Program Overview

Special Education, M.Ed.

The Special Education M.Ed. Program at MTSU is designed to equip students with the knowledge and skills necessary to teach students with disabilities. The program is predominantly online and consists of 10 three-hour courses, which can be completed in one rolling year.

Program Overview

The program focuses on meeting the individual needs of students with disabilities, offering specialized instruction and support, and collaborating with important partners in the lives of students with disabilities. Candidates in the M.Ed. Special Education Program can complete their graduate degrees in one rolling year, beginning in the summer or fall semesters and finishing in the spring semester.

Available Tracks

The Program offers the option to add a teaching license in Special Education, with multiple tracks for initial teaching license, including:

• Special Education Intervention K-8
• Special Education Intervention 6-12 grades
• Special Education Comprehension K-12 grades

Intervention and Comprehensive Teachers

An intervention teacher is specifically trained and certified to teach students who require limited supports in their academic progress, and who typically have been diagnosed with a mild/moderate disability. Comprehensive teachers, on the other hand, prepare candidates to work with individuals who will require more extensive supports and who have been diagnosed with severe/profound disabilities.

Add-on Endorsements

Add-on endorsements are also an option for persons licensed in other teaching areas. They may take graduate-level courses and pass a Praxis exam for an add-on endorsement in either K-8 or 6-12 Interventionist or K-12 Comprehensive licensure.

Admission Requirements

Admission to the M.Ed. in Special Education requires:

1. An earned bachelor's degree from an accredited university or college
2. At least a 2.75 undergraduate GPA or 3.0 GPA in the most recent 60 credit hours for full admission or a 2.5 undergraduate GPA for conditional admission
3. A satisfactory score on the Praxis content area exam may be required if pursuing the job-embedded option

Application Procedures

Applicants must:

1. Submit an application with the appropriate application fee
2. Submit official transcripts of all previous college work

Degree Requirements

The Master of Education in Special Education requires 30 semester hours.

Curriculum

The coursework requirements include:

• SPED 5280 - Assistive Technology in Special Education
• SPED 5370 - Transition Education and Services for Exceptional Learners
• SPED 5380 - Co-teaching in Inclusive Classrooms
• SPED 6100 - Differentiation and Literacy: Teaching Corrective Reading and Writing
• SPED 6310 - Issues in Assessment of High Incidence Disabilities
• SPED 6340 - Methods and Techniques of Behavior Management
• SPED 6600 - Advanced Math Strategies for High Incidence Disabilities
• SPED 6720 - Promoting Family-Professional Partnerships in Special Education
• SPED 6800 - Exceptional Children and Youth
• FOED 6620 - Action Research for Practitioner-Based Learning Environments
• SPED 6780 - School Law and Policy: Special Education Issues

For Licensure Non-Job-Embedded Candidates

All non-job-embedded candidates must enroll in and pass:

• SPED 6350 - Residency: Directed Clinical Teaching (9 credit hours required)

For Licensure Job-Embedded Candidates

Students take up to 3 credit hours with 1 credit hour per semester:

• EESE 5000 - Job-Embedded Clinical Experiences and the Reflective Educator

Faculty

The program is directed by Dr. Alicia Pence, Associate Professor.