SPED - Special Education

Candidates complete 25 hours of field experience practice in a special education setting.  This field experience will focus on developing candidates’ knowledge and skills related to identifying the support needs of students with disabilities and planning for environmental, instructional and other support needs. In addition to their field work, candidates meet on campus with their University supervisor to further their knowledge and development related to the focus of this field experience. The mentor teacher and University supervisor will conduct performance assessments of the candidate during this experience.

This course covers the development of receptive and expressive skills in sign language and fingerspelling. Manual communication skills that are used in educational and social settings are emphasized. Deaf culture and community characteristics are discussed.

This course is designed to follow-up and expand on those signs taught in Sign Language 1. Candidates are expected (following review) to be able to fluently use fingerspelling, numbers and other basic signs as well as demonstrate a certain level of precision and fluency. Extensions of deaf culture and school issues will be covered.

This course is designed to provide participants with a strong knowledge base in developmental theories of behavior, language and learning that have shaped current practices in K-12 public and private schools.  In addition to exploring current research on cognition and learning, course participants will examine philosophy-based, psychology-based and progressive learning theories that have influenced current educational practices.  Course participants will also examine the potential of education through alternate theoretical frameworks, such as critical theory and feminist theory.

This course provides participants with an understanding of the ways in which disability studies can inform current educational policies, practices and curriculum design. Participants will investigate both theoretical and practical aspects of the field of disability studies in education - including social, cultural and historical policies and philosophies - and strategies for addressing the biases inherent in many of these influences. Course topics include issues such as changing conceptions of disability, the lingering impacts of eugenics and institutionalization, the promise and progress of the disability rights movement, disability law and policy, personal and family narratives and the portrayal and inclusion of individuals with diverse abilities in the modern media.

Candidates complete 50 hours of field experience practice in a special education setting.  This field experience will focus on developing candidates’ knowledge and skills related to planning and delivering instructional supports and interventions for students with disabilities.  In addition to their field work, candidates meet on campus with their university supervisor to further their knowledge and development related to the focus of this field experience. The mentor teacher and university supervisor will conduct performance assessments of the candidate during this experience.

This course explores the similarities and differences in human development and the characteristics between and among individuals with and without ELN (exceptional learning needs).  Pre-service candidates will understand how exceptional conditions can impact an individual's learning and behavior including the impact on their families.  An understanding of these learning differences and their possible interactions provide the foundation upon which individualized instruction is designed to provide meaningful and challenging learning for individuals with ELN.

Assistive Technology (AT) hardware and software supports students with disabilities to improve their learning skills in the general education curriculum.  This course will provide opportunities to learn about various assistive technologies and strategies to enhance the learning success of all students. Candidates will engage in identifying students’ academic needs, facilitating their learning with AT devices and assessing their achievements. Candidates will design, develop, implement and evaluate AT projects for students with a variety of learning needs.

This course is designed to explore the goals of multicultural education and aid candidates in developing their own understanding of teaching from a multicultural perspective.  Candidates also acquire an understanding of the importance and process of linking home, neighborhood and community contexts to school and classroom contexts in an effort to promote a bias free learning environment.

This course provides an overview of classroom and behavior management theories and strategies. The course emphasizes the knowledge and skills needed to create effective behavior management and intervention projects for students, especially those with behavior problems. Emphasis will be on use of positive behavior support systems. Candidates will examine behavioral principles, procedures and assessment methods necessary for effective programming and are expected to apply skills developed in the course by developing both a classroom management and behavior intervention project to avoid or overcome communication roadblocks and improve a student's problem behavior. Through case analysis, role-playing, cooperative learning, use of technology and field experience, candidates will learn how to apply principles of classroom management to actual teaching situations.

This course engages participants in the development of curriculum, instruction and assessment for students with disabilities in literature, social studies, mathematics and science classes at the middle and secondary levels.  Participants will gain both a theoretical and practical skill-set in research-based strategies that are demonstrated to support the learning of students with disabilities in core content areas.  A universal design for learning framework will be used to guide participants in designing curriculum and instruction that is accessible and effective for all learners.  Candidates will develop skills that will allow them to integrate curriculum across subject areas, create effective instructional interventions and effectively collaborate with other professionals providing academic and behavioral support to students with individual learning needs.

This course is designed to prepare teachers to support students with disabilities who have high support needs in their transitions throughout the school system, with an emphasis on transition from high school to post-school adult life.  Participants will learn about the laws that shape transition services, the fundamentals involved in transition planning, the development of written transition plans, resources necessary to affect smooth transitions and current issues and best practices.  Emphasis will be placed on student and family involvement in transition planning, team planning, preparatory curricula, inter-agency coordination, community resources, advocacy and systems change strategies.  In addition this course will focus on how to design, implement and evaluate effective teaching and learning experiences for students with high support needs from an inclusive education stance.  Content will focus on using varied assessment measures, developing daily and weekly schedules, planning and implementing systematic instruction from a universal design perspective, evaluating student learning, facilitating inclusive education and teaching academic and social skills along with other life domain skill areas (community, recreation/leisure and vocational).

This course focuses on the development of science and wellness methods and instructional strategies for P-12 students.  The course emphasizes how to develop science concepts, use problem-solving strategies and create or use appropriate materials.  Current issues in science education, NSTA Standards, CEC Standards and the Illinois Learning Standards are explored.  Methods of differentiating instruction and assessment to meet the individual needs of students are also examined.  

This course focuses on the development of mathematics methods and instructional strategies for P-12 students.  The course emphasizes how to develop mathematical concepts, use problem-solving strategies and create or use appropriate materials.  Current issues in mathematics education, NCTM Standards, CEC Standards and the Illinois Learning Standards are explored. Methods of differentiating instruction and assessment to meet the needs of all students including ELL, struggling learners and already proficient learners are included.  The candidate will learn how to create or use mathematics manipulatives, literature books and technology to teach these concepts.  Candidates will be evaluated on their ability to successfully plan and implement strategies taught in this course.

This course addresses theory- and research-based practices for developing disciplinary literacy and implementing effective reading and language arts instruction across the content areas.  Of particular emphasis is the role of reading, writing, listening, speaking and visual representation in student learning across the curriculum.  Effective practices for teaching and supporting student writing, reading comprehension and verbal and visual expression and interpretation will be explored with a wide range of informational texts and media.

This course focuses on research-based instructional strategies, technology, resources, national (NCSS) curriculum standards, Illinois State Standards and Common Core Standards.  The emphasis of this course is on understanding and using the interrelationships among history, geography, economics, politics, sociology, anthropology, psychology and archeology to develop in students an appreciation and responsibility toward citizenship, multiculturalism and a democratic society.  In addition, this course includes planning and organizing for instruction, material selection and evaluation in social studies and multicultural education.  Methods of differentiating instruction and assessment to meet the individual needs of all students.

This course is designed to provide pre-service teacher candidates with the knowledge, skills and foundational underpinnings that are required to identify and instruct exceptional learners in inclusive classroom settings, including students identified as having learning disabilities, emotional-behavioral challenges and/or other disability support needs as described in the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.  Course content and assessments will focus on the characteristics of exceptional learners, the processes for identifying exceptional learners for appropriate services, collaboration with parents and professional colleagues and research-based approaches for designing inclusive classroom settings and instructional/behavioral/assessment strategies and supports for exceptional learners.  This course includes a five-hour field experience.

This course investigates techniques used to evaluate students with identified disabilities.  The focus will be on specific formal and informal evaluative tools, their administration and interpretation as related to classroom needs.  Candidates will be exposed to standardized assessments, responsiveness to intervention (RtI), curriculum-based measurement, functional behavior assessment, teacher made tests and task analysis.  Candidates will have the opportunity to analyze educational assessment findings and use the results to write an educational assessment report.

This course is designed to provide participants with the knowledge and skills needed to build and maintain meaningful collaborative partnerships for inclusive education.  Participants will gain an understanding of family and community systems, as well as learn methods for building and sustaining partnerships and trust with these critical stakeholders.  Course topics will also include theories and strategies for effective co-teaching relationships and other collaborative endeavors focused on providing inclusion education for all students.

This course is designed for intensive investigation and/or study of special education law and policy.  Since the passage of the Education of All Handicapped Children Act of 1975 (94-142), and its reauthorization, IDEA 1990, 1994 and 1997, the rights of students with disabilities have expanded.  LEA's, SEA's and parents have frequently been in conflict over these rights.  To provide effective educational leadership in a complex society, the professional must understand what the law requires; understand how to exercise wisely the discretion of the law and understand how legal disputes can be shaped to advance policy objectives.

The focus of this course is on developing curriculum using an Understanding by Design framework.  Candidates will understand the three-step process to develop standards-based curriculum for P-12 learners.  Emphasis will be on enduring understandings, performance-based assessments and learning experiences.

Candidates complete 50 hours of field experience practice in a special education setting.  This field experience will focus on developing candidates’ knowledge and skills related to the assessment of students with disabilities in both academic and functional skill domains.  In addition to their field work, candidates meet on campus with their University supervisor to further their knowledge and development related to the focus of this field experience. The mentor teacher and University supervisor will conduct performance assessments of the candidate during this experience.

This course is intended for those candidates who need extended field experiences with the ongoing supervision by University personnel.  Length of field experiences will be determined by the Department and is subject to Department Chair approval.  Completion of this experience does not guarantee eligibility for clinical practice.

This course examines the theories and the practices appropriate for balanced reading and language arts instruction and assessment in grades 4-12. This emphasis of the course is on functional technique for improving student reading performance in the upper grades and incorporating reading into subject matter instruction. Candidates will also look at critical literacy and how it applies to the classroom for adolescent learners. Effective reading and writing instructional strategies and assessment, including those that address the specific needs of second language learners, are modeled and practiced.

This course is designed for candidates seeking Illinois Learning Behavior Specialist 1 (LBS1) licensure with total involvement in the participating school system. Progress in developing teaching skills is observed carefully and supervised by the mentor teacher and University supervisor. Assignment is made at the elementary level for eight weeks and the middle/secondary level for eight weeks. Associated seminars focus on current issues in special education including vocational/transitional, adaptive equipment and professional and ethical considerations. This course meets the advanced writing requirement. Attendance at clinical experience seminars is required. Clinical Practice may be repeated only once for credit with the consent of the College of Education and the Teacher Education Committee.

Candidates complete 8 weeks in an elementary site and 8 weeks in a secondary special education site.

This course is designed for candidates seeking the elementary education licensure with the special education endorsement with total involvement in the participating schools.  Progress in developing teaching skills is observed carefully and supervised by the mentor teachers and the University supervisor.  Assignment is made at the regular education elementary level for eight weeks and 8 weeks at the special education middle school or secondary level for eight weeks grades 7-12.  This course meets the advanced writing requirement.  Attendance at clinical practice seminars is required.  Evidence of successful completion of the appropriate State of Illinois content area test must be received in the College of Education at least 30 days prior to the beginning of the clinical practice semester.

This course includes a study or project done under the direction of a member of the Department of Special Education.