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Program Mission Statement

The mission of the Exceptional Student Education (ESE) program at ÀÏ°ÄÃÅ×ÊÁÏ is to prepare highly qualified special education teacher candidates with the requisite knowledge, skills, dispositions, and cultural and linguistic competencies necessary to effectively meet the diverse educational and accessibility needs of children and young adults with disabilities in educational and community settings.

Student Learning Outcomes

Graduates will be able:

Content/Discipline-Specific Knowledge/Skills

Be able to develop an assessment case study in literacy for a student with disabilities.

Communication Skills

Be able to complete a mock IEP assignment that focuses on collaborating with families and others to develop an IEP that addresses the needs of the student.

Critical Thinking Skills

Be able to develop a behavior intervention plan.

Assessment Approaches

The student learning outcomes for the program's Academic Learning Compact are aligned with the Florida Educator Accomplished Practices (FEAPS):

1. Instructional design and lesson planning. Students will:
   1. Align instruction with state adopted standards at the appropriate level of rigor.
   2. Sequence lessons and concepts to ensure coherence and required prior knowledge.
   3. Design instruction for students to achieve mastery.
   4. Select appropriate formative assessment to monitor learning.
   5. Use diagnostic student data to plan lessons.
   6. Develop learning experiences that require students to demonstrate a variety of applicable skills and competencies
2. The learning environment. Students will:
   1. Organize, allocate, and manage the resources of time, space, and attention.
   2. Manage individuals and class behaviors through a well-planned management system.
   3. Convey high expectations to all students.
   4. Respect students’ cultural, linguistic, and family background.
   5. Model clear, acceptable oral communication skills.
   6. Maintain a climate of openness, inquiry, fairness, and support.
   7. Integrate current information & communication technologies.
   8. Adapt the learning environment to accommodate the needs of diverse students.
   9. Utilize assistive technologies to enable students to achieve their educational goals
3. Instructional delivery and facilitation: Students will:
   1. Deliver engaging and challenging classroom lessons.
   2. Deepen students’ understanding through content area literacy and application of the subject matter.
   3. Identify gap in student subject matter knowledge.
   4. Modify instruction to respond to preconceptions or misconceptions.
   5. Relate and Integrate the subject matter with other disciplines and life experiences.
   6. Employ higher-order questioning techniques.
   7. Apply varied instructional strategies to teach for student understanding.
   8. Differentiate instruction based on assessment of student learning needs.
   9. Support, encourage, and provide immediate and specific feedback to students to promote student achievement.
   10. Utilize student feedback to monitor instructional needs and to adjust instruction.
4. Assessment. Students will:
   1. Analyze and apply data from multiple assessments to diagnose students’ learning needs and inform instruction based on those needs.
   2. Design and align formative and summative assessments that match learning objectives and lead to mastery.
   3. Use a variety of assessment tools to monitor student progress, achievement and learning gains.
   4. Modify assessment and testing conditions to accommodate learning styles and varying levels of knowledge.
   5. Share the importance and outcomes of student assessment data with the student and the student’s parent/caregiver(s).
   6. Apply technology to organize and integrate assessment information.
5. Continuous improvement, responsibility and ethics. Students will:
   1. Design purposeful professional goals to strengthen the effectiveness of instruction based on students’ needs.
   2. Examine and use data-informed research to improve instruction and student achievement.
   3. Use a variety of data independently and in collaboration with colleagues to evaluate learning outcomes, adjust planning, and continuously improve effectiveness of the lessons.
   4. Collaborate with the home, school, and larger communities to foster communication and to support student learning and continuous improvement.
   5. Engage in targeted professional growth opportunities and reflective practices, both independently and in collaboration with colleagues.
   6. Implement knowledge and skills learned in professional development in the teaching and learning process.
6. Professional Responsibility and Ethical Conduct. Students will:
   1. Adhere to the Code of Ethics and Principles of Professional Conduct of the Education Profession of Florida