Focus on approaches and strategies that help improve the lives of people with ASD. Examines the role research plays in what people know about various claims. Explores how research findings are communicated, and how to best translate research findings into everyday language.

This course is used to record credit the student earns while enrolled at another institution in a program administered by the University's Study Abroad Office. Credit is recorded as assigned by the study abroad adviser in the Department of Special Education. University credit is awarded for work in an exchange program; it may be counted as coursework taken in residence. Transfer credit is awarded for work in an affiliated studies program.

Explore individual differences among people through the life span. Examine areas of exceptionality within the context of typical development: current research trends; theoretical and legal considerations; and practice-related issues, including family involvement, cultural and linguistic diversity, and educational perspectives.

Discuss human learning in multisocial, multilingual, and multicultural contexts; realities of society and their impact on learning; and social concerns such as prejudice, stereotyping, cross-cultural attitudes, bilingual issues, and parent and community involvement.

This course is used to record credit the student earns while enrolled at another institution in a program administered by the University's Study Abroad Office. Credit is recorded as assigned by the study abroad adviser in the Department of Special Education. University credit is awarded for work in an exchange program; it may be counted as coursework taken in residence. Transfer credit is awarded for work in an affiliated studies program.

Observation and participation in a variety of educational settings that serve children with disabilities.

Basic principles of interpersonal and intergroup communication in culturally and linguistically diverse educational settings. Designed to help students understand the relationship between culture, language, and disability using a variety of formats, including discussion, dialogue, journals, simulations, case studies, and field-based assignments.

Participate in a supervised practicum in special education classroom teaching, conducted in cooperating schools, as part of the teacher preparation program including teaching, analysis, and evaluation.

Assessment and high-stakes testing policies, procedures, and practices in special education; curriculum-based measurement used to monitor academic outcomes for students with disabilities; and principles and procedures used to reduce misidentification of individuals from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds and with limited English proficiency. Assessment data and individualized education plan development is also covered.

Explore instructional practices associated with improved outcomes for students with mild to moderate disabilities receiving services in general and special education classrooms. Focus on teaching reading in content areas, such as mathematics, science, and social studies.

Key issues affecting decision-making and practices by special education teachers, assessment personnel, and administrators related to the treatment and education of students with disabilities.

An overview of the transitions within the life span, particularly the transition to postsecondary school settings for individuals with disabilities. Designed to help students develop the ability to infuse transition-related topics into curricula, assess transition needs, develop transition plans, and become knowledgeable about existing vocational and community services.

Explore assessment and instructional strategies for educating students with autism and other developmental and physical disabilities. Focus on implementation and evaluation of instructional procedures for teaching a range of adaptive behaviors, such as self-care, and communication, social, and community living skills.

Explore the knowledge and skills associated with assessing, instructing, and monitoring the progress of students who experience mild to moderate difficulties with reading, as well as students with dyslexia. Focus on reading, spelling, and writing for kindergarten through grade five.

Acquire in-depth knowledge of early childhood intervention, particularly related to services within the state of Texas, including an understanding of the legal policies related to serving young children with disabilities and their families.

Learn assessment practices for developing and evaluating educational programs for individuals with autism and developmental disabilities. Examine the theoretical orientations that underlie the major assessment strategies, including standardized, behavioral, and informal practices.

Explore Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) including the nature and diagnosis of ASD, available resources, and evidence-based practice service. Examine strategies implemented by professionals to help families and children navigate their environment and create a more inclusive and supportive environment for persons with ASD. Conducted in Spanish.

Specialized study in an identified area of interest in education of the exceptional child.

Study of critical issues in culture, language, and disability.

Language acquisition among culturally and linguistically diverse learners in general and special education, with emphasis on effective assessment and instruction.

Overview of issues affecting equal access to quality education for culturally and linguistically diverse learners with disabilities.

An in-depth examination of key knowledge, including sociocultural theory and conceptual models, used in teaching culturally and linguistically diverse students with disabilities in special education and inclusive settings.

Considers how the federal government and local educational agencies collect a range of data on the educational experiences of children, including those with disabilities and special needs. Analyzes how these large datasets provide a unique opportunity to examine not only macro-level trends in identification rates, racial disparities, and student achievement, but also the influence of school and home contextual factors. Examines how to use these datasets and address important questions in special education today. Explores how to access, prepare, and analyze these datasets.

Examines essential concepts related to language and literacy. Discussion of past and present sociocultural factors that impact research in terms of both what is researched and how it is researched and the implications of that research on instruction and assessment. Analyzes the socio-cultural foundations of schooling and society to better understand the complex, dynamic interrelationships between culture, language, literacy, and disability.

An overview of issues, problems, and emerging practices related to culturally and linguistically diverse students served in special education.

Cultural and linguistic factors related to the assessment of language-minority students; the best practices in psychoeducational procedures.

Current and emerging research on individuals with disabilities who are from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. Provides students with opportunities to review research literature on topics of interest to them, and to explore their writing skills. A process approach to writing is used to familiarize students with the APA guidelines for preparing scholarly manuscripts.

Introduction to principles of intercultural communication for educators. Emphasis on strategies for effective cross-cultural communication in a variety of educational settings, including general and special education.

Traditional methods of parent and school relations; emerging and innovative models for communication between the school and the community; the intent of the course is to explore school-community interactions in the context of the dynamics of culture, race, language, politics, history, economics, and religion.

Designed to prepare students to develop standards-based multicultural personnel preparation programs that emphasize research-based practices and that improve student outcomes and promote recruitment, retention, and quality of personnel for teaching culturally and linguistically diverse populations with disabilities in pluralistic settings.

Nature of the characteristics of learning disabilities and their effect on learning; assessment and progress monitoring measures; and individualized, differentiated strategies, interventions, technologies, and materials.

Basic terms and definitions, the nature of specific learning disorders, theoretical models, and empirical classification systems.

Design, implementation, and evaluation of instruction for elementary- and secondary-level students with mild to moderate disabilities who receive special education services for reading.

Issues in the education of students with mild to moderate disabilities, including assessing students, evaluating instruction and instructional materials, and adapting and implementing instruction with an emphasis on math.

Theories and practices associated with dyslexia; terminology, assessment, and remedial strategies are emphasized.

The basic concepts related to the assessment of exceptional individuals.

Nature of the characteristics of learning disabilities and their effect on learning; assessment and progress monitoring measures; and individualized, differentiated strategies, interventions, technologies, and materials.

Education variables related to educational services and research for young children are investigated in terms of etiology, assessment, curriculum models, educational settings, and interdisciplinary programming.

The educational and emotional needs of young disabled children (birth to age six) and the techniques for implementing a "whole child educational approach to meet the needs of the child and the family.

Medical information on pre-, peri-, and postnatal effects of medical problems and extended hospital stays. Impact of medical intervention on the infant's and the family's development.

Early intervention in a neonatal intensive care unit or on a follow-up team for medically fragile high-risk children.

The grief stages of parents; parent involvement models available to promote optimum parent-child and parent-professional relationships.

Teaching experience with disabled children in a center setting. Assessment and curriculum procedures are applied in developing an appropriate education for an individual child or small groups of children.

Teaching experience with a large group of children in a center setting. Program management and evaluation procedures are applied to a total curriculum, so that the student assumes a lead teacher and/or consultant role during training.

Experience in assessing a disabled child in a naturalistic setting. Formal and informal assessment procedures for children from birth through age six.

Overview of hospital-to-school early intervention techniques for meeting the medical and educational needs of preterm, low-birth-weight, and at-risk children and their parents.

Research, design, and implementation of a functional child-parent program. Students develop their own programs for working with parents of children with specific problems or disabilities.

Experience planning, assessing, and implementing educational programs for at-risk infants and toddlers. Emphasis is on interagency coordination and the use of the transdisciplinary team to meet the family's and the child's needs with a minimum of personnel.

Examine the nature of the characteristics of learning disabilities and their effect on learning; assessment and progress monitoring measures; and individualized, differentiated strategies, interventions, technologies, and materials.

Discussion of behavioral disorders, contributory factors; psychological and educational diagnoses applied to educational programming.

Introduction to the nature and needs of children with behavior disorders and to effective management methods and teaching strategies. The admission, review, and dismissal process is described and practiced so that students can work as members of an interdisciplinary team.

Study of the basic principles of human behavior, and the application of those principles to teaching positive behavior support and designing effective classrooms. Designed to prepare teachers and clinicians who will be in general and special education settings with children of all ages with and without disabilities.

Designed to provide students with an overview of promising and preferred practices for educating children and youth with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD). Emphasis on children and youth whose behaviors challenge the prevailing social and educational traditions and values of schools, communities, and families.

An examination of current trends and issues in areas within special education and rehabilitation counselor education that influence policies and procedures in the public schools, teacher preparation programs, and community agencies.

An intensive study of the psychological, sociological, physiological, and educational factors relating to the assessment, learning, and teaching of children with autism and other developmental disabilities. Includes affective, cognitive, and psychomotor development of individuals with physical disabilities.

Review of recent advances in the understanding and treatment of autism and related developmental disorders. The social forces that shape research and scientific understanding and the political forces that influence the delivery of education and related services, as well as implications for effective leadership in special education.

How research is used to develop interventions for those with developmental disabilities. Students consider the role of basic research and theory in the development of interventions and the use of experimental design to demonstrate the effectiveness of an intervention program, explore the development of empirically validated intervention programs, and undertake qualitative and quantitative reviews of intervention research.

Development of highly specialized skills needed to teach those with developmental disabilities. Emphasis is on the basic principles of learning that underlie effective instructional strategies and on ways to structure the environment to promote learning.

Communication intervention for those with developmental disabilities. Designed to help students learn to assess communication behavior and to create intervention programs that enhance existing communication skills and teach new skills. Hands-on experience with a variety of augmentative and alternative communication systems.

Introduction to the learning and behavioral characteristics of those with developmental disabilities, including autism and related developmental disorders. Designed to give students an understanding of the educational needs of those with developmental disabilities and of ways to address those needs through special education and related services.

The nature, assessment, and treatment of the challenging behaviors that are prevalent in individuals with developmental disabilities, such as aggression, self-injury, property destruction, tantrums, and stereotyped movements.

Literature relevant to the inclusion of students with developmental disabilities, including classic readings on the history and philosophy of inclusion; analysis of the evidence supporting current best-practice models. Emphasis on critical reading of empirical studies on the efficacy of inclusive education.

Research related to the assessment of students with developmental disabilities, examined in the context of the theoretical orientations that underlie the major assessment strategies. Includes a review of studies related to the development and validation of contemporary assessment instruments and discussion of the scientific process involved in developing and validating assessment tools.

Study of the content and process of special education administration, including technological forecasting methods, case law as it applies to people with disabilities, management of problem employee styles, and related topics.

Application of principles of administration and leadership to problems associated with special education and instruction for special populations.

Students are directed toward career goals: affective change toward the future and change processes; acquisition of knowledge about several technological forecasting methods and of skill in the use of one method.

An examination of case law that covers definitions, equal educational opportunity, employment, accessibility, freedom of choice, freedom from residential confinement, housing and zoning restrictions, equal access to medical services, procreation, marriage, children, contracts, ownership and transfer of property, voting, and holding public office.

Leadership issues associated with serving school-age children through federal and state "title" programs, including English as a second language, bilingual education, and Chapters I and II. Also covered are alternative schools; programs for juvenile offenders, pregnant students and young mothers, and at-risk students such as those who have potential for suicide; and services for the homeless, the abused, and chemical abusers. Students read the significant literature and develop knowledge and skill in planning and designing delivery models.

Discussion of critical issues; critiques of literature; development of theories and models regarding disabling conditions.

The design of instruction for students with disabilities by using assistive and instructional technologies.

Strategies such as collaborative consultation and teamwork models, which are used to improve learning outcomes for students with diverse learning needs.

Supervised field placement in specialized settings serving exceptional children and youth.

Individual research planned, executed, and reported under supervision.

Forum for students to become familiar with the areas of study, research, and professional practice within special education. Students also refine their professional writing and communication skills, critically evaluate current and emerging research in the field, and examine the historical, legal, philosophical, and theoretical foundations of special education.

Designed to develop the knowledge and skills students need in order to conduct research. Under the supervision of a three-member committee, students develop a publishable-quality synthesis of the professional literature on a topic related to their research interests.

An examination of current trends and issues in areas within special education and rehabilitation counselor education that influence policies and procedures in the public schools, teacher preparation programs, and community agencies.

The use of single-subject research designs to make data-based decisions about program effectiveness and student outcomes; integration of applied research into classroom instruction as part of evidence-based professional practice in educating students with severe and multiple disabilities.

Supervised teaching experience at the college level.

Supervised practice in a professional position.

Instruction in the supervision of student teachers and observers at the undergraduate level.

Preparation of a report to fulfill the requirement for the master's degree under the report option.