Courses

This course prepares students to evaluate and critique statistics and research methods in Education and Counselling Psychology, including learning about the use and misuse of basic quantitative and qualitative analytical techniques in research and in program evaluation. The course also introduces ethical issues in research and conducting critical reviews of the literature.

This is the foundational course that covers current trends and issues which transcend any particular category of diversity. In particular, the course critically examines the current educational practice of full inclusion and lays the foundation for critically evaluating how content of subsequent courses might lead to more inclusive learning communities. This is the introductory course that brings together each new cohort in the master's program and so one important focus is the establishment of a cooperative learning community. This course also lays the groundwork for future work toward either a major project or thesis by introducing the basic elements of each as they relate to this program.

The understanding, administration, scoring and interpretation of Level B (APA) tests for students with special learning needs, including tests of word reading, passage comprehension, arithmetic, spelling, and receptive vocabulary. This course covers the practical understanding and use of assessment devices and techniques. Students discuss recent litigation issues about assessment and learn to read and understand Level C reports (school psychologists, speech-language pathologists, etc.).

In the authentic ecology of their professional placements, students focus on students with exceptional learning needs and apply the principles of assessment learned in the previous course segment to gather assessment data of various forms, including basic achievement and diagnostic tests. Based on these assessments (including formal tests as appropriate) students then apply the data in developing model Individualized Education Plans (IEPs). As members of the cooperative student cohort, students vet these data and plans among peers in the course.

This course builds upon the information presented in introductory courses to inclusive education and, in conjunction with other courses in the program, examines in depth the unique learning characteristics and needs of persons who are on either end of the continuum of cognitive abilities, and those with at least average intellectual ability but who demonstrate learning disabilities. Also examined is the evolving discourse on neurodiversity and the challenges of students who fit the evolving description of those on the Autism Spectrum of Disorders (ASD) or Pervasive Developmental Disability Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS). Given the wide range of challenges (behavioural, communication, social) they are critically examined in other courses; it is intended that there be continuity and overlap in the content of the various courses in the overall program.

The traditional inclusive education categories of behavioural needs or mental illness are examined. Included are the concerns of students with diagnoses such as anxiety and depression according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorder Fifth Edition (DSM-5), as well as students with behaviour disorders. Also included are the behavioural concerns of students with autism, intellectual disabilities, and attentional difficulties. The British Columbia Ministry of Education criteria for designation in the Behavioural Needs or Mental Illness categories are addressed. The course includes a critical review of literature, building on students’ extant knowledge and professional experience and an examination of current best practice in the areas addressed. Classroom intervention strategies are studied and are critically evaluated.

This course deals with students who have visual or auditory deficits, ranging from mild to profound in regard to hearing and partially sighted to blind in regard to vision. In addition to sensory components, the course addresses students with unique physical challenges and those who may have multiple disabilities or for whom the foregoing may have a cause and effect relationship to disorders of communication. Unique characteristics and learning needs of other low- incidence exceptionalities are also addressed.

An examination of special topics or issues in diversity in education that are not considered in depth in other courses. This course is preparatory for commencement of the Knowledge Transition Project (EDUC 697).

This is a graduate TESL course designed specifically for students wishing to work with K-12 English Language Learners. Based in a Christian worldview perspective, the focus is on historical and contemporary understandings of language, principles, techniques, and methods for diverse K-12 populations, with particular attention to understanding and facilitating learners’ capacity to effectively appropriate the language of schooling. Specific attention is given to the intersectional and interdisciplinary nature of teaching English Language learners with concepts and frameworks from associated disciplines, such as sociology, anthropology, indigenous studies, psychology, and performance disciplines, including art, music and human kinetics.