Special Education Certificate – Undergraduate

Program Description

The School of Education at Biola University offers an online institution-sponsored 12-credit certificate in Special Education which can be embedded into the Liberal Studies, Elementary Education major and the Liberal Studies, Multidisciplinary major as a concentration. This certificate will equip a school teacher to better serve special needs students in his/her classroom. Additionally, if a candidate later desires to go into full-time special education, this certificate may provide a head start in a credential program. Candidates completing the Special Education Certificate coursework will enjoy 12 credits of focused study in special education, including fieldwork in local schools and the development of competencies that assist the candidate in working with student study teams, systematic data collection, objective reporting, and modification and accommodations to support students with mild to moderate support needs in the regular classroom. The institution-sponsored certificate requires that all coursework be passed with a grade of "B-" or higher.

Program Learning Outcomes

1. Identify and articulate God's calling as Christian educators by reflecting on their spiritual journey and their educational preparation in a biblically integrated essay; and demonstrate Christian attitudes and actions conducive to professional excellence and witness by maintaining high professional disposition marks in coursework and fieldwork (ULO 1, 2, 3).

2. Examine and analyze their students' cognitive, social, and physical growth through the gathering of student profile data, monitoring their progress, and providing constructive feedback to maximize students' optimum development (ULO 1).

3. Demonstrate respect for diversity in cross-cultural and special population educational settings in order to promote equity and justice as exhibited in differentiated learning plans, response to profile data, and high marks in professional dispositions throughout coursework and fieldwork experiences (ULO 1, 2, 3).

4. Design and implement appropriate adaptations to ensure the attainment of a productive learning environment for each student enrolled in candidates' classes by focused evaluation and reflection of each student's strengths and needs. Candidates will also utilize developmental and learning theories, as a foundation for professional decision-making and reflection by identifying student learning needs and making appropriate adaptations to ensure student learning (ULO 1, 3).

5. Design, implement, and practice appropriate and effective universal design for learning that fosters a safe and equitable learning environment for students with individual academic and behavioral needs (ULO 1, 2, 3).  

Each Program Learning Outcome (PLO) listed above references at least one of the University Learning Outcomes (ULO 1, 2, 3), which may be found in the General Information section of this catalog.

Curriculum Requirements