Graduate Certification Programs in Special Education, Early Childhood Special Education

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This certificate is administered by the School of Education Office of Graduate Studies & Professional Development .

You may complete this certification as a specialization in the Education, M.S.E. by enrolling as a graduate special student and pursuing certification only. These programs lead to an additional teacher license for those already certified to teach.

PROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATION/LICENSURE DISCLOSURE (NC-SARA)

The United States Department of Education requires institutions that provide distance education to disclose information for programs leading to professional certification or licensure about whether each program meets state educational requirements for initial licensure or certification. Following is this disclosure information for this program:

The requirements of this program meet Certification/Licensure in the following states:

Wisconsin

The requirements of this program do not meet Certification/Licensure in the following states:

Not applicable

The requirements of this program have not been determined if they meet Certification/Licensure in the following states:

Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wyoming; District of Columbia; American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands

To receive certification, fulfill these requirements:

Professional preparation

Complete a bachelor’s degree in early childhood ed, exceptional ed, or elementary ed, including required courses:

ECED 564 - Curriculum and Methods for Young Children 1-4 cr.
EDUC 398 - Student Teaching 1-16 cr.
PSYC 260 - Introduction to Developmental Psychology 3 cr. or
HD 261 - Child Growth and Development 3 cr.

General special education

Area of specialization

State-Mandated Tests

Demonstrate content knowledge by either:

obtaining a 3.00 or higher in required coursework for this license, or
submitting passing scores on the required Praxis Subject Assessment exams.

You must meet one of the above requirements for teacher licensure.

Pass the state-mandated Foundations of Reading Test. Teachers with a Wisconsin lifetime license are not required to pass this test.

State Teacher Licensing Rules

Meet state teacher licensing rules which are subject to change at any time due to legislative or licensing changes.

Note

If you are certified in related service fields such as physical therapy, speech/language pathology with a master’s degree, etc., but do not have a prior degree with certification in education, you can pursue an emphasis in early childhood special education needs in order to augment your skills in working with this population. This avenue will NOT lead to teacher certification unless you elect to take the courses that lead to that certification.