MEd in Special Education - High Incidence, Alternative Certification

The special education high incidence alternative certification program at WSU provides an alternative route to the special education teaching profession and is geared toward individuals who have experience working as paraprofessionals.

The program prepares reflective practitioners who possess both theoretical understanding and practical skills for teaching students with mild to moderate disabilities. Candidates receive preparation to support them in meeting teacher licensure requirements in the first 30–31 credit hours (two years). Students must complete an additional 7 credit hours for the MEd degree. Courses are offered fully online. Candidates must continue full-time employment as a special education teacher while completing their coursework. Loss of employment or continuous improvement will result in dismissal from the program.

Admission

To be considered for admission to the special education high incidence alternative certification program, applicants must meet the following requirements:

  • For full admission, students must have a GPA of 2.750 or better;
  • Applicants with a GPA below 2.750 are required to meet one of the following:
    • GRE scores of at least 150 in verbal reasoning, 148 in quantitative reasoning, and 3.5 in analytical writing.
    • Miller Analogies Test (MAT) score of 400 or above. 
  • Full admission to the WSU Graduate School;
  • Signed documentation from a building or district administrator confirming the applicant has worked as a paraprofessional for at least one academic school year; and
  • Letter of recommendation from a building or district level administrator that highlights the applicant's strengths as an educator.

Applications are evaluated when received for the special education high incidence alternative certification program.

Upon admission, students will be required to sign documentation that acknowledges their understanding of the following program requirements:

  1. Successful completion of the first semester of coursework and submission of the fully completed and signed KSDE Form 24 to the program advisor is required to begin the required core courses.
  2. Students must gain employment as a special education teacher of record at the start of their second semester and remain employed throughout the duration of their program. If employment is lost, students will not be allowed to remain in the program.
  3. All preparatory and required core courses must be completed within two years.

Program Requirements

Background Check

Upon admission and prior to their first semester, all applicants admitted to this program must clear a criminal background check. There are two reasons for this requirement. First, it is part of the university’s due diligence before placing students in field settings. Second, the check may alert applicants or students to issues that may subsequently affect their ability to work in their chosen field. In instances when a person’s criminal history raises reasonable concerns that should be cleared to engage in the field experiences and/or subsequently obtain licensure/endorsement, WSU may take a range of actions, including rescission of admission or dismissal from the program, depending on the nature of the concern.

For more information visit advanced programs background check requirement1.

Course Title Hours
Preparatory Coursework
Taken as a cohort during the first semester of the program while still employed as a paraprofessional. If summer start, employment as a paraprofessional not required.
SPED 784Foundations of Special Education3
SPED 506Introduction to the Education Profession for Special Educators2
SPED 556Introduction to Instructional Planning and Classroom Management2
Required Core Courses
Students must start full-time employment as a special education teacher.
SPED 757AIntegrated Seminar and Mentoring I1
or CI 557 Integrated Seminar and Mentoring
SPED 724Introduction to Teaching Strategies for Students with High-Incidence Disabilities3
SPED 796Family and Professional Collaboration2
SPED 757BIntegrated Seminar and Mentoring II1
or CI 557 Integrated Seminar and Mentoring
SPED 817Language to Literacy: Meeting the Needs of Students with High Incidence Disabilities 33
SPED 817AInternship/Practicum: Language to Literacy 42
SPED 822Principles of Nondiscriminatroy Assessment for Students with Exceptionalities2
SPED 749APracticum: High Incidence Learners 22
SPED 812Transition Across the Life Span2
SPED 757CIntegrated Seminar and Mentoring III1
or CI 557 Integrated Seminar and Mentoring
SPED 818Positive Behavior Supports for Students with Exceptionalities 53
SPED 818AInternship/Practicum: Positive Behavior Supports for Students with Exceptionalities 2, 61
CAS 501Teacher Licensure Capstone0
Research Component
CLES 801Introduction to Educational Research3
or CLES 723 Single Subject Design
SPED 862Capstone Research Project: Project Development 72
SPED 863Capstone Research Project: Project Completion 82
Total Credit Hours37
1

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2

Requires a B- or better. 

3

Must be taken with SPED 817A.

4

Must be taken with SPED 817.

5

Must be taken with SPED 818ACLES 721 course option is only for students who are also completing the ABA Graduate Certificate program.

6

Must be taken with  SPED 818, or after taking  CLES 721

7

Requires completion of all preparatory and required core courses, as well as  CLES 801 or  CLES 723.

8

Requires completion of all preparatory and required core courses, as well as completion of  SPED 862.

Note: Students are eligible to take Praxis exams for teacher licensure after completion of all of the preparatory and required core courses.

Applied Learning

Students in the MEd in special education - high incidence, alternative certification are required to complete an applied learning or research experience to graduate from the program. The requirements can be met in part by completing a capstone research project in which the emphasis is on applying professional practices to research and is directly linked to applied learning. In addition, students must complete at least 135 hours of field experience/internship in special education classrooms by successfully completing the following courses: SPED 818A, SPED 749A and SPED 817A.