Arizona Special Education Certification & Requirements

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Special Education in Arizona

Arizona has identified 12 percent of its student population as having special needs, which is one percentage point lower than the national average, according to Ed.gov’s Arizona State Snapshot. This state also has more restrictive certification requirements than the neighboring state of California. These two factors make finding a special education career in Arizona slightly more challenging for would-be and new teachers.

Licensure Requirements

For Undergraduates

In Arizona, students must earn a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution before pursuing an initial teaching certificate. Students have the option of completing a specialized teacher education program in their desired area of emphasis or completing 45 semester hours of education courses, including 21 hours in special education and eight hours of practicum.

College Graduates

Graduates who do not already hold a general teaching credential must enroll in a post-bachelor’s program that provides overall education coursework as well as specialized classes in special education. Students who already have a teaching credential can pursue a program that endorses them to teach in a special education classroom. Students can also choose to specialize in a particular area or grade level in both of these certification programs.

Certification Type

The Arizona Department of Education grants certificates in several types of special education, including Cross-Categorical Special Education (K-12), Early Childhood Special Education (birth to age 5), Hearing Impaired Special Education (birth through grade 12), Severely and Profoundly Disabled Special Education (K-12) and Visually Impaired Special Education (birth through grade 12). In addition, the state grants several specialized certificates in special education; they include Emotional Disability Special Education (K-12), Learning Disability Special Education (K-12), Mental Retardation Special Education (K-12) and Orthopedic Impairments or Other Health Impairments Special Education (K-12).

Reciprocity

Arizona selectively grants candidates who are certified to teach in another state a one-year Provisional Teaching certificate.The applicant must possess a bachelor’s degree and a comparable out-of-state teaching certificate from an accredited institution. See the most current requirements at http://www.azed.gov/educator-certification/files/2011/09/requirements-for-reciprocal-provisional-teaching-certificate.pdf.

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Special Education Teaching Degrees

There are nine schools in Arizona that offer special education teaching programs. One of the larger schools is the Tempe campus of Arizona State University. Its Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College offers a program that awards a master’s degree in education while also providing cross-categorical certification in special education for grades K-12. This designation covers intellectual disabilities, mild learning, emotional, behavioral and orthopedic disabilities and other health impairments. Students in the Educational Specialties Department at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff can earn a master’s degree in special education that results in certification or one of two graduate certificates in autism spectrum disorders or in culturally and linguistically diverse special education. Students can also opt for a master’s degree in special education without seeking certification or pursue a Bachelor of Education in elementary and special education. Maricopa Community Colleges offers an Associate in Arts in Elementary Education (AAEE) that prepares an undergraduate to transfer to an Arizona public university to major in education. Pima Community College offers a special education K-12 certification post-degree certificate. The program accepts students without teaching certificates, as well as those who possess elementary, secondary or special education teacher certification. Required courses vary depending upon current certification status.

For information on master’s in special education programs in Arizona, click here.

Alternatives to Certification

The ADE’s Alternative Pathways to Teacher Certification webpage notes that a Teaching Intern certificate is available for individuals who wish to work in a state public or charter school. After demonstrating subject knowledge by taking one of several exams, a candidate can teach full-time while pursuing full certification. Several Arizona universities participate in preparing teaching interns to work in the classroom and to eventually fulfill the requirements of a special education teaching credential.

Special Education Jobs

Public schools

Search for available teaching jobs in Arizona public and charter schools, apply online and learn about job fairs at the Arizona Education Employment Board website. This organization also maintains a Teach in Arizona Facebook page that posts updates of job openings. The school districts in Arizona that have the highest student enrollment are more likely to provide employment opportunities for special education teachers. These districts include Mesa USD, Tucson USD, Paradise Valley USD, Peoria USD, Gilbert USD, Deer Valley USD and Scottsdale USD.

Private schools

The Arizona Centers for Comprehensive Education and Life Skills runs several special education programs, including two day programs located in Phoenix and Tempe. ACCEL also runs satellite classroom programs on Arizona school district campuses.
The Arizona Special Education Schools page on Private Schools Review summarizes schools by location, number of students and grade levels. The larger programs include The ACES in Peoria, ACCEL in Phoenix, New Way Academy in Scottsdale and Academic Behavioral Alternatives and The ACES-East, both in Tempe.

Other programs

The Arizona branch of Connections Academy provides online instruction for special education students. Applicants must have valid special education teaching credentials.

Professional Development

The ADE’s Arizona State Board Approved Programs webpage summarizes the programs and trainings that qualify as professional development in Arizona public and charter schools. This organization’s Professional Learning and Sustainability (PLS) Unit offers professional development sessions, workshops and resources for special education personnel.
Educational Training Specialists provides coaching, training, mentoring, consulting and staff development for Arizona teachers, with an emphasis on Sheltered English Immersion.

Professional Groups for Special Education Teachers in Arizona

The Arizona Education Association (AEA), the state teachers’ union, provides information about issues and advocates for Arizona public schools, seeking to improve the quality of public education and the professional lives of teachers and school staff members. Membership in AEA is voluntary; over 30,000 educators are part of this organization, making it the largest professional organization in the state.
Special education professionals are among the individuals who can serve on the Special Education Advisory Panel (SEAP), a statewide panel that provides special education policy guidance in Arizona.

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Arizona Special Education Bloggers

SPED Teacher L84 Baseball: Book reviews, special education teaching tips, curriculum ideas and daily life are the topics of this personal blog by Arizona special education teacher Jenn Adams.
Resource Room Rules: Twenty years of special education teaching experience inform this blog about life in a K-5 resource room.