Mild/Moderate Special Education

This Master's is designed to enhance the teaching skills of K-12 Mild/Moderate Special Education teachers or for teachers who have mild/moderate students within their non special education classroom. It is a curricular and instructional methodologies based degree with a diagnostic testing course to administer and use results for individual and classroom instruction. Either a K-6 or 7-12 emphasis is available.

Program topics, learning experiences and outcomes are based on the five core propositions of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS). Additionally, this program is aligned with the Council of Exceptional Children (CEC) content standards.

This program can typically be completed in 2 years. This degree does lead to Iowa or Missouri Licensure. Other states may also accept this for licensure. Each student should check with their individual state to determine requirements and acceptance.

During a two-year period, a cohort of teachers will participate in either 33 term hours (for K-6) or 36 term hours (for 7-12) of continuously sequenced course work. Course content is presented through multi-learning modalities that includes viewing video of master teachers demonstrating course concepts and techniques, collaborating with your graduate faculty mentor and colleagues, and applying course content in your own teaching situation.

EDUC5400 Special Education Strategies for Collaboration 3 s.h.
This class lays a foundation for the Master of Education in Mild/Moderate Special Education. Candidates discover how to take ownership for their own learning through shared reading and reflections in a social learning context. Candidates begin to clarify procedures for doing systematic inquiry and reflection in future learning.

EDUC5410 Special Education Teachers are Committed to Students and Their Learning: A Collaborative Study of the Mild/Moderate Disabilities 3 s.h.
Through collaborative study groups, candidates will explore etiologies of mild and moderate disabilities. Prospective candidates will engage in inquiry of current trends in educational programming, educational alternatives and related services and will correlate these findings as they relate to appropriate multi disciplinary team planning. Candidates will also examine general developmental, academic, social-emotional, psychological, career and functional characteristics and explore their relatedness to individual instructional planning. Candidates will also engage in review of definition, historical, philosophical, and legal issues of individuals with disabilities that include students from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.

EDUC5440 Special Education Teachers Think Systematically About Their Practice 3 s.h.
Candidates discover ways to support and enhance their growth as educators through reflection, renewal and reform.

EDUC5421 Special Education Teachers Know Their Subjects and How to Teach Them: A Collaboration of Teaching Methods in a K-8/Mild/Moderate Program 3 s.h.
This course is designed to provide the classroom teacher with numerous curricular and instructional methodologies that will help to facilitate knowledge in the mildly and moderately disabled child and promote the development of cognitive, academic, social, language and functional life skills. The candidates will engage in creating a learning environment that is appropriate for students with disabilities. They will also demonstrate how to plan and convey varying subject material to students with individual learning needs. The candidates in this course will show evidence of multiple paths of knowledge to include remedial methods, instructional techniques, appropriate use of assistive technology as it relates to individual learning levels through their lesson plan development and implementation.

EDUC5422 Special Education Teachers Know Their Subjects and How to Teach Them: A Collaboration of Teaching Methods in a 5-12/Mild/Moderate Program 3 s.h.
This course is designed to provide the classroom teacher with numerous curricular and instructional methodologies that will help to facilitate knowledge in the mildly and moderately disabled child and promote the development of cognitive, academic, social, language and functional life skills. The candidates will engage in creating a learning environment that is appropriate for students with disabilities. They will also demonstrate how to plan and convey varying subject material to students with individual learning needs. The candidates in this course will show evidence of multiple paths of knowledge to include remedial methods, instructional techniques, appropriate use of assistive technology as it relates to individual learning levels through their lesson plan development and implementation.

EDUC5430 Special Education Teachers are Responsible for Managing and Monitoring Student Learning: Strategies and Collaboration in Classroom Management 3 s.h.
Classroom management theories, methods, and techniques for individuals with exceptional learning needs will be explored in this course. Candidates will design, implement, and evaluate instructional programs, which motivate students to monitor their engagement in active social learning in family, school, and community activities. The candidates will be able to provide evidence of their plan through descriptions and examples of completed instruction, related assessments and a reflection on these examples.

EDUC5460 Educational Assessment 3 s.h.
This course will provide candidates with opportunities to administer, score, and interpret diagnostic tests used in the development of instructional planning. Identification of student strengths and needs will be assessed through multiple methods of assessment. Candidates will plan and implement both individual and group instruction with objectives based on assessment outcome. Candidates will explore legal provisions, regulations and guidelines as they apply to both formal and informal testing. Terminology and knowledge of specialized strategy exploration will also be included as it relates to various disabilities.

EDUC5470 Remedial Math Methods 3 s.h.
The candidate will research and implement best practices in the remediation of math instruction for individuals with disabilities. Strategies will include age-appropriate and ability level instruction to include appropriate use of technology. Candidates using multiple methods will plan both individual and group instruction that monitors student progress through assessment and shows student engagement.

EDUC5480 Transitional Planning 3 s.h. (For 5-12 only.)
Collaborative groups will explore and implement career and vocational program planning for secondary students with mild/moderate disabilities. Effective planning will include the student, community services, networks and organizations, and other community resources such as parents and various professionals, that will lead to increased student learning with career goals and objectives to support their transition to post-school settings.

EDUC5450 Special Education Teachers are Members of Learning Communities: Collaborative Partnerships in the Mild/Moderate Program 3 s.h.
Candidates research collaborative strategies and explore authentic problems within the learning community. Effective communication strategies and a plan are developed, which includes parents, community, community support services, and other professionals. This effective plan will be designed to address a collaborative partnership, knowledge of the consultative role of the special education teacher, and the integration of students with disabilities into the general setting.

EDUC6100 Classroom Inquiry and Action Research 3 s.h.
Participants begin to clarify and explore lines of inquiry based upon concerns about what is going on in their own classrooms. Action research methods are studied. Inquiry goals and strategies are developed for implementation of action research.

EDUC6110 Classroom Inquiry and Action Research Practicum 3 s.h.
Students engage in an inquiry process related to their own teaching practice. They implement an action research plan, gathering data and reflecting upon their process in an ongoing way.

EDUC5710 Special Education Practicum K-8 Mild/Moderate 3 s.h.
A three-week practicum in a K-8 mild/moderate special education setting. This laboratory experience will allow student teachers to apply, analyze, synthesize, and evaluate theoretical and practical principles of teaching and learning which have been formulated during previous course work and experiences. It will also be a time when practicum candidates formulate other principles of teaching and learning on the basis of their own classroom experiences.

EDUC5720 Special Education Practicum 5-12 Mild/Moderate 3 s.h.
A three-week practicum in a 5-12 mild/moderate special education setting. This laboratory experience will allow student teachers to apply, analyze, synthesize, and evaluate theoretical and practical principles of teaching and learning which have been formulated during previous course work and experiences. It will also be a time when practicum candidates formulate other principles of teaching and learning on the basis of their own classroom experiences.