Temple University’s College of Education and Human Development offers students graduate level courses to become a certified special education teacher. This program is ideal for those who are seeking initial teacher certification in Special Education or are currently certified teachers (e.g., in early childhood education, middle grades education, art education, etc.) and would like to add special education as a second certification.

Applicants are initially admitted to our Special Education Master’s Program (MEd).  After successfully completing the minimum requirements for Certification, students may choose to earn certification-only or may elect to continue in the program and complete the additional 3 credit hours and requirements to receive Special Education (PreK-12) Certification and a Master’s degree. 

    Non-degree Program Requirements

    The Special Education non-degree graduate certification program requires the completion of up to 27 credit hours of graduate course work, depending on if this is an initial certification or if the student already holds a current certification and previous transferrable coursework. In addition to successfully completing the required coursework, candidates must pass the required certification exams and successfully complete student teaching to be eligible for Special Education Certification.

    Required Courses

    Courses required for eligibility for certification by PDE for Special Education (PK-12)

    Course

    Title

    Credits

    SPED 5105

    Assessment in Special Education

    3

    SPED 5106

    Literacy Instruction for Students with Disabilities

    3

    SPED 5109

    Classroom Management and Positive Behavior Support

    3

    SPED 5201

    Students with Moderate to Severe Disabilities: Effective Teaching Strategies and Interventions

    3

    SPED 5211

    Effective Instructional Strategies for Students with Disabilities

    3

    SPED 5402

    Effective Transition Practices for Students with Disabilities

    3

    SPED 5666

    Introduction to Special Education

    3

    EDUC 5402

    Child and Adolescent Development

    3

    TESL 5631

    Foundations of Language Teaching: Meeting the Needs of English Language Learners

    3

    EDUC 5409

    Research Methods and Induction Capstone

    3

    EDUC 5888

    Supervised Teaching

    4

    Lists course number, title, and credits required for eligibility for certification by PDE for Special Education (PK-12)

    Dual-Certification Programs

    If you are interested in earning your certification in special education along with an Early Childhood Education teaching certification, explore our other master's programs:

    Program Contact

    Jason Travers, associate professor, is program coordinator of the Special Education program.
    Email: jason.travers@temple.edu

    Julie Beth Kessler, associate professor of instruction, is program coordinator of the Online Special Education MEd program.
    Email: julie.kessler@temple.edu
    Phone: 215-204-6038