Special Educator Initial Licensure Program

he Special Educator Initial Licensure Program is a ROPA-approved, 24-credit sequence of coursework, monthly seminars on the foundations of teaching, and practical experience to prepare participants for a Vermont Special Educator License. Upon completion of the program, the VT-HEC will recommend successful candidates, to the AOE, for their initial teaching license in special education.

New cohorts begin every summer. Each cohort is affiliated with Vermont State University. 

Application and Admission Requirements

• Candidates for the VT-HEC Special Educator Initial Licensure Program must have a BA or BS and at least 3 years of public school experience
• Applicants must have a school site at which they can conduct the applied course practicum activities (including student teaching)
• PRAXIS – Must have successfully passed the Praxis Core Series by the start of the fall semester, Year Two
• Students must have successfully completed four of the required VT-HEC Special Education courses, including Assessment in Special Education (all three sections) and Meeting the Instructional Needs of All Students with Complex Profiles, to be eligible for the internship

For questions or to request application materials, contact Joy Wilcox at [email protected]

Flowchart for Initial Special Ed Licensure

Sequence of Courses and Course Descriptions

The 24-credit sequence of graduate-level courses includes 21 content credits and a 3-credit internship. This is a recommended sequence, however, courses may be taken out of sequence with the exception of the internship which is completed in the second year. Students must have successfully completed four of the required VT-HEC Special Education courses, including Special Education Assessment (all 3 sections) and Meeting the Instructional Needs of all Students with Complex Profiles, in order to be eligible for the internship.

These courses are designed to meet the competencies for licensure as a special educator in Vermont.

History, Legal Issues, and Support Systems in Special Education (3 credits)
(Summer: Year One) This course examines the legal and ethical issues embedded in the provision of special education services to individuals with disabilities and their families.  The course addresses the historical treatment of people with disabilities from a service delivery model perspective.  Significant legislation and court decisions will be addressed along with current special education legal requirements and local, state, and community issues impacting services.  Specific attention will be given to ways in which disability may be viewed as a form of diversity.  Additionally, important frameworks and concepts including the social construction of disability, self-determination, inclusion, collaboration with diverse families, and person-centered planning will be explored in-depth.

Assessment in Special Education (6 credits)
(Fall-Winter: Year One) This course has been designed to help special education graduate students gain some of the critical assessment skills and knowledge they will need to be successful special education professionals. The course has been divided into three, 2-credit sections and will be organized around three-course themes.

1. Assessment in Special Education: Achievement Testing and Report (late August through early October) – (2 credits) – assessment instruments, procedures and practices, legal issues in assessment
2. Interpretation of Assessments: (Mid-October through December) – (2 credits) – use cognitive and academic achievement evaluation results to deepen understanding of varied learning profiles
3. Special Education Comprehensive Evaluations: (Early January through mid-February) – (2 credits) – leading the comprehensive evaluation process resulting in a comprehensive evaluation plan, the determination of special education eligibility, and the special education comprehensive evaluation report

Emotional/Behavioral Challenges in Special Education (3 credits)
(Spring: Year One) Students will learn to develop and implement systemic and proactive procedures that address problem behavior in the building, classroom, and individual student levels. Emphasis on creating or modifying learning environments and interactions that promote social and academic achievement. Students will be required to perform a full functional behavior plan as part of this course requirement.

Meeting the Instructional Needs of All Students with Complex Profiles (3 credits)
(Summer: Year Two) The focus of this course is to provide participants with the necessary components to create an effective school program for students with complex needs. Emphasis will be placed on choosing and utilizing appropriate assessment procedures, utilizing structured teaching strategies, creating individual educational programs, and collaborating in the general education setting. This course will look at all areas of development for children with low-incidence disabilities including cognitive, motor, social, communication, safety, domestic living, and recreation/leisure. Students will also learn the rules and regulations that drive their professional responsibilities relative to the development of IEPs and will become competent at leading a team through the IEP process, resulting in an appropriate and meaningful IEP for each student.

Meeting the Instructional Needs of Students with Learning Disabilities:  (LD I) (3 credits)
(Fall: Year Two) This course is designed to help participants identify students who experience a reading disability and who have barriers to learning to read. Participants will gain critical assessment skills necessary to evaluate students’ development and strengths and weaknesses in literacy and use this information to design appropriate instruction and support for these students.

Meeting the Instructional Needs of Students with Learning Disabilities: (LD II) (3 credits)
(Spring: Year Two) This course is designed to help participants identify students who are learning disabled and at-risk, in the area of math. Participants will gain critical assessment skills necessary to evaluate students’ development and strengths and weaknesses and use this information to design appropriate math instruction and support for these students.

Special Education Internship (3 credits)
(Fall and Spring: Year Two) The internship experience is competency-based, reinforcing course content as well as exposing the intern to important experiences and opportunities to ensure the development and implementation of effective programs for learners eligible for special education services. Interns receive direction, guidance, and direct feedback from a field-based mentor as well as a VT-HEC/Spec Ed supervisor. Together they design an individual student plan, based on a self-assessment plan (SAP), to track obtained competencies and set goals for identified needs. Along with formative evaluation based on direct observation of the intern’s performance, summative evaluation in the form of grades on internship products will be provided by VT-HEC Supervisors. Students must have successfully completed four of the required VT-HEC Special Education courses including Special Education Assessment (all 3 sections) and Meeting the Instructional Needs of all Students: Moderate to Severe Disabilities, in order to be eligible for the internship.

Sequence of Seminars and Seminar Descriptions

Seminar A: Planning and Preparation
(Summer: Year One) This seminar will provide a contextual understanding of the Danielson Framework for Teaching and the Vermont Core Teaching Standards. Participants will examine the Zone of Proximal Development, beginning principles of formative and summative assessment, curriculum mapping, and local comprehensive assessment plans. Candidates will begin an exploration of equity and bias which will be built upon during additional seminars.

Seminar B: Learner Development & Learning Theory
(Fall: Year One) This seminar will provide an understanding and knowledge of learning theorists and developmental progressions associated with the theories. Participants will consider how both formative and summative assessment connect to an MTSS within a school setting and explore the principle of data triangulation. Candidates will be introduced to Project Based Learning (PBL) principles, design, and assessment. 

Seminar C: Classroom Environment and Unit Planning
(Spring: Year One) This seminar will focus on developing knowledge, creating understanding, and applying principles associated with the creation of a positive classroom environment that supports all students.  Participants will learn instructional strategies associated with strong unit design, lesson planning, and assessment. Participants will begin building a foundation of understanding in the ideas associated with Responsive Classroom, PBIS and positive growth mindset as responsive classroom management strategies.

Seminar D: Instructional Planning:  Technology-Math-Science-Global Citizenship
(Summer: Year Two) This seminar will provide opportunities to explore, research, collaborate and plan for teaching in the areas of math, science, technology, and global and digital citizenship. 

Seminar E:  Instructional Planning: Literacy and Language 
(Fall: Year Two) This seminar will provide opportunities to explore, research, collaborate and plan for teaching in the areas of literacy and language.

Seminar F:   General Laws, Policy, Regulations, Completion of Portfolio
(Spring: Year Two) This seminar will focus on preparing candidates for their student teaching experience. Attention will be focused on putting all the pieces of their licensure program into place and into practice. Candidates will concentrate on being prepared for teaching within a school system and adhering to the ethics, policies, and procedures that are expected of Vermont’s teachers.