Special Education Teachers are responsible for designing and implementing specialized learning plans to help students with disabilities or special needs. These teachers can be found working in early childhood education, elementary and secondary schools, or as resource specialists in private practices.
This course is designed to provide teachers with the skills and knowledge needed to succeed as special education teachers. The course will cover both the theory and practice of working with special needs students and will include a supervised field practicum at the completion of the program.
While this program is specifically designed for anyone interested in becoming a Special Education Teacher, it should be noted that state requirements vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. Students should contact their local board of education for more information on how this program applies to them.
Special education teachers help to ensure these students receive a free appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment possible. One way they do this is by creating and implementing Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) that detail each student’s specific abilities and needs, goals for academic improvement, and accommodations. These IEPs are updated each year as needed to reflect the student’s progress and changing needs.
The students in your class have a wide range of abilities and challenges. Some are more capable than others, and some require more assistance. Please keep this in mind as you move through the curriculum.
As you move through the curriculum, keep in mind that all students will not be capable of performing at the same level. Some may need significant help with all components of the curriculum, while others will need significantly less assistance.
A special education teacher job description should begin by explaining that these professionals are responsible for planning, organizing and implementing an appropriate instructional program in a learning environment that is safe and conducive to educational development. Teachers must also provide students with the necessary learning materials to support their educational development.
The first step in designing your curriculum is to determine what the general education standards for your area are for each subject. If you’re in the United States, the Common Core State Standards Initiative should be your starting point. No matter where you live, however, your school or district should be able to provide a standard or set of standards that you can follow. After you’ve selected a set of standards to use as a guide, you need to break those standards down into smaller steps so that each student can learn them at their own pace.
The next step is creating an Individualized Educational Program (IEP). This document describes the goals and objectives that each student will work toward throughout the year as well as the methods used to measure progress toward those goals.
Self-directed learning is defined as “the process by which individuals take the initiative, with or without the help of others, in diagnosing their learning needs, formulating learning goals, identifying human and material resources for learning, choosing and implementing appropriate learning strategies, and evaluating learning outcomes” (Knowles et al., 2005). Self-directed learning is related to autonomy because it allows students to make choices about how they want to learn. When students are able to make choices about what they want to learn, they are more likely to be engaged in their own education.
We believe that self-directed learning is key for special education teachers because it can help them develop a better relationship with their students. By allowing students to be in control of their own education, we believe it will foster a more positive relationship between teacher and student.
Special education teachers work in public and private schools. They work with children ages 3-21. They usually work full time during the school year and may have a reduced workload during summer vacation.
Special education teachers need at least a bachelor’s degree. In some states, they also need to complete a teacher preparation program and student teaching internship. Most states require special education teachers to be licensed or certified.
Most special education teachers work with other teachers, counselors, principals, parents, and administrators in order to create the best possible learning environment for their students.
This curriculum is designed to help special education teachers implement the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) in their classrooms. The CCSS are a set of standards that most states voluntarily use to guide how they structure their curriculum, and they were developed by teachers, parents, and educational professionals to make sure that students across the country could have consistent, rigorous expectations for learning.
The CCSS are not an attempt to standardize what is taught in every school across every state. The standards themselves do not provide any detail regarding specific content or topics, and they do not even specify what grade level to teach anything at. Rather, this curriculum provides broad guidelines for when certain foundational math skills should be introduced and mastered so that students are best prepared for success in higher education and beyond.
One of the most important parts of teaching special education is tailoring the content to meet your students’ needs and abilities. This means that you are free to use whatever materials you deem appropriate for your students as long as you are meeting the goals set forth by the CCSS. For example, if a grade-level standard calls for teaching algebraic equations with variables on both sides, you may choose to teach using objects instead of numbers