Special Education B.A. – K-12 Special Education Teaching Emphasis - Licensure: Special Education Generalist (Ages 5-21)
College of Education and Behavioral Sciences
Contact: Tess Henkelman, Administrative Assistant II
Location: McKee 29
Telephone: 970.351.2691
Fax: 970.351.1061
Website: www.unco.edu/cebs/sped
Advising Information:
Students must consult with their assigned major advisor each semester prior to registering.
To find your advisor, log into ursa.unco.edu; go to 'Student' tab and click 'View Student Information' link. If no advisor is listed, contact the major program for advisor information.
The program consists of three parts:
- Liberal Arts Core (LAC) Credits
- Required Major Credits
- Professional Teacher Education Program (PTEP) Credits
Program Description:
The curriculum consists of recommended Liberal Arts core requirements, courses in professional teacher preparation, courses in special education theory, practice, and pedagogy and courses in Liberal Arts Core content to ensure teachers have the breadth of knowledge needed to be a special education teacher. Strong emphasis is placed on literacy and mathematics in both Liberal Arts Core requirements and content area coursework. Students are required to take technology courses; and the use of technology is incorporated into the special education coursework. The program is organized around nine themes including individual differences (disabilities, culture, and language), interpersonal/collaborative skills, direct instruction, legal responsibilities/processes, organizational/systemic processes, behavioral management, knowledge and access of resources, inquiry skills, and implementation of special educator roles. Topics emphasized within these themes include normal developmental learning, general assessment concepts, foundational characteristics of disabilities, service delivery models, and technology.
Program Admission Requirements:
Academic Good Standing
PTEP Program Requirements:
Teacher candidates who complete an approved content degree and the UNC professional teacher education program, as well as pass the appropriate Colorado Department of Education designated PRAXIS exam (if applicable), will be eligible for recommendation from UNC for a Colorado Department of Education teaching license.
If you are seeking licensure in your program area, the following items are required to complete your program.
- Completion of Application for Initial Admission to PTEP
- Completion of Full Admission to PTEP
- Completion of Application for Student Teaching
- Completion of content specific PRAXIS test prior to Student Teaching
- Candidates may not take extra courses with Student Teaching without prior approval from the Program Coordinator and the STE Director.
- All PTEP Field Experiences and methods courses need to be successfully completed prior to Student Teaching.
- Student Teaching outside the supervision of UNC Faculty may or may not be approved.
- Teacher Candidates will not be placed in a school where they were once students or where they have a close relative attending and/or working.
- Teacher education and educator preparation licensure programs do not accept Professional Teacher Education Program (PTEP) or field based courses that are more than ten years old. PLEASE NOTE: Teacher Candidates have the right to petition this policy at the discretion of the program coordinator.
Please work with your content advisor to determine when these requirements will be completed throughout your program.
Degree Requirements — 122-126 Credits
1. Required Specified LAC — 18-19 credits
LAC area 2 — Mathematics
| MATH 181 | Fundamentals of Mathematics I: Number and Operations | 3 |
| MATH 182 | Fundamental Mathematics II: Algebra, Probability and Data Analysis | 3 |
LAC area 4 — History
Choose one of the following courses:
| HIST 100 | Survey of American History from Its Beginnings to 1877 | 3 |
| HIST 101 | Survey of American History from 1877 to the Present | 3 |
LAC area 5 — Social and Behavioral Sciences
Choose one of the following courses:
LAC area 5.c. — Human Behavior and Social Systems
| PSY 230 | Human Growth and Development | 3 |
LAC area 6 — Physical and Life Sciences
Choose one of the following courses:
| ESCI 265 | Earth Science Concepts for Elementary Teachers | 3 |
| SCI 265 | Physical Science Concepts | 4 |
Remaining LAC — 21-22 credits
See “Liberal Arts Core”
2. Required Major — 60-62 credits
Take all of the following courses:
| EDSE 201 | Culture of Special Education | 3 |
| EDSE 203 | The Individualized Education Program and the Collaborative Process | 3 |
| EDSE 320 | Assessment in Special Education | 3 |
| EDSE 321 | Advanced Assessment in Special Education | 3 |
| EDSE 322 | K-12 Methods in Special Education | 3 |
| EDSE 325 | Behavioral Dimensions of Students with Exceptionalities I | 3 |
| EDSE 326 | Behavioral Dimensions of Students with Exceptionalities II | 3 |
| EDSE 327 | Methods for Teaching Mathematics: Students with Special Needs | 3 |
| EDSE 328 | Field Experience in Special Education: Elementary | 3 |
| EDSE 329 | Field Experience in Special Education: Secondary | 3 |
| EDSE 442 | Language and Literacy for Students with Severe Delays | 3 |
| EDSE 443 | Support Systems in Special Education | 3 |
| EDSE 460 | Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students with Disabilities | 3 |
| ASLS 266 | Normal Speech and Language Development | 3 |
| ASLS 365 | Language Disorders in Children | 3 |
| EDRD 410 | Achieving Effective Instruction in Developmental Reading | 3 |
| MATH 283 | Fundamental Mathematics III: Geometry and Measurement | 3 |
| EDSE 411 | Assessments to Support the Struggling Reader | 3 |
Foreign Language
Choose one of the following courses:
| ASL 101 | American Sign Language I | 3 |
| | Any Foreign Language Course | 3-5 |
Choose one of the following courses:
| EED 341 | Methods for Teaching Composition in Secondary Schools | 3 |
| EED 342 | Methods and Materials for Teaching Language and Composition in the Elementary School | 3 |
3. Required PTEP (Main Campus) — 23-24 credits
| | Application for Initial Admission to PTEP | |
| | Application for Full Admission to PTEP | |
| | Successfully Pass Program Specific PRAXIS Test | |
| | Successfully complete Application for Student Teaching | |
| EDSE 270 | Field-Based Experience | 3 |
| EDSE 444 | Student Teaching in Special Education | 1-15 |
EDSE 270: EDSE 271 may be substituted for EDSE 270 only with advisor consent based on documented prior experience in a K-12 school.
EDSE 444: must be taken for 12 credits.
Choose one of the following courses:
| EDF 366 | Conceptions of Schooling: Context and Process | 3 |
| EDF 370 | Social Foundations of Education | 3 |
Complete both:
| ET 247 | Technology in Education for Elementary Teaching | 1 |
| ET 347 | Educational Technology Applications for Elementary Teaching | 1 |
| | or complete | |
| ET 449 | Integrating Technologies into Secondary Education Pedagogy | 3 |
Choose one of the following courses:
| PSY 347 | Educational Psychology for Elementary Teachers | 3 |
| PSY 349 | Educational Psychology for Secondary Teachers | 3 |
Center for Urban Education
The Center for Urban Education offers the full comprehensive four-year Special Education BA Program.
All other courses listed in the areas of LAC and Major Credits apply to Center for Urban Education students.
3. Required PTEP (Center for Urban Education) — 21-22 credits
| | Application for Initial Admission to PTEP | |
| | Application for Full Admission to PTEP | |
| | Successfully Pass Program Specific PRAXIS Test | |
| | Successfully complete Application for Student Teaching | |
| EDSE 170 | Introduction to Field Based Experience | 1- 3 |
| EDSE 370 | Advanced Field-Based Experience | 1- 3 |
| EDSE 371 | Action Research Project | 1 |
| EDSE 444 | Student Teaching in Special Education | 1-15 |
EDSE 170: Must be taken for 3 credits: Take for 3 semesters, 1 credit each semester.
EDSE 370: Must be taken for 3 credits: Take for 3 semesters, 1 credit each semester.
EDSE 444: Must be taken for 6 credits.
Choose one of the following courses:
| EDF 366 | Conceptions of Schooling: Context and Process | 3 |
| EDF 370 | Social Foundations of Education | 3 |
Complete both:
| ET 247 | Technology in Education for Elementary Teaching | 1 |
| ET 347 | Educational Technology Applications for Elementary Teaching | 1 |
or complete:
| ET 449 | Integrating Technologies into Secondary Education Pedagogy | 3 |
Choose one of the following courses:
| PSY 347 | Educational Psychology for Elementary Teachers | 3 |
| PSY 349 | Educational Psychology for Secondary Teachers | 3 |
Program Notes:
All courses must be successfully completed prior to enrolling in EDSE 444; All major/content courses (EDSE) must be completed at a B- or better. Prior to Student Teaching, candidates must pass both an Elementary Content Test (either the Praxis or Place test) and the Special Education Generalist Place test.
Students must have a 2.75 GPA at UNC by the time 30 semester hours are completed. A 2.75 GPA is required for Application for Initial Admission to PTEP and Application for Full Admission to PTEP. First semester transfer students’ GPA will be reviewed at the end of the first semester on campus. Student must have a 3.0 GPA to enroll in EDSE 444.
Teacher education and educator preparation licensure programs do not accept Professional Teacher Education Program (PTEP) or field based courses that are more than ten years old. PLEASE NOTE: Teacher Candidates have the right to petition this policy at the discretion of the program coordinator.
Special Education majors do not take EDRD 340, EDSE 433, and EDFE 444; required major courses will meet these requirements (EDSE 201, EDRD 410 and EDSE 444).
This major allows K-12 special education teachers to learn and apply the roles and responsibilities they must perform on a daily basis:
- Assess and identify students with disabilities;
- Plan an Individualized Education program in collaboration with other professionals and parents under the rules and regulations of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and the Colorado Exceptional Children Education Act;
- Provide direct individualized instruction and interventions in learning and behavior to meet the unique needs of students with disabilities; provide support to students with disabilities in the Liberal Arts Core (LAC) curriculum through consultation and collaboration with Liberal Arts Core teachers; and provide adaptations and support systems in collaboration and consultation with LAC teachers; thereby providing an advantage to the student attaining this degree over those preparing to teach with a Liberal Arts Degree.