COLLEGE of EDUCATION
SPECIAL EDUCATION/COMMUNICATION DISORDERS
Associate Professor Marlene Sala-Provance, interim department head
Professor Gallegos; Associate Professors Brown, Chinn, Poel, Salas, Salas-Provance; Assistant Professors Bae, Cronin, Ortega, Rhein, Spencer, Valdez; College Associate Professor Ivey; College Assistant Professor Medina
(575) 646-2402
http://education.nmsu.edu/spedcd/
DEGREE: Bachelor of Science in Education
MAJOR: Special Education
Communication Disorders
The Department of Special Education/Communication Disorders offers two undergraduate programs that prepare professionals to work with exceptional populations in school, community, hospital, and residential settings. The Special Education program prepares students to provide appropriate educational services to individuals with disabilities. The Communication Disorders program provides training for students interested in speech-language pathology or audiology.
MAJOR: Special Education
The undergraduate program is designed to prepare students for licensure in special education. Students receive training in a broad based curriculum appropriate for teaching and other career options related to special education and developmental disabilities. In addition to special education coursework, students complete an academic teaching field and may elect to pursue coursework in a variety of focal areas including early childhood special education, developmental disabilities, or counseling and educational psychology. Dual licensure in special and regular education (elementary or secondary) may be obtained.
General education requirements are similar for all degree programs in the College of Education. Students should meet with an advisor to plan appropriate general education courses for a special education major. Students may get a dual license in special education and elementary education or in special education and secondary education.
Professional Education Courses (34 credits)
| SPED 350, Introduction to Special Education in a Diverse Society | 3 |
| SPED 360, Elementary Curriculum, Methods, and Materials for Special Education in a Diverse Society | 3 |
| SPED 459, Classroom Management for Diverse Learners | 3 |
| SPED 463, Introduction to Assessment of Diverse Exceptional Learners | 3 |
| SPED 470, Life Span Development and Transitions in Special Education | 3 |
| SPED 481, Practicum in Education, Equity and Cultural Diversity | 3 |
| Two of the following courses: SPED 458, Intellectual Disabilities in a Diverse Society: An Introduction; SPED 466, The Learning Disabled Student in a Diverse Society; SPED 467, Behavior Disorders in a Diverse Society | 6 |
| SPED 482, Student Teaching SPED | 12 |
All special education students will choose a developmental psychology course (C EP 110G) and EMD 101.
OPTIONS:
All special education students must choose one of the following options:
Dual License in Elementary Education (50 credits)
| Complete the Language Arts Teaching Field or Requirements for Elementary Education majors | 24 |
| Complete the Elementary Education Major Requirements | 18 |
| C D 365, Language Acquisition for Educators | 3 |
| EDUC 489, Topics | 3 |
| RDG 371/SPED 409, Instruction for Special Reading Needs | 3 |
Dual License in Secondary Education (48 credits)
| Complete first teaching field requirements in one area | 36 (minimum) |
| C D 365, Language Acquisition for Educators | 3 |
| EDUC 460, 461, 462, 463, 464, 465, 466, or 467, Secondary Methods (take course appropriate for teaching field | 3 |
| EDUC 489, Topics | 3 |
| RDG 371/SPED 409, Instruction for Special Reading Needs | 3 |
Special Education and Focal Areas (Early Childhood-Special Education, Developmental Disabilities, or Counseling and Educational Psychology) (48 credits)
For detailed coursework, see the Advisement Center.
Complete a second teaching field 24 (min.)
| C D 365, Language Acquisition for Educators | 3 |
| RDG 371/SPED 409, Instruction for Special Reading Needs | 3 |
| Additional coursework in one area of ECED-SPED, C D, or C EP. (See an advisor for details.) | 24 |
General Requirements
See "General Requirements" in the "College of Education" section. Students must be admitted to the Teacher Education Program as a condition for enrolling in courses that lead to licensure.
MAJOR: Communication Disorders
The Communication Disorders curriculum provides specialized preparation for students who plan to enter a graduate program to become speech-language pathologists or audiologists. Students supplement their academic study of normal communication, communication disorders, and clinical management with observation and supervised clinical experience in the departments Edgar R. Garrett Speech and Hearing Center. To begin the clinical practicum sequence (C D 321, C D 462,) a student must have a minimum 3.0 GPA.
The undergraduate program provides approximately one-half of the academic requirements needed for certification by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and licensure by the New Mexico State Department of Education. Certification and licensure at state and national levels requires completion of the masters degree. Details regarding certification are available from the Department of Special Education/Communication Disorders.
Professional employment opportunities for speech-language pathologists and audiologists are numerous in school systems, community clinics, medical centers, hospitals, private practice, residential programs, and schools for individuals with disabilities.
Program Requirements
Required coursework (132 credits; minimum 48 upper-division credits):
General Requirements
See "General Requirements" in the "College of Education" section at the beginning of this chapter. A list of specific general education courses is available at the Education Advisement Center in ODonnell Hall, Room 101.
Communication Disorders (63 credits)
| C D 221, Introduction to Communication Disorders* | 3 |
| C D 301, Language Acquisition* | 3 |
| C D 302, Professional Reasoning and Scientific Thinking | 3 |
| C D 321, Clinical Methods | 3 |
| C D 322, Anatomy and Physiology of the Speech Mechanism | 3 |
| C D 323, Phonetics | 3 |
| C D 324, Introduction to Speech Science | 3 |
| C D 326, Clinical Procedures | 3 |
| C D 325, Language Disorders | 3 |
| C D 374, American Sign Language I | 3 |
| C D 375, American Sign Language II | 3 |
| C D 421, Speech Disorders | 3 |
| C D 422, Audiology | 3 |
| C D 423, Neural Bases of Communication Disorders | 3 |
| C D 424, Aural Rehabilitation* | 3 |
| C EP 110, Human Growth and Behavior | 3 |
| C EP 451V, Introduction to Counseling | 3 |
| SPED 350, Introduction to Special Education in a Diverse Society | 3 |
| Electives (Selected from the list of recommendations from the C D program) |
9 |
*Courses recommended for students who plan to enter a graduate program in education of the deaf/hard of hearing.
Graduate Program (53 credits)
Students entering the graduate program with an undergraduate major in Communication Disorders can expect to complete the program in two years and be awarded a Masters of Arts in Communication Disorders and specialization in Speech-Language Pathology. Graduate programs for students without a communication disorders background are generally one year longer. Enrollment in graduate courses in Communication Disorders is limited to persons who have been accepted into the graduate program in communication disorders. To complete a course of study, each student is expected to meet the programs academic and clinical competency criteria as well as the recommendation of state and national certifying bodies for educational licensure and clinical certification.
The masters degree program in Speech-Language Pathology at New Mexico State University is accredited by the Council on Academic Accreditation of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Admission requirements and procedures, which are available upon request, are listed in the Graduate Catalog.