Special Education, Teacher of Students with Moderate Disabilities (PreK-2), (Initial Licensure), MEd

The Teacher for Students with Moderate Disabilities (PreK-2) (Initial Licensure) MEd Program qualifies candidates for Department of Elementary and Secondary Education licensure with a focus on early literacy and early childhood education for students with moderate disabilities. The program is designed for candidates who want to support the literacy and academic challenges of young students with moderate disabilities as well as promote their participation in inclusive settings. Pedagogy for early childhood students with specific learning disabilities, autism, behavioral challenges and moderate intellectual disabilities is emphasized.

Admission Requirements

The Early Admission Program is for seniors at Bridgewater State University majoring in Elementary Education, Special Education Concentration, BSE, who wish to take one graduate course in Special Education for undergraduate credit, and thereby accelerate the completion of their MEd in Special Education, Teacher of Students with Moderate Disabilities (PreK-2) (Initial Licensure) for Elementary and Early Childhood Teachers. Students can complete a BSE and MEd in Special Education within five years if they choose to be a full-time student. The application fee for students seeking early admissions to the relevant graduate program will be waived.

If accepted, students will be granted special status to enroll in one graduate course in Special Education for undergraduate credit. The graduate course that will be taken for undergraduate credit is SPED 501 - Professional Practices in Special Education . Tuition for this course will be at the undergraduate course rate.

Resumé
Official transcripts of all undergraduate and graduate course work
Minimum undergraduate GPA of 2.8*
A qualifying score on the Communication and Literacy Skills (both Reading and Writingsubtests) Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure^® (MTEL)
Three letters of recommendation, academic or professional
Personal statement

Program of Study

In consultation with an advisor, candidates will undertake the appropriate course work and activities including the following:

Candidates must complete SPED 510 - Teaching Exceptional Children in Schools (or equivalent) with a minimum grade of “B”
Candidates must, prior to the student teaching experience:
- complete an appropriate psychology course (either PSYC 224 - Child Psychology or PSYC 336 - Developmental Psychology or equivalent) or ELED 120 - Child Development Through a Culturally Responsive Lens
- have passed the General Curriculum MTEL^®
- complete SPED 509 - Teaching Reading to Learners with Disabilities (or equivalent) with a minimum grade of “B”
- have passed the Foundations of Reading MTEL^®

Required courses (18 credits)

Licensure courses (18 credits)

Exit requirement

Successful completion of a comprehensive examination is required. Please see the Graduate Academic Policies and Procedures section of this catalog for additional information.

Total minimum credits: 36*

*On a case-by-case basis an individual course may be waived to bring the minimum number of credits to 33.