Curriculum and Instruction for Early Childhood Special Education (Ages 3-5).

This course is designed to introduce program candidates to critical issues in curriculum and instruction for teaching preschool children with disabilities (ages three through five) and their families. Developmentally appropriate programs (DAP) and evidence-based practices for preschool children with and without disabilities will be the focus of this course. Candidates will explore the impact that disability conditions have on young children’s learning needs in all developmentaldomains, resulting curriculum goals and learning objectives, as well as assessment and intervention strategies used to effectively address these goals andobjectives. Candidates will examine the impact that the environment has on the acquisition, maintenance, and generalization of critical skills in young children, and a range of validated curriculum models designed to meet the learning needs of young children with disabilities and their families. This course will also focus on thehistorical, educational, philosophical, and legal foundations that have guided practice and policy in early childhood special education (ECSE). Fifteen hours offield experience is required and will include observation and analysis of young children with disabilities in different environments.

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