B.S. Ed. in Special Education and Teaching

The B.S.Ed. in Special Education and Teaching program provides students with the knowledge and skills to become licensed special education teachers who work with children with high incidence disabilities, including students with learning disabilities, emotional disturbance, and mild to moderate intellectual disability in K-12 schools.

Program highlights:

• Hands-on and field-based experience throughout the curriculum
  • Elementary, middle, and high school practica experiences
• Eligible for license to teach in K-12th grade special education classrooms in Virginia upon successful completion of program
• Fulfill mission to mold critically reflective practitioners through:
  • Subject matter knowledge
  • Pedagogical knowledge
  • Data-driven knowledge
  • Knowledge about how people learn
  • Knowledge of differing cultures
  • Knowledge of social context of schooling

Students will be able to:

• Recognize children and youth academic, social, emotional and transition needs
• Apply classroom and behavior management, and social skills to students with diverse abilities and backgrounds
• Formulate effective and personalized/individualized instruction with their school leadership and instructional teams
• Consult and partner with parents, teachers and administrators to incorporate accommodations and transitions across the child’s educational program
• Teach reading and language, mathematics and other core content areas

Degree requirements for K-12 program >>

The B.S.Ed. in Special Education and Teaching - Early Childhood concentration prepares students to serve infants, toddlers, and preschoolers representing a wide range of abilities, including those with developmental delays and disabilities, such as cerebral palsy, communication delays, challenging behaviors, and autism.

Program highlights:

• Hands-on and field-based experience throughout the curriculum
  • infant/toddler, preschool, and consultation/itinerant experiences
• Initial teacher licensure with endorsement in early childhood special education by the Virginia Department of Education
• Completion of early intervention certification training and DBHDS Part C requirements
• Creation of an electronic portfolio that showcases knowledge, skills, and dispositions in early childhood special education

Students will be able to:

• Recognize a child’s developmental and social concerns
• Adapt curriculum to support communication, motor, cognitive, social and self-help skills
• Provide strategies to support behavior management
• Support families of infants and toddlers through coaching around identified outcomes based on the child’s specific needs
• Work as the lead teacher in preschool special education settings
• Provide consultation to child care and preschool teachers who work with children with diverse abilities and backgrounds

Degree requirements for the early childhood concentration >>