Special Education (SPED)

SPED 2301. Introduction to Special Education. 3 Hours.

Teacher candidates explore foundational knowledge of special education laws, practices, and instructional strategies to support students with disabilities. Candidates will examine federal and state legislation that ensures protections and services for individuals with disabilities, and they will apply procedural components essential to special education practice. Emphasis is placed on developing high-quality individualized education programs (IEPs) and designing classroom strategies for students with learning, attentional, emotional-behavioral, intellectual, sensory, and autism spectrum disabilities.

SPED 3301. Special Education Supports. 3 Hours.

Teacher candidates obtain the knowledge and skills necessary to design and implement effective supports for students with disabilities in educational settings. Candidates will examine the foundations of special education and Section 504, with emphasis on developing and implementing IEPs and 504 plans that promote access to learning. The course emphasizes the use of functional behavior assessment, assistive technology, accommodations, and modifications to meet learner needs. Candidates will also apply the principles of Universal Design for Learning (UDL), scaffolding, and explicit instruction to create supportive, responsive, and well-structured classroom environments.

SPED 3302. Emotional/Behavior Disability. 3 Hours.

Students study the defining characteristics, systems of assessment and classification, theories of causality, and interventions for students with emotional and behavioral disability support needs.
Prerequisite: Sophomore, junior or senior classification and SPED 2301.

SPED 3303. Behavior Supports & Collab. 3 Hours.

This course addresses a variety of instructional techniques that can be utilized to change, maintain, increase, or decrease individual and group behaviors. Proactive behavioral intervention techniques from a variety of theoretical models are examined. Behavioral change strategies emphasize functional assessment principles, positive behavioral supports, and self-management. The basic principles, tools, and techniques of communicating with parents of children with disabilities and implementing parent education programs also are addressed.
Prerequisite: SPED 2301.

SPED 3306. Behavioral Principles. 3 Hours.

This course examines basic behavioral principles including reinforcement, punishment, stimulus control, and measurement of behavior. Specific procedures are presented for establishing new behavior, increasing desirable behavior, and decreasing undesirable behavior for individuals with disabilities. Ethical considerations also are addressed.

SPED 3307. Behavioral Assessment, Intervention, and Evaluation. 3 Hours.

This course provides the interventionist with the techniques for designing, implementing, and evaluating behavioral interventions appropriate for individuals with Autism and related disabilities. Ethics of behavioral interventions will also be discussed.
Prerequisite: SPED 3306.

SPED 3308. Behavioral Intervention and Research Methods. 3 Hours.

All of the elements of single-subject research design are examined, providing practical information for assessing, designing, implementing, and evaluating behavior analytic techniques and curriculum for educating children with autism and related disorders. Ethics for practicing Behavior Analysts will also be examined.
Prerequisite: SPED 3306.

SPED 3309. Ethics in Behavior Analysis. 3 Hours.

Students are introduced to ethics, standards and guidelines in the area of applied behavior analysis. Ethical standards and guidelines of professional organizations are presented along with an analysis of how they affect service delivery. Students are provided with an overview of various strategies for personnel supervision and management.
Prerequisite: SPED 3306.

SPED 3310. Advanced Behavior Analysis. 3 Hours.

Students are introduced to the advanced study of human behavior from a behavior-analytic perspective. Emphasis is placed on theory, knowledge of current issues, and techniques for evaluating and teaching verbal behavior to individuals with autism or related disorders.
Prerequisite: SPED 3306,3307,3308.

SPED 3312. Family and Diversity Issues in Special Education. 3 Hours.

In this course, candidates learn about variations in family structure and the functions that contribute to diversity issues in special education. Students analyze and discuss various perspectives related to challenges and strengths of families of students with exceptionalities.
Prerequisite: SPED 2301.

SPED 4088. Special Topics in Special Education. 3 Hours.

Students engage in faculty-led study to explore new topics and advanced concepts within a structured course setting. Students will examine selected special topics and issues at an advanced level.

SPED 4089. Independent Study in Special Education. 1-3 Hours.

Students will engage in independent study of selected topics under the supervision of a faculty member. Students will identify and investigate a topic that is mutually selected and approved in collaboration with the faculty member. Variable Credit: 1-3. Course Equivalents: SPED 4303 .

SPED 4304. Transition Planning in Special Education. 3 Hours.

Students examine required transitions outlined in special education law, including the transition from early childhood services to early childhood special education, and from high school to postsecondary education, employment, and independent living. Students will analyze evidence-based predictors and practices that support positive post-school outcomes. Students will assess postsecondary goals and develop the transition components of the Individualized Education Program (IEP).
Prerequisite: 60 hours of course credit and SPED 2301, SPED 3303, SPED 3312, and SPED 3301 or SPED 4314.

SPED 4305. Student Teaching in Special Education. 3 Hours.

Students engage in a field-based experience in public school classroom settings to develop and demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary to become a successful teacher. Students participate in observation, instruction, and professional activities, including conferencing, across certification grade levels.
Prerequisite: Senior status and admission to student teaching.

SPED 4311. Content Learning in Special Education. 3 Hours.

Students will examine the learning characteristics and teaching methods in academic content areas for students with disabilities. Students will select and implement appropriate assessment practices, instructional strategies, and lesson planning to support the success of students with disabilities across classroom settings. Students will engage in field-based experiences to apply course concepts in practice.
Prerequisite: 60 hours of course credit and SPED 2301 and SPED 3303 and SPED 3306 or SPED 3312 or SPED 3301 or SPED 4314.