MSU faculty bring special education master’s degree online to improve student outcomes, access
Contact: Bethany Shipp
STARKVILLE, Miss.—To meet the evolving needs for teachers and enhance employability, Mississippi State’s revised Master of Science in Special Education is now offered fully online, increasing access for those holding full-time jobs. Additionally, the curriculum has been redesigned by faculty to reflect the field’s latest terminology, research and philosophies.
The redesign is led by Patricia Hampshire, associate professor and graduate coordinator for Special Education programs in MSU’s Department of Teacher Education and Leadership. She said the field of special education has significantly shifted its approach to scholarship, theory and practice since the inception of MSU’s program.
“When we looked at similar programs around the country, we saw that our content needed to better reflect current practices and the growing literature base in special education,” Hampshire said.
The updated program seeks to improve student outcomes by incorporating the most effective instructional strategies, assessment methods and intervention techniques for teaching students with disabilities. It emphasizes tiered systems of support for instruction and behavioral intervention, universal design for learning, and evidence-based practices for delivering instruction.
“Our newly revised curriculum will help elevate the knowledge and practices of our special education teachers working in schools all over Mississippi and in surrounding states,” Hampshire said. “By removing barriers to access through the online format, we’ll be able to reach even more teachers.”
Kenneth Anthony, associate professor and interim head of the Department of Teacher Education and Leadership, added, “In 2021, over 67,000 students with disabilities attended Mississippi public schools. The Department of Teacher Education and Leadership is committed to meeting the needs of students with disabilities in our schools, and one of the ways we are doing that is through offering up-to-date and relevant graduate programs to the special education teachers in the state.”
The program consists of 11 online graduate level courses that prepare learners to consume and contribute to research in the field of special education. Learn more at https://www.online.msstate.edu/matx.
MSU’s College of Education is home to five academic departments, a division of education, one research unit and numerous service units. Learn more at https://www.educ.msstate.edu/.
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