Course Descriptions

Core Seminars

EDD 9100 Leadership (3 Cr)
This course focuses on strategic leadership and its influence for organizational effectiveness which occurs in the context of modern society by initiating change and reacting to change. Participants will pursue theory and research focusing on the foundations for decision making and analysis of complex historical, cultural, sociological, philosophical, and theoretical perspectives in the leadership process. This results in the creation of action plans for restructuring organizations.

EDD 9100 Leadership Simulation(3 Cr)
Reinforcing EDD 9100, this co-requisite course applies problem based learning methodologies to allow students to practice the leadership skills being acquired in EDD 9100. Students will learn to apply problem solving and critical thinking skills in a real world-like, risk-free, and immersive environment. Through rich dialog and collegial collaboration, students will serve in a variety of key leadership roles within a city administration using a cutting-edge interactive simulation of a virtual city. Over a period of 12 weeks, you will be engaged in making vital decisions relating to the quality of life of Centerville.

EDD 9200 Trends and Issues (6 Cr)
This course provides a study of the significant current trends and issues that provide paradigms of functionalism, conflict, and symbolic interaction. Emphasis is placed on critical review of issues of recent trends and developments affecting the interpretation of the (a) social process: culture socialization, and change, (b) institutions: political, economic, educational and religious, and (c) social structures: social stratification, ethnic race, relations, and environment. Students examine issues through research findings and case study analysis/results provide knowledge through a learner-designated development action plan leading toward a vision and mission of achieving success.

EDD 9300 Methods of Inquiry (6 Cr)
The purpose of this core course is for doctoral students to demonstrate an understanding of the use of the scientific approach in educational and human service practices to ensure informed decision making grounded in empirical research. Research design and methods, and program evaluation will constitute the major focal points. A theory-to-practice model will be utilized with an emphasis on applied research. A diversity of research designs and methodologies as well as program evaluation models will be examined. Upon completion, students will be expected to demonstrate the ability to analyze, synthesize, and evaluate research in preparation for dissertation studies.

Research Electives

ARC 8912 Statistical Methods (3 Cr)
Statistical Methods is a course in applied statistics that will investigate concepts and methods in descriptive and inferential statistics. The course is designed to provide students with the statistical background for doctoral level research. The application of statistics will be emphasized. Areas of study will include probability, randomization, variables, normal distribution, t-distribution, chi-square distribution, F-distribution, confidence intervals, hypotheses testing, and correlation.

ARC 8913 Program Evaluation and Policy analysis ( 3 Cr )
This course will examine key concepts, methods, and approaches in the field of evaluation research. Students will be exposed to the theoretical and methodological diversity inherent in current evaluation practice across a number of substantive areas (e.g., social services, education, and business). The comprehensive range of activities involved in designing, implementing, and assessing the utility of social and educational programs will be a primary focus of the course.

ARC 8914 Measurement, Testing, and Assessment (3 Cr)
The purpose of the Measurement, Testing, and Assessment course is to provide doctoral students with the knowledge and skills necessary to understand psychometric issues. The course emphasizes the relationship between research and practice. It also provides a theoretical and practical basis for choosing and using the wide range of test and measurement data available to applied researchers. The course focuses on the uses of different tests in a variety of settings and is appropriate for applied researchers and practitioners.

ARC 8915 Survey Research (3 Cr)
The Survey Research course is designed to provide doctoral students with an overview of survey research methods. Topics in the course will include survey design, implementation, sampling, data collection, follow-up, analyses, and ethics. Students will design a pilot survey in preparation for their dissertation research.

ARC 8916 Qualitative Research (3 Cr)
The purpose of the Qualitative Research course is to introduce doctoral students to the principles of research methods. The course content includes in-depth and formal interviewing techniques, principles of field observation, content analysis, literature reviews, historical analysis, focus groups, questionnaire design, and philosophical inquiry into qualitative research perspectives. Major emphasis in the course is placed upon learning how to integrate qualitative methods as appropriate.

ARC 8917 Advanced Program Evaluation (3 Cr)
This course is intended to provide students with an in-depth and comprehensive foundation in advanced program evaluation methods. Topics will include development and use of logic models, as well as the use of quasi-experimental and randomized designs in evaluation research. A wide range of data collection procedures, including conventional (e.g., systematic surveys) and non-conventional (e.g., trained observer ratings), will be highlighted. The course will introduce a range of strategies for analysis of evaluation data that will facilitate the use of statistical procedures in evaluation research, address qualitative approaches to analysis of evaluation data and will provide guidance on the application of cost-effectiveness and cost-benefit techniques in program evaluation.

ARC 8918 Advanced Statistical Methods (3 Cr)
This course is designed to build on material reviewed in the Statistical Methods course and is developed to acquaint students with advanced statistical procedures. Areas that will be covered will include factorial analysis of variance (ANOVA), univariate ANOVA post hoc tests, analysis of covariance (ANCOVA), repeated measures analysis, multiple regression, and power analysis. In addition, the course will encompass a review of select multivariate statistical techniques. This course will emphasize the application of these statistical procedures to real world challenges that students may encounter in their research or work setting.

ARC 8919 Single Subject Research (3 Cr)
This course covers basic concepts and methods employed in single subject research. Participants will learn about single subject research designs including the case study, AB and its variations, changing criterion, multiple baseline, and alternating treatment designs. Important factors in designing and critically reviewing single subject research will be presented, along with options for analyzing data from single subject research studies. Ethical issues in single subject research will also be reviewed.

ARC 8920 Mixed Methods (3 Cr)
This course is designed to provide students with an understanding of mixed methods approaches to research studies. Appropriate strategies for incorporating both quantitative and qualitative paradigms will be explored. Specific issues, challenges, and considerations encountered in using mixed methodologies will be addressed in detail. The conflict between positivism and constructivism will be investigated, as will various examples of mixed model designs applicable to education and human services.

Concentration

EDD 7042 Advanced Applications in Technology in Communication Sciences and Disorders (3 Cr)
This course presents advanced applications in the use of computer hardware and software in communication sciences and disorders. Doctoral candidates will receive hands-on experience in the use, and application of software for distance learning technologies and for management of clients and for business issues. Doctoral candidates will explore the impact of emerging technology and instrumentation in their professional arenas.

EDD 8010 Curriculum and Program Development (3 Cr)
This course will provide an understanding of how curriculum is developed and implemented based on the research of learned bodies, issues in our society, and work place needs. The course will review what knowledge is and who decides what knowledge is important within each curricula area. The students will analyze various conceptions of curriculum standards, reform movements in education, principles of curriculum planning, past and present curriculum trends, and the interaction of curriculum with instruction generalized across settings. Foundations of curriculum and the steps for developing curricula will be emphasized.

EDD 8401 Special Education Law and Policy (3 Cr)
This course focuses on laws and policies that apply to the education of students with disabilities. The legal system, constitutional and statutory provisions of federal and state law, and the judicial decisions relating to the education of students with disabilities are reviewed. Students will examine the foundational concepts of equal protection, procedural and substantive due process in general and as they relate to special education specifically. Students will examine IDEA legislation and its six principles, The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504) and the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). In addition, students will examine similar principles in state legislation, with particular emphasis on school practices in special education.

EDD 8402 Families, the Law, and Exceptionalities (3 Cr)
This course focuses on laws and policies that apply to individuals with disabilities across the lifespan. We will look at the various models that inform our perceptions of individuals with disabilities and the relevance of said models on policy and service delivery. We will also look at disability policy and the core principles that comprise that policy. We will then explore various disability laws, particularly the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act), and the case law interpreting such laws, and explore how such laws and cases support or fail to support the core principles of disability policy. We will then develop guideposts for analyzing disability policy. Finally, we will look at Self-determination and Self-advocacy and the impact these movements have had and are continuing to have on disability policy and the delivery of services to the disabled.

EDD 8403 Conferencing with Parents and Families of Individuals with Disabilities (3 Cr)
The purpose of this course is to provide students with the theoretical foundations and applied skills requisite for fostering collaborative partnerships with and among families, individuals with disabilities, professionals, and other stakeholders that will lead to outcomes of individual and mutual empowerment. Students will engage in study, simulations, and actual practice across a variety of conference formats and counseling situations.

EDD 8404 Organization and Administration of Special Education Programs (3 Cr)
This course will address the organization, administration, and supervision of special education programs provided by schools, agencies, and other support services. Particular emphasis will be placed on the development, implementation, and evaluation of effective program designs, and will include the analysis of leadership practices and personnel performance as factors in program efficacy. The impact of recent and proposed legislation, including regulatory policies and procedures, on program development and implementation will be addressed.

EDD 8405 Collaboration and Consultation (3 Cr)
This course is designed to equip students with the knowledge and skills required to conduct effective collaboration and consultation activities among professionals from school agencies, parents and families, and individuals with disabilities. General theories and methods and techniques for collaborative problem solving, program planning, and shared decision-making will be examined through course materials and related experiential activities. Additionally, this course is designed to teach students the theory and practice of collaborative consultation, increase pedagogical knowledge, and to prepare students to become reflective decision makers with the skills to facilitate and employ collaborative consultation in work and life settings. The instructor acts primarily as a facilitator providing discussion and related materials on the topic of collaborative consultation; otherwise, the course is student driven. The course is designed so that every aspect is collaborative, including selecting the activities in which to engage collaboratively with peers.

EDD 8406 Transition, Career Developmnet and Independent Living (3 Cr)
The course will focus on the strategies and methodologies professionals need to devise and implement intervention plans that assist individuals with disabilities and their families in planning for post-secondary life. Students will examine the practices and procedures fundamental to successful transition, as well as the challenges, issues, and trends pertaining to the development of independent living, occupational and vocational abilities, and interpersonal skills.

EDD 8407 Assessment and Evaluation of Special Needs: Cognitive Domains (3 Cr)
This course will emphasize acquisition of the skills and knowledge needed to analyze and interpret measures of cognitive development and the abilities professionals need to make informed decisions regarding special education services and placements for individuals with disabilities. The selection, administration, and uses of cognitive assessment instruments will be discussed, with an emphasis on the use of both quantitative and qualitative data for the purposes of making referral, placement, and programmatic decisions regarding service delivery for individuals with disabilities. Practice in the administration, scoring, and interpretation of various clinical and educational instruments will be provided.

EDD 8408 Assessment and Evaluation of Special Needs: Behavioral and Clinical Domains (3 Cr)
This course will emphasize acquisition of the skills and knowledge needed to analyze and interpret measures of behavioral/emotional development, and the abilities professional need to make informed decisions regarding special education services and placements for individuals with disabilities. The selection, administration, and uses of behavioral and clinical assessment instruments will be discussed, with an emphasis on the use of both quantitative and qualitative data for the purposes of making referral, placements, and programmatic decisions regarding service delivery for individuals with disabilities. Practice in the administration, scoring, and interpretation of various clinical and behavioral instruments will be provided.

EDD 8409 Multicultural Issues in Special Education (3 Cr)
In this course students will examine relationships among race, gender, culture, social class, and disability as well as fundamental information on individual, group, and societal responses to disability. Anthropological, social, and psychological theories about origins of cultural diversity will also be discussed. At no time in history has there been greater diversity in our population. Students entering the public, parochial, and private school system bring a wider array of culture, ethnicity, language, and ability than ever before. Preparing teachers to work with this diversity, creating curricula to adequately represent this profile, and impacting the social, political, economic, and ideological conditions for a truly multicultural education demands a transformation of policy and practice at many levels. Students with special needs who bring non-majority backgrounds to school often face a double whammy—the very ethnic and/or language differences these students exhibit can both serve to mask or exacerbate underlying learning, social, and/or behavioral challenges. Thousands of students are misidentified, while thousands more are denied special education services.

EDD 8411 Issues in Special Education Administration (3 Cr)
This course is designed for those who are responsible for planning, developing, and implementing educational programs for students with disabilities. It will provide educators with the legal and ethical bases for providing services to children with disabilities, and with instructional and organizational methods to help students succeed in their schools.

EDD 8124 Theories of Learning (3 Cr)
An introductory course providing skills for the analysis and design of educational and instructional systems. Major topics include the critical elements in the structure of distance education delivery systems, the analysis of educational systems and instructional systems, the relationship of subsystems within an educational system, the design of an educational system, the design of instructional systems, and the evaluation and continuous improvement of a system.

Applied Dissertation

ARC 8966 Applied Dissertation Seminar 1: Concept Paper (2 Cr)
The content of applied dissertation seminar 1 focuses on formulating research questions and writing the concept paper. The committee chair and member roles are discussed as well as the roles and responsibilities of the Applied Research Office faculty and staff. This seminar will culminate in the completion of the first corresponding benchmark, the concept paper. Credit for this seminar will be assigned following approval of the concept paper.

ARC 8967 Applied Dissertation Seminar 2: Proposal (5 Cr)
The content of applied dissertation seminar 2 emphasizes the formulation and writing of the dissertation proposal and the process for IRB approval. Methodology and content for each of the proposal chapters are defined, including a thorough discussion of the roles of the literature review to support or refute the dissertation topic. This seminar focusing on scientific inquiry will culminate in the completion of the second corresponding benchmark, the applied dissertation proposal. Credit for this seminar will be assigned following approval of the proposal.

ARC 8968 Applied Dissertation Seminar 3: Report (5 Cr)
Applied dissertation seminar 3 involves data collection/implementation, the applied dissertation (final report) and the final approval process. Content and format issues, as well as recommendations for further research, are highlighted. Dissemination of the dissertation and possible outlets for publication are covered. This seminar will culminate in the completion of the third corresponding benchmark, the applied dissertation (final report). Credits for this seminar will be assigned following approval of the applied dissertation (final report).