Special Educator Endorsement

The special educator endorsement advances teachers’ abilities to assess special needs children and develop and design appropriate instruction support for these children. Coursework leads to a special education endorsement. Candidates must complete ED 330/502 before beginning special educator endorsement courses.

The advisor may require the candidate to demonstrate prior experiences before enrolling in specific courses in endorsement specialty programs.

Special Educator Endorsement Learning Outcomes

Candidates for the endorsement will be able to meet Oregon Teacher Standards and Practices Commission endorsement standards:

1. Understand the field as an evolving and changing discipline based on philosophies, evidence-based principles and theories, relevant laws and policies, diverse and historical points of view, and human issues that have historically influenced and continue to influence the field of special education and the education and treatment of individuals with exceptional needs both in school and society.
2. Know and demonstrate respect for their students first as unique human beings.
3. Understand the effects that an exceptional condition can have on an individual’s learning in school and throughout life.
4. Possess a repertoire of evidence-based instructional strategies to individualize instruction for individuals with exceptional learning needs.
5. Actively create learning environments for individuals with exceptional learning needs that foster cultural understanding, safety and emotional well being, positive social interactions, and active engagement of individuals with exceptional learning needs.
6. Understand typical and atypical language development and the ways in which exceptional conditions can interact with an individual’s experience with and use of language.
7. Understand that individualized decision-making and instruction is at the center of special education practice.
8. Understand that assessment is integral to the decision-making and teaching of special educators and candidates use multiple types of assessment information for a variety of educational decisions.
9. Be guided by the profession’s ethical and professional practice standards.
10. Routinely and effectively collaborate with families, other educators, related service providers, and personnel from community agencies in culturally responsive ways. This collaboration assures that the needs of individuals with exceptional learning needs are addressed throughout schooling.