:6
Max credits per degree:12
Grading Option:Pass No Pass

Credit Hours:1-6

ACE:

SPED496M
Directed Field Experience: Mild/Moderate
Course details
Credit Hours:1-6
Max credits per semester:6
Max credits per degree:12
Grading Option:Pass No Pass

Credit Hours:1-6

ACE:

SPED496Y
Directed Field Experience: Inclusion

Prerequisites: Permission.

Course details
Credit Hours:1-6
Max credits per semester:6
Max credits per degree:12
Grading Option:Pass No Pass

Credit Hours:1-6

ACE:

SPED497
Student Teaching

Description: Practice skills and ideas introduced in the content and methods courses of the undergraduate degree program. Demonstrate independence and competence in planning, implementing, and delivering assessment and instruction in educational settings.

Course details
Credit Hours:1-12
Max credits per semester:12
Max credits per degree:12
Grading Option:Pass No Pass
Experiential Learning:Student Teaching/Education Practicum

Credit Hours:1-12

ACE:

SPED497M
Practicum: Mild/Moderate

Prerequisites: Admission by application only

Course details
Credit Hours:3-12
Max credits per semester:12
Max credits per degree:12
Grading Option:Pass No Pass

Credit Hours:3-12

ACE:

SPED497Q
Student Teaching with Infants and/or Preschool Children with Disabilities

Prerequisites: Completion of all courses and pre-student teaching practica in the Inclusive Early Childhood Education major.

Description: Final supervised field experience in the public schools with young children who have disabilities under age 5. Minimum 10 weeks, full-time placement.

Course details
Credit Hours:1-5
Max credits per semester:5
Max credits per degree:5
Grading Option:Pass No Pass

Credit Hours:1-5

ACE:

SPED497Z
Student Teaching MulticulturalCrosslisted with NUTR 497Z, TEAC 497Z

Description: Supervised teaching experiences in schools. Accompanying seminar focuses on: teacher certification, teacher and student rights and responsibilities, proper conduct of teachers, selected legal aspects of education, methods of communicating with parents and community members, and current issues which impact education.

Course details
Credit Hours:1
Max credits per semester:1
Max credits per degree:1
Grading Option:Pass No Pass
Course and Laboratory Fee:$25
Experiential Learning:Student Teaching/Education Practicum

Credit Hours:1

ACE:

SPED498
Research Other than ThesisCrosslisted with SPED 898

Description: Individual or group project designed to help students develop understandings, skills, and outlooks that would allow them to conduct original, independent research in the future. Topic of research may be related to the instructors current research projects or area of study or a topic of interest to the student for pilot work; approval of the topic/project is at the discretion of the instructor.

Course details
Credit Hours:1-3
Max credits per semester:3
Max credits per degree:3
Grading Option:Graded with Option
Experiential Learning:Research

Credit Hours:1-3

ACE:

SPED499H
Honors Thesis

Prerequisites: Good standing in the University Honors Program or by invitation.

Description: Conduct a scholarly research project and write a University Honors Program or undergraduate thesis.

Course details
Credit Hours:3
Max credits per semester:3
Max credits per degree:3
Grading Option:Graded
Experiential Learning:Research

Credit Hours:3

ACE: