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In professional fields such as education, public health, social work and others that especially involve the application of knowledge and skills in a social setting to develop well-being of individuals and groups, supervised practical experience is a major component of the education necessary to enter the field as a competent practitioner. Field practicums, internships, and clinical experiences (depending on the field) consist of the student taking what they have learned in the classroom setting and applying it directly in real world scenarios with students or patients so that when they enter their careers as licensed practitioners of their field, they are as well equipped as possible to begin practice. Students work under the close supervision of a field instructor and a licensed practitioner of their field at schools, hospitals, health service agencies, or other sites of professional practice. Practical experience requires a significant time commitment for students (typically requiring work during normal business hours). In traditional programs of study, colleges and universities build relationships and work closely with sites of practice throughout the region where students are regularly placed for their practicum experiences. But what of online degree programs where students are studying from disparate locations across the nation?

[See our ranking of the most affordable online graduate schools here]

Generally speaking, it is possible for students to complete all field experience requirements near their home. Setting these arrangements up may require more work on behalf of the student as the university will not have pre-established relationships with clinical and practicum sites in your region. However, online programs in which practicum experience is required will provide students the necessary resources to establish a practicum site fairly easily. Since master’s degree students in online programs are often already working in their field of study, it is often possible to set up practicum placements at their current workplace as long as they are able to demonstrate that they are learning something new through this arrangement.

For online students studying in rural areas of the U.S., finding a field placement can be more difficult especially in the type or role they hope to pursue. These students may need to travel farther to find a practicum site that matches their interests or accept that their practicum may not perfectly match their interests. Even in these cases, the fact that the practical work does not exactly match their program’s specialization is not terribly detrimental as long as students find a setting to hone their skills and apply them in real-world situations. It is this application of learning that makes master’s of any discipline and as long as classroom learning is directly applied in any setting, graduates will go on to have the skill to apply that learning in any setting.

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50 Most Popular Online Masters

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While online master’s degree programs are undeniably excellent options to advance one’s education, especially for working adults, there are a number of challenges that go along with online learning that potential students ought to be aware of prior to enrolling in an online program. Having an awareness of these challenges will prepare potential students all the more to excel in an online program if and when they do enroll in one. The following three challenges are the most common that students in online programs face.

[See our ranking of the most affordable online graduate schools here]

Social Challenges of Online Learning

In traditional classrooms as much, or more, learning occurs through interaction and mutual sharing of ideas with peers as it does through written texts and professor lectures. These interactions form important bonds between students that  form a foundation of shared learning within the classroom. While online learning environments attempt to re-create the dialogue and mutual learning that occurs within traditional classrooms through discussion forms, video and teleconferencing, and other technological solutions, many students in online programs report feeling isolated in their learning and that reading and responding to other students comments on a discussion board simply does not provide the same depth of interaction as occurs within classrooms. This is perhaps the single most difficult challenge to overcome with online learning, but as technology advances, there will hopefully be increasingly better ways to facilitate the social aspects of learning across virtual environments.

Self-Discipline and Online Learning

In traditional master’s degree programs, students are immersed in a physical environment that helps to keep students tuned into the demands of their studies. Specifically, in traditional programs students are influenced by their peers with whom they are in regular contact and who (as a whole) comprise a culture of learning that serves to motivate each part of that whole to maintain focus on their studies. In the absence of this physical culture, students of online programs must be incredibly self-disciplined to stay on top of coursework and assignments. Students must be well organized and be able to meet deadlines without necessarily receiving reminders on a week to week basis. This difference between online and traditional learning can be a serious challenge for some students.

Environmental Distractions of Online Learning

The university is an environment tailored for scholarly pursuits and features countless locations in which students can hunker down for hours on end for quiet and focused study time. Students in online programs do not necessarily benefit from these environments. While working from home does have its advantages, the home can be difficult to clear of environmental distraction. Whether those distractions are children playing noisily throughout the house, or simply the limitations of space when trying to craft a work area in your apartment conducive to study, attempting to study in your home can be extremely challenging especially as you learn to adapt to your new life as a student.

Online degree programs are an incredibly valuable route to further ones education while maintaining the flexibility of schedule that working life demands. These programs provide opportunities to advance ones education and open up new career possibilities while maintaining ones prior commitments to work and family. At the same time, online education poses significant challenges, especially for students who have been enculturated in traditional modes of education. Having an awareness of some of these challenges can help you be better prepared to enter the world of online education and to have a greater chance at success in undertaking the next step in your educational journey.

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50 Most Popular Online Masters

So if you want job that is relevant, significant and worthwhile, public health may be ideal for you. This work can change and better not just the lives of individuals, but also whole populations. If this sounds like the kind of endeavor that is meaningful and important to you, check out the best online master of public health degree programs to find the best school to help you achieve your goals.

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Here’s a chilling thought: many modern, infectious diseases can be traced back to direct contact with an animal. The term “zoonoses” as defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) refers to any disease that can be transmitted from an animal to a human or human to animal without artificial intervention. The deadly plague pandemics of the middle ages come to mind as an extreme example, but milder infections (such as ringworm or lyme disease) are also possibilities. If you are determined to study infectious diseases and how to prevent zoonotic epidemics, start by obtaining an MPH degree from one of the best online master of public health degree programs.

Public health as a field is commonly defined in a variety of ways. Key points in most general definitions include the study of diseases, how disease is transmitted, researching the pathogens to prevent outbreaks, and educating the public on ways to stay healthy and avoid potential threats. As it relates to the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of zoonotic outbreaks, public health in particular looks at the communicable nature of disease that can spread between species. Why does this matter? When over half the U.S. population owns a pet of some kind, it is important to know what our beloved Spot and Mittens can bring home to us. In addition, as more varieties of exotic and unusual pets are becoming more commonplace, more strains of bacteria, viruses, and parasitic infections can become possible. Reptiles and outdoor birds are seen more and more–not just in cages and coops, but in selfies and blog posts with adoring owners. Salmonella has had a resurgence from this new backyard farm movement–poor hygiene is often the culprit, but also being overly-affectionate with your chicken-pet (you can love your hen and think she is adorable, but it’s not in your best interest to kiss her). The recent Zika virus scare may have abated in its frenzy, but the virus still remains and can present many problems–this was a disease first discovered in monkeys in the 1940s and spreads through the bite of mosquitoes. Mad Cow Disease (Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans) is terrifyingly fatal, and comes from eating beef from cows that were infected.

Recent North American studies have estimated that around three-quarters of all “emerging” infectious diseases are zoonotic. This is where public health professionals can make a difference–studying how pathogens are transmitted, how they can be combated, and how best to get that information to the public. Even though young children, the elderly, and those with compromised immune systems are most affected, it is critical for all of us that the dangers are known and solutions are researched and promoted. As stated by former U.S. Surgeon General C. Everett Koop, “health care is vital to all of us some of the time, but public health is vital to all of us all of the time.”

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A Certified Public Accountant (CPA) is always, by definition, an Accountant, but is an Accountant always a CPA? Quite simply, no–gaining CPA licensure is an extra step beyond obtaining a Master of Accounting degree (see our list of the best online master of accounting degree programs for some of the schools to check out if you still need to pursue your degree). An Accountant who meets the 150-hour educational requirements and successfully sits for the CPA exam has gone through a uniform credentialing process to become not only the premier standard of accounting, but also the publicly-guaranteed qualified accounting professional. Additionally, there are some job specifics that only CPAs are legally allowed to execute–such as filing  reports with the Securities and Exchange Commission, and performing audits and attestations. Accountants can do a lot–completing tax returns is probably the most well-known service. A CPA can prepare your tax return as well, but they can also represent you if you are called in for an audit and help you make informed and complex business and tax decisions.

The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) is the professional organization in for CPAs in the United States. The organization is responsible for designing and monitoring the results of the Uniform CPA Exam. Accountants must pass the exam to become a CPA, and to maintain the designation must pursue Continuing Professional Education–80 hours worth–every two years. There are also specific state regulations of which CPAs need to be aware. (Many websites offer a breakdown of state requirements as well as guidelines towards getting CPA licensure).

For those who want to know about their return on the investment of pursuing CPA licensure, consider that CPAs make (on average) about 10-15% more than the average accountant salary. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, accountants who possess an undergraduate degree made on average about $68,000 a year in 2016. With that being the case, that would mean a licensed CPA made, on average, almost $80,000 in 2016.

So the choice is yours if you want to go the extra mile to become a CPA. Being an accountant is a fine professional endeavor, but if you are looking for a little more clout and a larger salary, consider becoming a CPA.

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You like the sense and order of balancing a budget, keeping track of finances, or making sure every penny is accounted for–can that translate into a lucrative career? The answer is–quite possibly. With the right skills and proper training, you can fairly quickly and easily make your goal of being an Accountant, or even better, a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), a reality.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, if you want to practice accounting, you need an undergraduate degree. There is not much experience one can gain while on the job–that level of study and experiential learning needs to happen in a solid accounting program. Most programs cover the basic concepts of auditing, cost analyses, financial reporting, taxes, global economy and international accounting practices, and jurisprudence. Electives are offered to help students pick the particular course they want to follow in the field, and for those who want to go on for a master’s degree, a greater degree of specialization is further possible.

The good news is that, according to U.S. News and World Report, the average annual accountant starting salary with a bachelor’s degree is close to $70,000. The even better news is that that figure goes up over 35% on average, based on the results of a 2011 salary survey conducted by Georgetown University. And for those professionals who do go the extra step to gain licensure and become a CPA, their salaries are, on average, 10-15% higher than the average accountant salary. Even if you did not study business or accounting as an undergraduate, there are many graduate programs that offer prerequisite courses to help you catch up with your business brethren. In fact, most of the best online master of accounting degree programs offer these classes online to get you on track quickly and conveniently.

If these attributes check all of the boxes off your list of things at which you excel and like working on, considering joining the field of accounting!

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You know who you are. You loved seeing the list of course options at the beginning of every semester in college. You relished reading the descriptions of all the classes–even (especially!) the descriptions of the classes you didn’t need for your general requirements or your major. You imagined the readings and the cool projects you could work on to unleash your creative side. If this sounds like you, you might be an ideal candidate for one of the best online master of liberal studies degree programs. Think about it–with an online master of liberal studies degree you can pick all of the courses that didn’t fall into your course of study as an undergraduate. You can choose across disciplines to take that basket-weaving class that just didn’t make sense for a nutrition major. Or that class on art history in the renaissance that didn’t fit in with a bio-engineer degree. And as an online program, you can take all of these classes from the comfort of home (or the dog park, coffee shop or local brewpub–as long as there is internet available you can “attend” class anywhere). But the best thing? According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, not only does a master’s degree open doors for some careers that might not otherwise be possible, but also it helps increase your wage potential.

People attracted to this degree are a diverse bunch. Ages of students range from right out of undergraduate programs at only 21 years old all the way to those in their twilight years (with most students falling into the thirty-something category). Undergraduate experience and majors also vary widely. Current professions of those who become master of liberal studies students also run the gamut. The one connecting factor really does seem to be the desire to broaden mental horizons, to make connections with personal experience and academic pursuits, and reconnect to the larger human picture. These are the renaissance men and women of our day who seek to be scholars and learned visionaries. If this sounds like a dream to which you aspire, you might be the kind of distinguished lover of academia (or the professional who needs a degree, and wants one that will make them happy in their pursuits) for whom this degree was created.

So, if you love the idea of being a life-long learner, or if you feel that a master’s degree would help you advance in your career–consider the online master of liberal studies degree. It’s an accessible, enjoyable and applicable degree–check it out!

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50 Best Online Masters in Liberal Studies

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Going into the criminal justice field should be no mystery–a good online master’s degree program is a great start. And because a criminal justice degree is one of the most popular online master’s degree programs, there is no shortage of good online programs from which to choose. That means you don’t have to give up your current job to move to the best program that fits your needs–the program comes to you. But don’t think this degree means a one-size-fits all approach to gaining a career in criminal justice–the many programs offering the degree guarantees that lots of different careers could be possible. From the expected law enforcement jobs to the more surprising loss prevention specialist jobs to the really unusual forensic entomology jobs–these are just a few of the many possibilities that could open up when you graduate from one of the best online master of criminal justice degree programs currently available.

Action Oriented

The role most people probably associate with the criminal justice professional is the police officer, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg. From FBI to DEA to CIA agents, victim services directors to private investigators, the action and protection or crime-solving potential is great with these action-focused jobs. These are the jobs that require the legwork and a methodical approach to figuring out how a crime has occurred, who did it, and how to stop it. It also houses the corrections and confinement aspect of criminal justice–the corrections supervisors, probation officers, treatment specialists and child protection services professionals.

Leadership, Law and Psychology

With the mind of a criminologist, the careers on this end of the criminal justice scale require forethought and knowledge of society. These are the jobs of understanding the “why” behind crime and working on institutional changes to predict and prevent future occurrences. Here stand your forensics professionals, your profilers and your criminal sociologists. By studying how behavior dictates action and how society works, the jobs which can be found here are housed inside research organizations, district attorney’s offices, universities, state and local government, and beyond. Also here are the counselors and the psychologists–the ones to help pick up the pieces of broken humanity and try to provide healing.

You Do What?

Some of the lesser known jobs possible with a criminal justice degree are no less important or necessary for a functioning society–they are just, well, less well known and quire unusual. Many require very specific concentration areas or specializations in a criminal justice master’s program (or even further education for some). Polygraph examiners (those who administer the lie-detector test), bloodstain pattern analysts (for those who have a good background in chemistry and physics), forensic entomologists (the scientific study of insects, entomology examines the relationships of bugs to the environment in which they are found–for example a body in the woods), and major sports investigators (professionals who investigate allegations of misconduct or rule-breaking in professional sports).

So you could be a police officer with a master’s of criminal justice. Or you could work for a major league baseball team to make sure all the players are on the up-and-up. The point is, with the large selection of solid, online degree programs in criminal justice–the choice really is yours to make.

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The times they are a-changing. Law enforcement personnel are “officers of the law” or more commonly “police officers”–no longer simply lumped into one gender category and called “policemen.” Since the early 1900s, women have been serving in the police force, and they are not going away any time soon–nor should they. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor, women make up about 14% of patrol officers, 18% of supervisors, and 44% of detectives and investigators. As online master’s degree programs in criminal justice, criminology, and criminal justice administration are becoming more plentiful, more and more woman (and men) are advancing into positions of leadership and authority in the criminal justice field–evidenced by the Bureau of Labor’s statistics. The easiest way to get those advanced degrees and move up in the job hierarchy is to pick one of the best online master of criminal justice degree programs available and continue working the beat at home while studying at your convenience.

Though the numbers of women across the board in criminal justice and law enforcement jobs are not increasing at a very rapid rate, the numbers are not dropping. A good way for female officers to stand out from their male counterparts is to seek out those positions that require more education and training. Positions of leadership, academia, or specialized focus, for instance, all require advanced degrees that can be obtained online from a myriad of reputable programs. In leadership roles women can be, among other things, special agents or administrators, and these sorts of jobs require the training one would get in an online master’s degree program. Skills like analytical processing, critical thinking, new methodology, and learned best practices–these are the skills that set people apart and help them achieve those leadership jobs. Academia is another field in which women can excel. Ideal for individuals who want to help train those in the field but may not want that path for themselves, there are many jobs in community colleges, universities and police academies, just to name a few. And the countless specialized jobs include professions in things like offender services, victim services, mediation and probation. And if they so desire after receiving a master’s in criminal justice, the transition into law school to become an attorney is not a large one.

So even though the area of criminal justice has been traditionally seen as a male-dominated field, women are proving they can hold their own and enter the field on all of the same levels as their male counterparts. The key seems to be a good education and reputable training, so make sure the program you choose has what you need to be a leader in this field.

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The Liberal Studies master’s degree is one of the most popular online master’s degree programs available today. It’s no wonder–what is not to love about a degree that you can pursue on your own timeline and lets you craft a personalized academic path to take the classes that interest you the most? Study what you want, and come out of it with a master’s degree? Sign me up! There are many good online master’s degrees programs (check out our list of the best online master of liberal studies degree programs) that have similar sounding degrees–liberal studies, liberal arts, and humanities–but what exactly are they, how do they differ, and how do they intertwine? Read on as we demystify what these amazing degrees can do for you!

Liberal Studies

Individuals who go into Liberal Studies (sometimes called Interdisciplinary Studies) degree programs generally choose two or three related subject matters that appeal to them the most and construct a personalized degree from those subjects. The degree’s beauty is its ability to encourage learning across disciplines and to enable students to conceive of connections from different academic departments. Students can have a more-than-average and highly meaningful experience because the degree has been crafted by their own interests and way of thinking.

Liberal Arts

Many Liberal Arts programs are interdisciplinary and serve to broaden rather than specialize a student’s experience. But rather than being individually designed from two or three disciplines, students take courses across a broad array of topics and subjects–curricular offerings usually include classes in history, religion, literature, philosophy, political science, music, art history and the performing arts. The degree can still be individualized with the choices that are made, but in general students do not form a personalized graduation plan as they would with the Liberal Studies degree.

Humanities

Also considered an interdisciplinary degree, a master’s degree in the Humanities is comprised of courses specifically in–you guessed it–the humanities. The humanities are a discipline in which students study how society reflects upon and documents itself. Courses in philosophy, literature, religion, art, music, history and language are the usual suspects in a humanities program. Students read or write literature, examine and interpret art and theatre, look at languages, dissect religion, and learn from history. These classes are from across disciplines and departments, so students are still experiencing a broader program rather than a specialized degree focus.

Regardless of which way a student decides to go, any of these degrees can be immensely fulfilling and easily achieved through an online program. Follow your path to find the best fit for you!

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50 Best Online Masters in Liberal Studies

29 Best Online Masters In History

When people hear the terms criminal justice and criminology, they often think of police dramas or sensational whodunits. But are the terms interchangeable, or are there nuances specific to each? For prospective students thinking of going in to a master’s degree program in criminal justice or criminology, what are the key differences of each program that need to be known in order to pick the best fit for the desired career? Read about the details of each below, and then look over our list of the best online master of criminal justice degree programs to pick the program (and degree) that’s right for you.

Criminology

People with the job title “criminologists” are essentially sociologists who study the causes of criminal behavior, such as predictors of violence and incidents that can lead to criminal activity. The ranges of jobs possible include, for example, forensic psychologists, military intelligence personnel, victim services specialists, and profilers. These are the individuals who try to get inside the criminal mind to unravel the mystery of why some people are capable of committing acts of violence and harming others either directly or indirectly. Through observation and psychological examination of indicators such as gender, socioeconomic status, childhood history and trauma, etc., criminologists hope to discover how to prevent individuals from going down a dark path in order to protect both the potential agent of harm and the individuals he or she may harm in the future. Individuals in these positions must have earned a master’s degree to pursue their careers. It’s a high-paying career field potentially, but according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Handbook, it is a popular field with no real expected growth within the next decade.

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Since the passage of IDEA–the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (known as the Education for All Handicapped Children Act from 1975 to 1990)–more children with special needs are being educated and receiving the care and instruction they need. And to fill these roles, more special education teachers and advocates are needed. According to the US Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics, careers in special education are expected to grow 6% through 2024. This career growth is increasing right at the national average, which means there are many jobs, but they are pretty competitive. In order to be the most attractive to potential employers, teachers should make sure they have the edge by achieving a master’s degree. Our list of the best online master of special education degree programs should help prospective students pick the program that best fits their needs.

Although the trend in special education is an integrated classroom, many teachers who just hold a bachelor’s degree in education only took a single course–if that–in special education. In addition, as children are being screened and identified as having intellectual and/or physical disabilities earlier, more and more children are being recognized as needing special education resources. Needing dedicated special education teachers, many schools are trying to fill in the gaps. This means more teachers, but it also means more Early Interventional Specialists, more Educational Diagnosticians, and more Special Education Administrators.

According to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, professionals in the field of special education had a median salary of $53,860 in 2016. The range is great however–younger children being diagnosed earlier means the need for preschool special education teachers. The salary in this field is in the $30k range. As students age and move into needing transitional services, upper level school special education teachers make closer to $60,000. And those working on policy change and/or funding sources for advocacy programs–professionals in this line of work make salaries of the mid-$60s to upper $80s.

Going into the field of special education is for dedicated, caring individuals who want to make a difference in the lives of exceptional children. It’s a growing field due to the recognition of needs, both through the early detection of these children with special needs and through the research of methodology and best practices in providing education to them. A true calling, and these children don’t deserve anything less.

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50 Best Online Masters in Special Education

50 Best Online Masters in Education- Leadership

50 Best Online Masters in Education

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What does it take to be a teacher? Patience, love of children, ingenuity and creativity are attributes that probably top that list. Certainly any good teacher needs those tools in his or her resource kit, but what about special education teachers? Are the skills needed by educators who work with children with special needs so different from mainstream teachers?

Teachers need to be organized! Whether working with exceptional children or children who are more mainstream, teachers need to have their gameplan for the day mapped out. For special education teachers, this is a necessity for their kids as well–a daily schedule with predictability and order can often help children with special needs understand what is expected of them and be more readily able to participate. That being stated, adaptability is also an important characteristic of both the teacher and the special education teacher. Things happen–all children have energy and minds of their own. Meltdowns, defiance–these things happen. Being able to adapt to whatever a child throws at you and respond in an even-tempered way and keep order is important both as a way to maintain a calm classroom for the children but also as a way to model appropriate responses. Having a sense of humor doesn’t hurt! All children can be silly, funny and full of enthusiasm. Having a teacher who shows them it’s okay to laugh at the appropriate times and have fun together is good for both the teacher and the students.

Our list on what it takes to be a good teacher is without question not exhaustive. To a certain extent there is a tension between the field of education and special education–the trends in special education currently are leaning into inclusivity and integration in the classroom. For teachers who did not specialize in special education as undergraduates but are faced with an integrated classroom, the need for an advanced degree in special education may become evident. A solution to that potentially overwhelming realization could be an online Master of Special Education degree, and finding a solid online program is key to achieving a reputable, respected master’s degree and having the flexibility to maintain current employment and family obligations while studying. We’ve done the homework to discover some of the best online master in special education degree programs offered currently, so check out our list to find a program to best fit your needs.

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50 Best Online Masters in Special Education

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It wasn’t until the 1970s that children with special needs were guaranteed by law the right to attend public school in the United States. The passage of the Education for All Handicapped Children Act in 1975 (EHA) was the beginning of viewing intellectually and/or physically differently-abled young people as just as deserving of a good public education as children without disabilities. From simply allowing them to attend class to the practices today, what are the philosophies and methodologies for teaching children with special needs? And how does a teacher learn these best practices for special education instruction? Read on to find out what the most recent trends in special education are, and check out our list of the best online master of special education degree programs to find a school to gain these skills.

Two key words in the special education movement are inclusion and collaboration–working within the system and working with the children, families and administration. Prior to the IDEA–the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (what the EHA became after a revision in 1990), children were excluded from public schools as a regular practice. In a shocking display of discrimination before this law, there was the case of Beattie vs. Board of Education (1919) in which the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled that a young boy with cerebral palsy was not allowed to go to public school because he drooled and this disgusted the other children and teachers. Now, children are included in public schools and their teachers work as part of a team with the parents to make sure the child is getting the education and education delivery that he or she needs. Integration in classrooms is also important–gone are the days of sequestering differently-abled children in classrooms away from other children all day. Depending on the child’s abilities, spending time each day in both a classroom with their active peers and in a classroom geared towards their specific learning plan makes for a much more comprehensive and normalized experience.

Also important is the use of technology. As is true in general, technology in the classroom is increasing as our world becomes more immersed in technological practices, and this is no different in the field of special education. Assistive technology ranges from the simple, as in using a tablet device rather than a traditional book to help students read, to the more interactive, such as a computer that responds to movement or has special software that can anticipate a child’s next tap on the keyboard. These practices and assistive elements all serve to bring to students with special needs what was so lacking for much of the 20th century–the chance for a normal, appropriate, free and supportive public education. We’ve come a long way in meeting the special needs of these children, and chance are we will continue to find new and even more inclusive and constructive ways of helping them reach their full potential.

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50 Best Online Masters in Special Education

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When picturing a special education teacher, images of a calm and competent educator working diligently with children and young adults with special needs to help them learn skills and gain knowledge come to mind–but that wasn’t always the case. Until fairly recently, young people with disabilities were not allowed to attend public school on a consistent basis. Many were institutionalized, and derogatory and discriminatory clinical terms such as “moron,” “imbecile,” and “idiot” were actually used freely by psychologists and others to denote their intellectual abilities. Thank goodness those insensitive and prejudiced ways of working with differently-abled young students are not the norm today, and new, more effective and inclusive ways of teaching children with special needs are being taught  to future educators.

There were dedicated schools for children with disabilities, such as the 1817 Connecticut Asylum for the Education and Instruction of Deaf and Dumb Persons, which opened due to the persistence of the parents of children who has special needs. Most children were excluded from public schools simply because of their intellectual or physical disability–such as a young man with cerebral palsy who was not allowed to attend school in Wisconsin in the early 20th century because the teachers and other students didn’t like having him there, as they claimed he drooled and “produced a nauseating and depressing effect” on the classroom atmosphere (Beattie vs. Board of Education 1919). It is estimated that by the 1970s, only about 50% of the 8 million children with disabilities were being educated in the American public school system.

In 1975, a revolutionary law was passed: the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Originally known as the Education for All Handicapped Children Act (Public Law 94-142), this law guaranteed, among other things, “a free appropriate public education which emphasizes special education and related services designed to meet their unique needs.” Prior to this legislation, children with disabilities and their parents had little chance at a public education–some schools had partial programs, but nothing comprehensive was offered. Now, access to education is a civil right, and children with special needs not only have a law to protect their right to attend a public school free of charge, but also have dedicated teachers who gain specialized knowledge and skills to address their specific needs. To see some of the programs that special education teachers take advantage of to learn the most up-to-date research and appropriate methods of teaching these special young people, check our our list of the Best Online Master of Special Education Degree Programs, and join this growing moving of caring educators today!

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50 Best Online Masters in Special Education

50 Best Online Masters in Education- Leadership

50 Best Online Masters in Education

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The role a good educator plays in the development of a child with special needs is undeniable. Helping children and young people excel to the best of their abilities is the heart of what a special education teacher does. Many current educators are seeking an advanced degree in special education as a way to ensure they have the most recent research and teaching methods at their disposal. But because life can’t be put on hold, the online Master of Special Education degree is one of the most popular online master’s degree programs out there. Going to school online is an excellent way for current educators looking for a more specialized career in special education to continue working and get their degree at the same time. And for those who don’t have a prior history in the field of education but realize their call to work as special education instructors, many programs also offer degrees that help students achieve initial teacher licensure. For some of the most reputable and affordable programs, check out our list of the 50 Best Online Master of Special Education degree programs, and read on see what it takes to be a special education teacher.

A special education teacher must have a certain temperament. The need for certain key qualities, such as patience and a peaceful demeanor, are pretty evident. Special education teachers work with children with a variety of special needs. To a certain extent teachers are able to choose focus areas, specializations, or concentrations while pursuing their master’s degree that can help very specific special needs, but many teachers find they must be prepared to work with children who have very different needs and are at very different stages of development. Due to the wide range of children they encounter in their classrooms, adaptability and creativity are also a must for these teachers. Every child, regardless of needs, has a unique personality and may learn differently than their classmate. Educators who can take the same lesson plan and present it to a differently-abled child in the most appealing way possible to and stimulate his or her mind–that is the mark of a good special education teacher.

In addition, a teacher’s background education or the current pursuit of an online degree in special education is a necessity. There are always going to be new research findings in the field of education, so to be as cutting-edge as possible, an advanced degree in special education is the way to go. Teachers must gain initial certification or licensure before they can have their own classroom. Through student teaching while in school and supervised by knowledgeable mentors, students gain the practical skills they have been learning as theory in their classes. Both the methodology learned from books and the real-world, applicable skills gained in the field practicum experience are equally important, and these are the two key elements that make up a good online master’s degree program.

Related Rankings

50 Best Online Masters in Special Education

50 Best Online Masters in Education- Leadership

50 Best Online Masters in Education