Special Education General Curriculum P-12 Initial Certification

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The Special Education program a teaching certification sequence in special education for certification in Special Education General Curriculum. This is a non-degree, initial certification program for students who already hold an undergraduate degree from an accredited college or university. Students seeking admission to this initial certification program must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.5 and have passing scores on the GACE Program Admission Assessment or be exempt based on equivalent SAT, ACT or GRE scores, and complete the Georgia Educator Ethics - Program Entry (350) Assessment.

Pre-Service Certificate: Upon admission to a teacher education program, students will be contacted by the Office of Field Placements and Certification office with instructions to claim enrollment in their program and submit a GaPSC Pre-Service Certificate Application. The pre-service certificate is required for placement in required field experiences or clinical practice.

Certification: Students must post passing scores on the GACE Content Assessment, Georgia Educator Ethics - Program Exit (360) Assessment, and edTPA in order to be recommended by Georgia State University for clear, renewable certification.

For Georgia Professional Standards Commission (GaPSC) certification, students must earn a grade of “B” or higher in EXC 4020 Characteristics and Instructional Strategies for Students with Disabilities.

Program Academic Regulations

Students must earn a grade of “B” or higher in each course in the program. If the student earns a grade below “B” in a course, s/he must repeat that course. Students will be allowed to repeat a course in this manner one time. Students who fail to earn a grade of “B” or higher after taking the course a second time will be scholastically excluded from this program. Students must earn a grade of “B-” or higher in courses outside of the special education program.

Certificate Requirements

The sequence of required certification courses are as follows:

EPY 2050 - Human Growth and Development 3 Hours
EXC 4020 - Characteristics and Instructional Strategies for Students with Disabilities 3 Hours
EXC 4650 - Opening School Experience 0 Hours
EXC 6560 - Educational Evaluation of Students with Disabilities 3 Hours
EXC 6570 - Individual and Classroom Management 3 Hours
EXC 6580 - Instructional Methods for Students with Behavior/Learning Disabilities 3 Hours
EXC 6590 - Functional and Social Methods for Students with Behavior/Learning Disabilities 3 Hours
EXC 6661 - Practicum I: Special Education General Education Curriculum: Consultative 3 Hours
EXC 6671 - Educational Partnerships and Practicum II: Special Education General Education Curriculum: Consultative 3 Hours
EXC 7190 - Theoretical Foundations for Literacy Instruction for Students with Dyslexia and Other Reading Disabilities 3 Hours
EDRD 6600 - Introduction to Materials and Methods in Reading Instruction 3 Hours
or
EDRD 7600 - Theory and Pedagogy in the Study of Literacy 3 Hours
EDRD 7550 - Literacy Assessment and Curriculum Development 3 Hours
or
EDRD 7650 - Individualized Literacy Assessment and Instruction 3 Hours

Total Hours for Certification: 33 Semester Hours

Students may not transfer any core special education coursework into the certification program. Students may be given credit for EPY 2050 if prior appropriate coursework can be documented. Students must become highly qualified in reading by completing the Reading Endorsement, through passing [EDRD 6600 ] or EDRD 7600 , EXC 7190 , and EDRD 7550 or EDRD 7650 , and completing a reading portfolio as required. Students must receive a satisfactory grade of “B” or better in all core special education courses. Students who do not receive a grade of “B” or better must retake the course and satisfactorily pass the course prior to taking additional special education core coursework in the program. A course may be repeated once. Students who do not satisfactorily pass a course after two attempts will be administratively withdrawn from the program.

Evaluation of a student’s performance is continuous and involves consideration of each student’s performance in all academic settings. Inappropriate or unprofessional conduct by any student may result in the student being dropped from a course or program. If such removal from a course is necessary, the student will receive the grade of “F” and may be judged ineligible to re-enroll in the course. Georgia State University will only recommend an individual for their certification who has completed a program approved by the College of Education’s Professional Education Faculty and developed under the guidance of a faculty advisor.