Educating Learners with Disabilities

This course focuses on the education of students with disabilities and other learners from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. The goal of the course is to promote access to the general curriculum for all students through participation in standards-based reform. Universal Design for Learning (UDL) provides the theoretical framework for this course. Through an examination of historical milestones, landmark legislation, systems for classification, approaches to intervention, and the daily life experiences of diverse learners, students acquire knowledge about diversity and the resources, services, and supports available for creating a more just society through education.

Social Contexts of Education

Examines the role of situational, school, community, peer, and family factors on the education of children. Participants in the course will strive to understand the effects of their own social context on their education, to develop strategies to help students understand their context, and to understand and contribute to what schools can do to improve teaching and learning and school culture for all students regardless of internal and external variables.

Mathematics and Technology: Teaching, Learning, and Curriculum in the Elementary School

This course presents methods and materials useful in teaching mathematics to early childhood and elementary school children and the different ways in which technology can be used in the elementary school classroom. The course will consider the teaching of mathematics and the use of technology from both theoretical and practical perspectives.

Teaching Reading

Offers teacher candidates skills for teaching reading to school age children. Students will gain understanding of reading through a historical, political, theoretical, and practical lens. They will understand the delivery of instruction by learning a balanced approach to teaching reading. They will gain familiarity of how children learn to read by partaking in observations, assessments, and instruction with a school age child. Students will learn a variety of ways to meet the needs of linguistically and culturally diverse learners. They will recognize reading difficulties and learn ways to differentiate instruction for such readers.

Teaching Language Arts

Examines the development of written and spoken language and methods of instruction for oral and written language from the preschool years through early adolescence. Students learn strategies for identifying children's areas of strength and weakness and to plan instruction. Addresses the needs of children from non-English speaking homes. Expects students to spend at least 16 hours distributed across at least eight sessions in a classroom or other setting where they can work with one or more children.

Teaching about the Natural World

Provides an introduction to the various philosophies, practices, materials, and content that are currently being used to teach science to elementary and middle school children. Exposes prospective teachers to the skills and processes endorsed by the National Science Education Standards, the National Health Standards, and the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System.

Educational Assessment of Learning Problems

This course focuses on formal and informal approaches to the nondiscriminatory assessment of students with a wide range of cognitive and academic difficulties. The focus is on identifying students with mild/moderate disabilities. It is designed to prepare specialists for the process of documenting special needs, identifying current levels of performance, addressing critical issues, and designing approaches to monitoring progress.

Supportive Positive Behavior in Schools and Community

Focuses discussion, reading, and research on the diagnosis and functional analysis of social behaviors, places substantial emphasis on the practical application of applied behavior analysis techniques. Also discusses alternative management strategies for use in classrooms.

Human Development and Disabilities

This course addresses the reciprocal relationship between human development and disability. Prenatal, perinatal, and postnatal causes of disability will be presented. Students will learn about theoretical perspectives, research, and current disagreements related to causes, identification, and treatment of disabilities. Prevention and intervention strategies will be presented for each disability. The application of assistive technology will be covered across disabilities.

Introduction to Speech and Language Disability 

On the basis of the development of normal children, this course will explore dysfunctions of speech and language that interfere with normal communication and learning processes. The evaluation of language performance and the remediation of language deficits will also be stressed.

Assessment and Instruction of Students with Reading Difficulty

Examines the methods and materials related to formal and informal assessment, analysis, and interpretation of the results of assessment and instructional techniques for students with a range of reading difficulties (K-12). Focus is on the needs of students from varied populations.

Teaching and Learning Strategies: Moderate Support Needs

This course is intended to help prospective and experienced special education teachers and other educators a repertoire of skills for teaching students with mild/moderate (high incidence) educational disabilities. Participants will accomplish this goal by making connections among their knowledge of disabilities, special education policy and practices, assessments, education theory, and teaching methods. Students will learn how to develop, implement, and monitor individualized education programs, implement research-based effective intervention practices, and collaborate with others to meet the needs of special education students in inclusive and other educational settings. Successful students will have familiarity and competency with a variety of special education procedures and teaching approaches and specific practices. Appropriate for both elementary and secondary level education. Class sessions will routinely include time to practice skills being learned.

Educating Autistic Students

In this course students will learn strategies and purported mechanisms behind current intervention models designed for students with ASD. Student will be able to evaluate research evidence and claims of effectiveness of each intervention, and will design and implement appropriate interventions for student with ASD.

Graduate Inquiry Seminar I

The course will coincide with the pre-practicum experience. It is designed to introduce teacher candidates to inquiry as stance and the skills necessary to conduct classroom-based research that leads to pupil achievement and teaching for social justice. The course is designed to help teacher candidates mediate the relationships of theory and practice, pose questions for inquiry, learn through reflection and discussion, learn from their students and colleagues, construct critical perspectives about teaching, learning, and schooling, and to improve teaching and learning. The second part of this sequence is 432 which is taken in conjunction with full-time student teaching (EDUC7420).

Graduate Pre-Practicum

This is a pre-practicum experience for students in graduate programs leading to certification. Placements are made in selected schools in the greater Boston area. Apply to the Office of Practicum Experiences and Teacher Induction during the semester preceding the placement by April 15 for fall placements and December 1 for spring placements. Students who are accepted into a program after the deadlines are requested to submit the application upon notification.

Graduate Inquiry Seminar II

The primary goal of this capstone seminar is to initiate teacher candidates into the practice of teacher research or collaborative inquiry for action. Collaborative Inquiry for Action is an ongoing, collaborative process of systematic and self-critical inquiry by educators about their own schools and classrooms in order to increase teachers' knowledge, improve students' learning, and contribute to social justice. This final project will be presented at a roundtable presentation at the end of the semester and also satisfies the M.Ed., MAT, MST Comprehensive Examination in Education.

Clinical Experience

A semester-long, full-time, five day a week practicum experience for graduate students seeking endorsement as a Teacher of Students with Moderate Disabilities or a Teacher of Students with Severe Disabilities. The course is designed to meet the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Educations requirements for endorsement from Boston College. Students will be guided by a qualified school-based mentor (Supervising Practitioner) and a university-based mentor (Program Supervisor). In addition to registering for the course, students must complete the online application (https://bc-us.inplacesoftware.com/student) during the semester preceding the placement by April 15 for fall placements and December 1 for spring placements. Contact the Office of Field Placement and Partnership Outreach at prac@bc.edu for more information.