Special Education

Graduate Certificate: Emotional Disturbance/Learning Disabilities (ED/LD) K-12 (SPEL)

Due to changes in Virginia licensure categories, as of fall 2008, the certificate program in Emotional Disturbance and Learning Disabilities(ED/LD) will no longer be available to incoming students. Students interested in teacher licensure in Special Education should consider the licensure certificate in Teaching Students with Disabilities who Access the General Curriculum which aligns with the current VDOE teacher licensure category.

Students who have already begun the ED/LD licensure certificate should contact the Special Education program to determine if they should remain in the ED/LD program or pursue the certificate program in Teaching Students with Disabilities who Access the General Curriculum.

Coursework (15-30 credits)

This certificate offers the required course work for teacher licensure in emotional disturbance and learning disabilities.

There are no pre-requisites in the coursework, but students are strongly encouraged to complete 1st tier courses before, or in conjunction with, 2nd tier courses and 2nd tier courses before, or in conjunction with, 3rd tier courses. All courses are offered every semester (fall, spring, summer) unless otherwise indicated.

First Tier

• EDSE 501: Introduction to Special Education (3 credit hours)
• EDSE 540: Characteristics of Students with Disabilities who Access the General Curriculum (3 credit hours)

Second Tier

• EDSE 502: Classroom Management and Applied Behavior Analysis (3 credit hours)
• EDSE 503: Language Development and Reading (3 credit hours)

Third Tier

• EDSE 627: Assessment (3 credit hours)
• EDSE 628: Elementary Reading, Curriculum, and Strategies for Students who Access the General Education Curriculum (3 credit hours) (OR EDSE 626: The Inclusive Classroom (3 credit hours))
• EDSE 629: Secondary Curriculum and Strategies for Students with Disabilities who Access the General Curriculum (3 credit hours)
• EDSE 662: Consultation and Collaboration (3 credit hours)
• EDSE 792: Final Portfolio (1 credit hours) (Must be taken concurrently with the last course in the program. )
• EDSE 790: Internship in Special Education (1-6 credit hours) (Two experiences - elementary and secondary students with ED/LD.)

It is recommended that internship be taken concurrently with EDSE 628 and/or EDSE 629.

Students who are completing the Master's in Special Education in conjunction with their licensure program will need to complete the following courses to meet the MEd course requirements. The courses can be taken at any point in a student’s program.

• EDSE 517: Computer Applications for Special Populations (3 credit hours)
• EDSE 590: Special Education Research (3 credit hours)

Tuition Assistance and Grant Funding

Cohort program: The Special Education program works collaboratively with a number of Northern Virginia school divisions to offer special education certificates and degree programs to school employees using a cohort model. This model provides convenience to the students and forms a better link between academia and school realities. Additional benefits of the cohort model include tuition discounts, classes located in the students’ school divisions and course scheduling in alignment with school division calendars.

LIFE Graduate Assistantships: The Learning Into Future Environments (LIFE) Program is an innovative post-secondary program at Mason for young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities who desire a university experience in a supportive academic environment. Graduate students with a major in special education have an opportunity to work as instructors in the LIFE program which provides them with field experience in a supportive, supervised setting.

Graduate Research Assistantships: Part time positions are available for students interested in providing research support to faculty.