Become A Certified Special Education Teacher
Special Education Specialist Certification allows you to teach children with disabilities in a variety of classroom settings from Early Childhood (EC) through grade 12. These classroom settings include early childhood special education (ECSE), life skills, resource, inclusion, and behavior programs. Offered statewide, this certification can be obtained in multiple learning formats: online, in-person, and hybrid. You can choose the path that fits your schedule and learning style.
Special education is a calling for individuals passionate about innovative teaching strategies and about serving as advocates for individuals with disabilities and their families. In addition, a special educator is called to work with students across a range of abilities, which requires patience, compassion, and technical expertise.
The Special Education Specialist certification is about more than just preparing qualified special education teachers; it equips educators with a foundation in research-based, innovative teaching practices and gives teachers the tools to create environments where students achieve success in academics, behavior, functional skills, and vocational skills.
Special Education Certification Options
There are four certification options for SPED, some require a content area certification, such as math or ELAR, others do not. Read more about each of the options below.
Special Education Specialist EC-12
Core Subjects EC-6 - Special Education
If you are interested in teaching at the elementary level in Special Education, you can obtain both the Core Subjects EC-6 certification and the Special Education Specialist certification.
Secondary Special Education Certification
If you are interested in teaching at the middle or high school level in Special Education, your correlating certification area will be based on your preferred or anticipated teaching assignment. For example:
- A teacher candidate supporting English instruction might pursue ELAR 4–8/SPED or ELAR 7–12/SPED.
- A teacher candidate supporting math instruction might pursue Mathematics 4–8/SPED or Mathematics 7–12/SPED.
In your application, select Secondary Special Education. Your Cohort Specialist will guide you through determining the most appropriate certification pairing based on your goals and the needs of your district.
Dual Certification - Bilingual Core Subjects and Special Education
This dual certification allows a participant to become certified in Bilingual Core Subjects EC-6 and Special Education EC-12.
Certification Options
View all the certification options available through ECP
Program Requirements
Bachelor's Degree
Candidates must have a degree earned from and conferred by an accredited institution of higher education.
Min 2.5 Grade Point Average
Minimum 2.5 GPA on all coursework or 2.75 in the last 60 semester hours of completed coursework.
Official College Transcripts
Request your official transcripts be sent to the ECP office.
Content Area Proficiency
Candidates must meet the content area proficiency requirements specific to their program.
Submit Application
Complete our online application with all required documents.
Requirements
View your content area's specific certification requirements
Curriculum
Our certification program curriculum is aligned with Texas Education Agency standards and educational best practices. All curriculum is taught by certified staff and content area experts.
Training
- delivering engaging instruction
- integrating content specific strategies into lesson design
- developing and using student assessments
- understanding student diversity and instructional differentiation
- preparing for formal classroom observations
- preparing for TExES PPR exam
- preparing for TExES content exams
- the science of teaching reading
- facilitating guided reading, writing and math
- integrating science and social studies content into lesson planning
- training specific to Early Childhood (Pre-K), Primary (1st – 2nd), Intermediate (3rd – 6th), Secondary (7-12) with special education strategies
- understanding the strengths and skills of students
- legal and ethical responsibilities within special education
- social, emotional and behavioral skills
Digital Literacy
In our certification program, technology is an integral part of the curriculum and instruction. Our program emphasizes:
- incorporating the effective use of current technology in instruction
- utilizing technology applications in problem-solving situations and project-based learning activities
- using developmentally appropriate instructional practices, activities, and materials to integrate the Technology Applications TEKS into the curriculum
- utilizing learning management systems to increase communication with student families on academic and behavioral progress
What’s Next?
Info Sessions
Find out more about our programs by attending one of our info sessions.
Apply
Complete our online application and take the first step in becoming a fully certified teacher.