The course focuses on the identification of handicaps and the use of individual and group processes for children having hearing losses, visual problems, speech disorders, emotional-social handicaps, and intellectual deviations. It is strongly recommended that students begin the special education program with this course. This course provides a field experience with exceptional children. Permission from the department chairperson is required to register for this course. This course studies functional speech and communication problems, their nature and causes, diagnostic and therapeutic procedures and materials for the more common communication disorders.
Emphasis is placed on speech and language development, articulation problems, and stuttering.
This course includes presentation, demonstration, and interpretation of techniques of individual psychological examination of exceptional children and youth. The course also discusses various standardized and teacher-made instruments for evaluating the intellectual, perceptual, social and emotional competence of handicapped children, and necessary adaptations for the various types of handicaps. This course is intended to orient the prospective special education teacher to young children with special needs. Curriculum considerations, the role of parents in the education of their handicapped child, an understanding of child development and deviations from the norm and individualized educational planning are topical areas. Goals of the course are to provide students with competencies in observation, prescriptive teaching, and in improving communication with parents of children with special needs.