Program Overview

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Teaching Major in Exceptional Needs: Deaf Education

The Teaching Major in Exceptional Needs: Deaf Education is a comprehensive program designed to prepare students to work with deaf and hard of hearing students. This program is the only one of its kind in Indiana and is tailored to provide students with the knowledge and skills necessary to make a positive impact in the lives of deaf and hard of hearing students and their families.

Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science

The program offers a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree, with the following quick facts:

• Delivery: On-Campus
• Credits: 100
• Licenses for Exceptional Needs: Mild Interventions K-6

Program Description

The program includes coursework in American Sign Language, Deaf culture, foundational concepts in hearing and speech development, technology, and effective instructional strategies for deaf and hard of hearing students, PreK-12. Students will also complete coursework that leads to a license in mild intervention, K-6. The program emphasizes real-world field experiences, including Indiana School for the Deaf, itinerant instruction in local schools, and community organizations, culminating in a student teaching experience divided evenly between a deaf and hard of hearing setting and a mild intervention setting.

What You Will Learn

Students in this program will learn about and apply evidence-based practices for deaf and hard of hearing students and students with mild intervention needs. Specifically, they will learn:

• To use multiple sources of information to develop a comprehensive understanding of a student's strengths and needs
• How to develop short- and long-term learning goals
• How to use language milestones, academic standards, and assessment data to implement specialized interventions
• How to create welcoming, language-rich environments that support academic and linguistic growth for all learners

Program Benefits

The program offers several benefits, including:

• Substantial Field Experience: The program includes several field experiences in both mild intervention and deaf education settings at the elementary and secondary levels.
• Nationally Accredited: The special education program in Exceptional Needs: Early Childhood Special Education is nationally recognized by the Council for Exceptional Children and Council for Accreditation of Educator Preparation.
• High Job Demand: There is a tremendous demand for special educators both within the state of Indiana and nationwide, due to persistent shortages of licensed special educators and a growing population of students eligible for special education services.

Department Scholarships

The department offers awards every year to its students to recognize their achievements.

Related Programs

Other programs offered by the Department of Special Education include:

• Mild Interventions
• Intense Interventions
• Teaching Major in Exceptional Needs: Deaf Education
• Exceptional Needs: Early Childhood Special Education Major
• Applied Behavior Analysis - Autism (Online)
• Applied Behavior Analysis (Autism) Major
• Elementary Education and Special Education Dual Major
• Early Childhood and Early Childhood Special Education Dual Major

Our Teachers College

As a student in Ball State's Teachers College, you will join a community that prepares tomorrow's professionals and leaders in all areas of education.