Special Education (MEd, Graduate Certificate, Post-Master’s Certificate, Teacher Licensure) — The Program

The graduate program in Special Education offers degree and certificate options with and without teacher licensure, in the broad field of special education and with particular specializations in visual impairments and orientation/mobility.

Special Education

Through courses, field-based experiences, and practica, the Special Education programs afford general education teachers, special educators, and other specialists in related fields an opportunity to acquire the necessary assessment, instructional, and consultation skills for working effectively with children and/or adolescents who are at risk and who have special educational needs, as well as with their families. Academic focus is on designing, implementing, and advocating for inclusionary learning settings for children with and without disabilities. The urban, multicultural school provides the central context within which graduate students are encouraged to reflect on their teaching practices and to view themselves as active contributors to the improvement of schools.

Specializations in Visual Impairments and Orientation and Mobility

Through courses, field-based experiences, and practica, these specializations afford general education teachers, special educators, and practitioners in related fields an opportunity to acquire the necessary assessment, instructional, and consultation skills for working effectively with students with visual impairments, as well as with their families.

The Track in Teaching Students with Visual Impairments and the Graduate Certificate in Orientation and Mobility share a common core curriculum and faculty, but have divergent emphases.

Students in the Orientation and Mobility program learn to evaluate needs and to teach the effective use of such adaptive equipment as the long cane and other low-vision aids, as well as integration of a professionally trained dog guide for independence and safe movement. They learn to teach travel skills in a variety of environments (indoors, residential, business, rural, and urban areas), instructing both school-aged children and adults, including those with additional disabilities, in how to utilize sensory information fully to orient themselves and travel safely with confidence in any environment.

The Track in Teaching Students with Visual Impairments equips practitioners to address the unique educational needs of students with visual impairments. Teachers of Students with Visual Impairments are trained to facilitate such students’ academic inclusion through curricular modifications and assistance.

Qualified applicants are encouraged to apply for the limited tuition-reimbursement funds and stipends associated with the federally funded Orientation and Mobility Certificate program. For further information, contact the O/M certificate faculty or the program office.