ELM - Mission and Objectives

The mission of this program is to provide accessible, challenging, Christ-centered professional growth and development opportunities for prospective exceptional needs mild intervention teachers. By expanding teaching knowledge and skills through continuous theory to practice proficiency development, exceptional needs mild intervention teachers are able to gain knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary to meet the needs of students with mild intervention in their classrooms and school-community.

Objectives of the Exceptional Learners Certificate Program:

• Content/Subject Matter: Candidates will substantiate, in exceptional needs settings, growth in the knowledge of and skills in development and application of curriculum.
• Practice Reflective Assessment: Candidates will demonstrate the ability to select and administer appropriate assessments and to analyze their findings in order to insure quality instruction and behavior modification for exceptional needs students.
• Professional Development: Candidates will show proficiency in the ability to select appropriate instructional strategies and material and implement them effectively to provide quality instruction for exceptional needs students.
• Management of Time, Classroom, and Behavior: Candidates will express knowledge of behavioral interventions and the temperament, values, and dispositions necessary for their ethical implementation with exceptional needs students.
• Building Learning and Services Networks: Candidates will exhibit skill and initiative in collaboratively working with students, their parents, and members of the professional community to provide appropriate services and education for exceptional needs students.
• Rights and Responsibilities: Candidates will confirm an understanding of and compliance with the legal responsibilities inherent in teaching exceptional needs learners.
• Implementing Instructional Effectiveness: Candidates will apply theory to appropriate settings and audiences as well as development in the use of higher order cognitive skills.