A historical analysis of change and continuity in educational history from colonial through contemporary America. Special emphasis will be given to the development of the field of Deaf education in the United States. Lectures, seminar discussions, and readings offer comprehensive coverage of the salient intellectual themes.

The purpose of this course is to examine the psychological and social development of deaf and hard-of-hearing students in childhood and adolescence. The ways that family, school, and community affect the student's development, including effects on cognitive processes, identity formation, and peer relationships, are considered. Psychological and sociological perspectives on students' experience in general are used to provide a framework for understanding the development of deaf and hard-of-hearing students. Educational implications of the theories and research presented are discussed.

This course focuses upon knowledge and understanding of existing diversities within the Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing communities, and ways in which teaching can most effectively meet the needs and interests of these students for effective learning. Readings and discussions will explore the educational needs of Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing students with variations of experience related to culture, race/ethnicity, language, educational and socio-economic backgrounds and settings, communication skills, and learning styles. These concepts will be applied to effective teaching and curriculum development.

This introductory course provides an overview of the current theories of assessment, curriculum, instruction, and learning across diverse educational settings in the field of deaf education. The course covers the use of educational technologies to enhance the learning experiences of deaf students and options for classroom management, learning environment appropriate to K-12 classrooms, and methods for assessment. Reflection and application of effective instructional practices are demonstrated through microteaching and field-based experiences. To progress to MSSE-714 Practicum, student must obtain a grade of at least B in this course.

As required by the New York State Education Department, each MSSE student is required to complete 100 hours of practicum experience during their first year in the program. This practicum experience provides students with opportunities to observe and reflect on their content, professional, pedagogical knowledge, skills and disposition in classroom settings at both schools for the deaf and mainstreamed programs. There will also be course-related observations. Students will also be required to attend selected Deaf culture events. After completion of all of the required observations, the students are required to submit a practicum experience portfolio. Guidelines will be provided to the student. The practicum experience must be completed with a grade of least a B before the first student teaching assignment.

This course is designed to familiarize students with the process involved in English literacy development. Particular emphasis is placed on the literacy development of deaf and hard-of-hearing students in grades 7-12. Students learn about various language and literacy instructional methods and how to incorporate literacy instruction into all secondary content area classrooms.