COLLEGE OF EDUCATION & HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

Texas A&M University

Special Education Doctoral Training Grant

About the Program

young boy colors on paperDo you want to help schools solve educational problems? Have you considered a career in special education research and teaching at the university level?

The Special and Bilingual Education program in the Department of Educational Psychology at Texas A&M University has received federal funds to prepare individuals at the doctoral level to specialize in prevention and intervention research in reading and high-incidence disabilities with emphasis in Latino children.

Funded by the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs, the project's goal is to prepare future special education scientists who will assume faculty positions in higher education. Individuals who complete this program will be prepared as leaders who will prepare our next generation of special educators to conduct research and use evidenced-based practices to improve reading outcomes for children with disabilities and with limited English proficiency.

Program Features

•    Interdisciplinary training in special education and bilingual education
•    Rigorous research methods that combine coursework from nationally recognized experts and internships
•    Opportunities to participate in prevention-oriented research that studies risk and disability
•    Preparation in the intersection of limited English proficiency (LEP) and disability
•    Integrated, cohesive course of study that combines coursework, research, and teaching.

Financial Support

•    Full tuition funding (24 semester credits of tuition per year)
•    An annual stipend of $15,700 - $17,200 for living expenses
•    $1,000 conference travel support annually 

Individuals who accept funding will be expected to assume faculty roles in special education or related fields.

Eligibility Requirements

•    Master's degree in special education or related field
•    Experience working with individuals with or at risk of disabilities
•    Potential to successfully complete rigorous quantitative research courses
•    Full-time enrollment for 3-4 years
•    Commitment to work on issues related to special education upon graduation

Application Process

Applicants must apply to both Texas A&M Graduate School and EPSY's special education program. Applications are available online and will be reviewed upon receipt. Enrollment will begin Fall 2007.

Applications must include:
•    A completed university application
•    Transcripts of coursework from all previous institutions of higher learning
•    GRE scores (less than 5 years old)
•    TOEFL score (required for international students)
•    Departmental application including a biographical profile that addresses career goals and interests
•    Three letters of recommendation from professionals that address your potential in doctoral study

Program of Study

Special Education Core (12 hrs.)

  • SPED 615 Technical and Legal Aspects of Special Education Assessment
    Teaches skills to critically examine assessment tools and procedures in special education; technical and legal issues in pre-referral evaluation, eligibility assessment, IEP writing and program evaluation; emphasizes test validity and test sensitivity to growth; mastery of knowledge base and realistic scenarios.
  • SPED 617 Special Education Law
  • SPED 682a Topical Issues in Special Education I
  • SPED 682b Topical Issues in Special Education II

Special Education Electives from Options (6 hrs.)

  • SPED 620 Bilingual Special Education
    Topics concerning bilingual special education will be covered including history of the field; language acquisition and assessment; general assessment, individual education plans (IEPs); curriculum development; mainstreaming; consultation services; and parental involvement. 
  • SPED 613 Individualized Teaching of Exceptional Children
    Overview of research and issues related to referral, assessment and educational interventions with exceptional children and youth; information on cross-categorical approach to special education; addresses implications for future practices in special education.
  • SPED 617 Contemporary Instructional Approaches
    Instructional and management strategies for planning and delivering instruction to students of diverse abilities; evaluating and critiquing different strategies based on the context of the teacher, the classroom and individual students.
  • SPED 628 Consultation in Special Education
    Rationale, strategies, procedures and resources for providing consultation as systematic problem-solving to school procedures, and resources for improving services for children with disabilities, and those who are at-risk of school failure.
  • SPSY 642 Behavioral Assessment and Intervention
    This course provides overview of contemporary behavior theory and applied behavior analysis; overview of behavioral assessment strategies with an emphasis on the systematic observations of behavior and interviews; and contemporary behavior therapy approaches for use with educators, children, and their families.
  • SPSY 643 Academic Assessment and Intervention
    Developing effective and appropriate interventions for school-based academic concerns; collecting and interpreting data from informal academic assessments and observations for intervention development and evaluation; using curriculum-based assessments for monitoring student's academic programs and teacher decision making; understanding effective instructional strategies and their application to academic interventions.

Bilingual Core Options (9 hrs.)

  • EPSY 610 Hispanic Bilingual Assessment and Monitoring
    Assessing language ability; language assessment; evaluating and scoring different types of assessments.
  • EPSY 611 Dual Language Programs
    Use of theory and effective teaching practice in promoting students' development of strong social and academic skills; relationship of culture to language.
  • EPSY 612 Content Area Instruction for Hispanic Bilingual Programs
    Theories and approaches for integrating English as second language; learning strategies on how plan, procedures and units engage language teachers, students and learning environments.
  • EPSY 613 Spanish/English Biliteracy
    Socio-linguistic characteristics of second language learners acquiring literacy skills; reading and literature instruction for second language learners; reading and writing process across the curriculum for Hispanic second language learners.
  • EPSY 616 Spanish for Bilingual and Dual Language Classrooms
    Understanding of dual language programs, literacy instruction through Spanish, socio-linguistic perspectives on literacy competence and effective instructional practices.

Research Core (9 hrs.)

  • EPSY 640 Experimental Design in Education I
    Preparation in experimental research design in educational studies; application of statistical methods in these designs.
  • EPSY 641 Experimental Design in Education II
    Preparation in research design in educational studies; application of statistical methods in these designs.
  • EPSY 622 Measurement and Evaluation in Education
    Principles of psychological testing applied to education; uses and critical evaluation of achievement and aptitude, interest, and personality tests and performance in educational settings.

Research Electives from Options (6 hrs.)

  • EPSY 642 Meta-Analysis of Behavioral Research
    Principles and use of quantitative techniques for research integration in education and other behavioral disciplines; computer-based and branching literature searches, coding protocols, theory of effect size estimation, analysis and reporting.
  • EPSY 643 Applied Multivariate Methods
    This seminar presents various techniques for applied multivariate modeling of phenomena in educational psychology.
  • EPSY 631 Program Evaluation in School and Clinic
    Learning of key evaluation skills: establishing focus with client, posing evaluation questions, data collection techniques, designing for internal validity, data aggregation; scenario practice.
  • EPSY 630 Single-Case Research
    Provides skills to conduct research with N=1 designs in the area of special education, school counseling and school psychology; provides the procedures and applications to scenarios in classroom and clinic settings; students are required to collect and analyze data in three mini studies.
  • EPSY 690a  Non-Parametric Statistics  
  • EPSY 690b  Survey Research

Practica and Internships (21 hrs.)

  • SPED 683 Practicum in Grant Writing
  • SPED 683 Practicum in Research
  • SPED 683 Practicum in Field Supervision
  • SPED 683 Practicum in College Teaching
  • SPED 684 Professional Internship

Dissertation Research (12 hrs.)

  • EPSY 691 Dissertation Research

Faculty

This doctoral program involves faculty from multiple disciplines including special education, bilingual education, and educational psychology.

Primary Faculty

•    Shanna Hagan-Burke, Special Education
•    Richard Parker, Special Education
•    Deborah Simmons, Special Education

Affiliated Faculty

•    Lisa Bowman-Perrott, Special Education
•    Mack Burke, Special Education
•    Glenda Byrns, Special Education
•    Connie Fournier, Special Education
•    Kimber Vannest, Special Education
•    Rafael Lara-Alecio, Bilingual Education
•    Yolanda Padron, Bilingual Education
•    Sharolyn Pollard Durodola, Bilingual Education

Contact

For more information, contact Tiersa Hopkins, Project Recruiter, at (979) 574-3531 or thopkins@tamu.edu

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