Candidates for the Bachelor of Science should first review General Requirements for All Degrees at IUS.
Note: As this bulletin goes to print, accrediting and administrative groups are reviewing requirements for the bachelor's degree in special education. Updates will appear on the program Web site. Students should seek regular advisement from program faculty.
General Information
Program Beliefs, Commitments, & Outcomes
Program Requirements
Course Requirements
Performance Level Requirements
General Information
The bachelor's degree in special education leads to an Indiana license to teach students with disabilities, grades P-12. This special education license is in the area of Mild Intervention. Guided experiences with a wide-age of children and youth and master special educators are the foundation of the program. Students have multiple and varied experiences in schools.
Elementary education majors wanting to pursue a license in Mild Intervention should consult with the Coordinator of the Special Education Program for specifics. Individuals teaching full time with a limited or emergency permit in special education who do not have an initial standard teaching license need to complete the post-baccalaureate Initial-License Program described in graduate studies.
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Program Beliefs, Commitments, & Outcomes
Beliefs
The Special Education Program operates under the following set of beliefs about children and youth with disabilities and their education:
- All students can learn, have strengths, and are worthy of respect and self-direction.
- Differences are normal and can be used as positive springboards.
- Powerful opportunities for growth and development are most likely to occur when the environment is nurturing and predictable and takes into account internal and external factors.
- Prevention is as essential as compensation and remediation.
- A broad range of instructional options and services can be provided in a variety of physical settings and should be viewed as standard operating procedure.
- Assessment, labeling, and delivering services may produce intended as well as unintended consequences.
- School reform should meaningfully involve all its stakeholders, with particular attention to affirming family and community members as decision makers and collaborators.
Student and Faculty Commitment
Reaching program outcomes is a responsibility shared by students and faculty. Members of the faculty are responsible for organizing and implementing effective learning experiences and systematically assessing student and program performance. Students are responsible for keeping apprised of program and licensure requirements, displaying the SOE Professional Dispositions, and meeting the Special Education Program Standards.
Program Outcomes
Students majoring in special education are expected to commit to demonstrating three broad program outcomes: (a) understanding their students' needs and contexts, (b) collaboratively planning and implementing effective learning experiences, and (c) continuously assessing the effects of their professional choices. The 10 specific program standards derived from the content and developmental standards promulgated by the Indiana Professional Standards Board are consistent with INTASC and Council for Exceptional Children standards.
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Program Requirements
Course work leading to the B.S. in Special Education has two components:
- General Education
Students complete courses in the Schools of arts and letters, social science and natural science in order to become well-rounded members of society and gain basic knowledge in subject matter content. The academic goals of this component are outlined by the campus faculty and the content exceeds what special educators will teach their own students.
- Professional and Pedagogical Studies
Students complete courses and experiences leading to successful demonstration of what special educators need to know and be able to do. All-Learners Content courses focus on knowledge, skills, and dispositions needed by all teachers. Specialty Area Content courses target particular knowledge and skills for special educators.
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Course Requirements
For a bachelor's degree in special education, students must satisfy all general rules for undergraduate education programs, rules for admission to the program, requirements for remaining in good standing, criteria for admission to student teaching, and eligibility for a degree described in the undergraduate general information section of the School of Education portion of this bulletin. Completion of the degree, faculty recommendation, and passage of state-mandated tests along with a satisfactory criminal history check are needed to apply for an Indiana all-grade (P-12) license in Mild Intervention.
Degree completion is contingent upon students passing five summative decision points. Information about decision points can be found on the programs Web site.
- First-Year Seminar (1 credit hour)
- Arts and Letters (18 credit hours)
| ENG W131 Elementary Composition 1 | 3 |
| ENG W290 Writing in Arts and Sciences | 3 |
| SPCH S121 Public Speaking | 3 |
| Elective in Fine Arts/Music/Theatre | 3 |
| Elective in Literature | 3 |
| Elective in Philosophy/Language/Communication/Religion | 3 |
- Natural Sciences (17 credit hours)
| MATH T101,T102,T103 Mathematics for Elementary Teachers | 9 |
| Complete a, b or c: |
| a. | BIOL L100 Humans and the Biological World | 3 |
| CHEM C101/121 Elementary Chemistry I + Lab | 5 |
| b. | BIOL L100 Humans and the Biological World | 5 |
| CHEM C104 Physical Science and Society | 3 |
| c. | BIOL L100 Humans and the Biological World | 5 |
| CHEM C101 Elementary Chemistry | 3 |
- Social Sciences (9 credit hours)
| One course from each group: |
| a. | GEOG G107 Physical Systems of the Environment | 3 |
| GEOG G110 Introduction to Human Geography | 3 |
| GEOG G201 World Regional Geography | 3 |
| b. | ANTH E105 Culture and Society | 3 |
| SOC S163 Social Problems | 3 |
| SOC S216 American Ethnic Diversity | 3 |
| c. | HIST H105 American History I | 3 |
| HIST H106 American History II | 3 |
| POLS Y103 Introduction to American Politics | 3 |
- All-Learners Content (41-45 credit hours)
| EDUC E339/340/M301 Reading/Language Arts | 6-7 |
| EDUC E341/M301 Reading II | 3-4 |
| EDUC E325/M301 Social Studies Methods | 3-4 |
| EDUC E328/343/M301 Math and Science in Elementary | 6-7 |
| EDUC E449 Trade Books and the Teacher | 3 |
| EDUC H340 Education and American Culture | 3 |
| EDUC K205 Introduction to Exceptional Child | 3 |
| EDUC M310/311/301 General Methods | 4 |
| EDUC P250/251/M201 Educational Psychology/Elementary | 5 |
| EDUC P255 Educational Psychology/Middle/High School | 2 |
| EDUC W200 Computers in Education | 3 |
- Specialty Area Content (42 credit hours)
| K345 Academic and Behavioral Assessment | 3 |
| K352 Education of Children with Learning Problems | 3 |
| K370 Introduction to Learning Disorders | 3 |
| K453 Management of Academic and Social Behavior | 3 |
| K480 Student Teaching | 12 |
| K490A Partnerships | 3 |
| K490B,C,D AT; TBI & Autism; Functional Curriculum | 3 |
| M470A,B,C Practicum | 9 |
- Plus enough electives to total 130 credit hours
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Performance Level Requirements
In order to complete the degree, special education majors must:
- pass the First-Year Seminar and complete the degree with at least a 2.5 GPA.
- earn a grade of B- or higher in all Specialty Area Content courses.
- have a grade of C or higher in each All-Learners course.
- have a Satisfactory in all courses graded S/F.
- have no less than a 2.5 GPA in the required mathematics courses (each with a grade of C or higher), the communication cluster (i.e., S121, W131, and W290) and each general education group (i.e., Arts and Letters, Social Science, and Natural Science).
- pass all five summative decision points.
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