Special Education And Early Childhood

The special education degree programs utilize constructivism to assist candidates in developing meaningful learning experiences for the students they will teach. Each special education degree program requires the application of course’s theoretical perspectives to an authentic field setting facilitating gains in developmental and contextual understandings of diverse students and deeper understanding of applying pedagogical and content knowledge to diverse settings. Graduates are expected to be able to identify gaps in knowledge, promote academic excellence, and use culturally responsive pedagogy to liberate and empower ethnically diverse students. Additionally, Special Education majors learn the skills required to develop and implement individualized family service plans (IFSPs) for infants and toddlers and/or individualized education programs (IEPs) for older preschoolers and children. Our graduates are also equipped with the skills to teach all students in a variety of settings, including: one-on-one, small group, whole classroom self-contained, general education or inclusive learning settings. Students enrolled in our Special Education teacher preparation programs have received financial support through scholarships from federal grants totaling over $4M. These special education scholars participated in additional preparation to work with the growing population of typically special needs children from a diversity of cultural and language backgrounds in our nation’s early childhood and elementary schools.

If you are searching for a career path that will enable you to play a prominent role in the lives of children with special needs and their families, we recommend that you consider the dual special education teacher preparation programs we have to offer. As the number of children diagnosed with developmental disabilities continues to rise, so does the demand for qualified special education teachers. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the need for special education teachers is estimated to grow by nearly 10% by the year 2026.

Whether you are new to education or a preschool or primary school teacher looking to refocus your career on special education, the programs we offer can help you achieve your goals. Offered as a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree, undergraduate programs in the Department provide a comprehensive course of study in Special Education with a solid foundation in the Liberal Arts and Sciences. These teacher preparation programs in Special Education are focused on pedagogy for either the early childhood level (birth -grade 2) or the primary/elementary grades (Kindergarten-grade 6).