Special Education for Education

The study is primarily focused on the creation of professional, educational, psychological, communication and other competences as a prerequisite for the follow-up master study of Special Education for Primary or Secondary Schools (minor or major).

The program is implemented in the forms of full time attendance and combined studies. It is internally divided into the combination of six study fields (compulsory elective courses): Intellectual Disability combined with Speech Therapy, Hearing Impairment, Physical Disability, Visual Impairment, and Problem Behaviour. These fields create the basis for the following master studies.

The knowledge, skills and attitudes gained during the studies are the basis for competencies needed for the profession of a teacher assistant in mainstream schools for educational and supportive work (the study program reflects the current requirements of the Act No. 563/2004 Coll., On Teaching Staff and its Amendment No. 379/2015 Coll.). These competences also give full qualification for working as an instructor in leisure centres and special facilities dealing with the issues of special education.

The structure and content of the lectures, seminars and diagnostic and intervention practice within this bachelor study program Special Education Focused on the Education reflects the current requirements of the Act No. 563/2004 Coll., On Teaching Staff and its Amendment No. 379/2015 Coll.

This study program with the title Special Education Focused on the Education is one of the study programs enabling to become a pedagogical staff, which is included in the fields of education as non-teaching pedagogy, teaching and psychology in the Government Order no. 275/2016 Coll., On the Fields of Study in Higher Education.

Through studying for the Bachelor’s degree graduates gain the necessary competences that allow them to critically apply the use of their pedagogical and psychological knowledge in practice as a teaching assistant or other educational worker (e.g. free-time instructor in youth centres or after-school clubs, in various civic associations engaged in pedagogical activities) in an appropriate manner.

The degree develops students’ analytical and comparative skills, which enable them to understand the diverse pedagogical reality and to use subject-specific, pedagogical, and psychological publications in their work for planning, implementing and reflecting on educational activities. They develop communication skills important for communication and collaboration with pupils/clients, colleagues in the workplace, with parents of pupils/clients and with practitioners. An important benefit of the degree is the development of self-reflective skills that provide space for the development of attitudes towards one another, to educated individuals and to the profession: perception of the responsibility of the teaching profession, the acceptance of the moral obligations of a helping profession and its ethics.

The studies emphasise the principle of interdisciplinarity (interconnection of some and psychological subjects); the principle of sequence and gradation of themes and courses, from the more general to the more specific. The concept is also characterized by the interdependence of theory and practice. An important part of the concept is the reflective teaching practice. The principles of reflection on teaching practice and self-reflection are related both to practice and to other experience-oriented subjects. An important part of the concept is also the promotion of inclusion, which is perceived as a cross-curricular theme (also supported by a separate course).

After successfully completing his/her studies the graduate is able to:

• use acively the acquired general and professional knowledge and skills of special education, special education diagnostics and partial areas of medical disciplines when working with pupils with special educational needs (SEN)
• master auxiliary educational, upbringing and communication knowledge and skills and practically apply them in interaction with pupils with special educational needs
• to apply approaches towards education and training of children and pupils with special educational needs (SEN) in their teaching
• to work with children/pupils with special educational needs (SEN) at the level of a teacher assistant
• to design and process a case study of a pupil with SEN, reflect on practice and own acquired experience and skills
• to think critically about the use of educational and psychological knowledge in the practice of a teaching assistant or other pedagogical worker, read common educational and psychological texts for teachers and creatively understand them
• to get acquainted with the system of counseling services - to have an overview of the process of providing counseling services and related documentation from the point of view of a teaching assistant
• describe and analyse an educational situation using specialised terminology and rules of effective pedagogical communication and to propose a change; use their knowledge and skills in communication with pupils, parents and teachers in the school co
• cooperate with various teachers at school and under their leadership to plan, implement and reflect on the sequence of teaching and activities in relation to the appropriate school curriculum;
• use self-reflective skills to reflect on their actions: for example, to better justify and evaluate their arguments, to give voice to their emotions and their connection to some behaviour or to critically review their own attitudes towards education
• use basic methods and tools of special pedagogical diagnostics in teaching to support differentiation and individualization in teaching, thus gaining data which is available for the support of an individual pupil/client.
• formulate his own concept of education, which he would like to apply in his future profession with support in arguments from theory and practice
• explain the basic principles of inclusive and special education; to reflect on their attitude towards diversity and its influence on their own teaching;

The employment of the graduates from the bachelor's study program Special Education Focused on the Education is assumed in the positions of the assistants in education, they are here in a personal contact with children, pupils with disabilities. The graduate is also ready for the communication and cooperation with parents of children and pupils, and teachers from special and regular schools.

Readiness for the Profession and the Professional Adaptability to the Conditions and Requirements of the Practice - the students should gaining the competences for the education of children/pupils with special educational needs in accordance with the Act No. 563/2004 Coll., On Teaching Staff and its Amendment No. 379/2015 Coll.

Possible Professions and Institutions after Studies - the employment of the graduates from this study program is assumed in the positions of the teacher assistants in schools for pupils with special educational needs, as teachers in kindergartens, tutors in special schools and school facilities for pupils wit SEN and in state administration, corporate management etc.

• Teacher´s assistant

The obligatory part of the bachelor's study program Special Education Focused on the Education (major) is a teaching practice for 10 credits.

The system of compulsory teaching practice is aimed at developing the students’ professional competences and preparing them for the full-fledged role of a teaching assistant. The aim of the teaching assistant practice is to acquire the necessary skills for individual work with a pupil outside the process of teaching (tutoring at school in the pupils’ homes) and also when working with a teacher during lessons.

The teaching practice consists of a coherent system of consecutive subjects, which are taken from the third to the fifth semester of the degree. These are the subjects Teaching assistant practice - tutoring 1, Teaching assistant practice - tutoring 2, consisting of individual tutoring (60 hours), which consist in tutoring of individuals or the Teaching assistant practice - Teaching assistant 1 (60 hours) and Teaching assistant practice - teaching assistant 2 (60 hours). This practice takes place directly in the classroom environment under the guidance of a cooperating teacher. According to the interest of students, a combination of the above variants is also possible. In the fifth semester, assistant practice is compulsory for all - Teacher's Assistant 3 (60 hours). Overall, there are 180 hours of teaching practice. In the third and fourth semesters, the teaching practice is followed by the subjects self-experiential preparation for the profession 1 and self- experiential preparation for the profession 2, in which the students of the teaching assistant practice reflect (24 hours). Their aim is to enable students to have real experience with selected themes regarding personal and professional development through experiential learning with an emphasis on reflection; to encourage students to gradually take responsibility for their own learning process (self-directed learning); to enable students to become aware of and, if necessary, to revise their attitudes towards their future profession.

The system of teaching practice is regularly evaluated both through closed and open questions, both by students and the mentor teachers. The reflective seminars are also evaluated.

The teaching practice is carried out under the auspices of the Department of Pedagogy and the Department of Social Pedagogy in faculty schools and other facilities.

Students must be aware of the current issues in the field of special education, be able to define the topic of their theses (research) clearly, describe the initial state of knowledge and propose adequate methods of solution, clearly and logically create the title of the thesis.

The student is able to work with the adequate primary and secondary study sources, to quote them according to the valid standards and in accordance with the ethics of scientific work. He/she is able to lead discussions and argue with the authors, to draw their own conclusions and recommendations.

The student can design his/her own quantitative or qualitative research, including a clear definition of objectives and the choice of adequate research methods in relation to the nature of the phenomenon under investigation, work with the appropriate method, including the ability to analyze quantitative and qualitative data and interpret and draw conclusions in an appropriate way.

The student will demonstrate the stylistic competencies by the creation of his/her own text. The student is able to create the scientific work, maintain the logical line of the work composition without grammatical errors.

The student will demonstrate the ability to ask questions and solve problems in an unconventional way, to formulate new ideas and conclusions of the thesis that would bring at least partially new knowledge about the phenomenon being studied or enrich the (new) methodological (in the area of research) or methodical procedures (in the field of education), in relation to clearly defined and selected target groups (elementary school pupils, secondary school students, groups with special educational needs, etc.).

The subject standards of final theses implemented at KSIP PED MUNI are prepared in accordance with the Dean's Instruction No. 1/2015 On the implementation of final theses (bachelor's, diploma, rigorous and lifelong final theses).

The graduate of the bachelor's study program Special Education Focused on the Education may (after fulfilling the entrance conditions) continue his/her studies in the master's study program Special Education for Teachers of Primary and Secondary Schools or in other fields related to this study program.