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Location: 101 Speech, Hearing and Deaf Ed Center, (409) 880-8170

Chair: Gabriel A. (Tony) Martin, Ed.D.

The Department of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education (DSDE) supports instruction, research, and service, the primary mission areas of ÐßÐßÊÓƵ University, through the B.A., M.S. and Ed.D. degree programs offered. The department offers a Bachelor of Arts degree in American Sign Language (ASL) for students interested in pursuing work in the teaching of ASL in EC-12 programs. The undergraduate major is also suitable for those interested in ASL interpreting and as a foundation program for a graduate specialization, state license, and/or national certification within the professional field of deaf education. Completion of the master’s degree is strongly advised by our department faculty in deaf education. The graduate program of study in Deaf studies and Deaf education (M.S.) is accredited by the Council on Education of the Deaf (CED).

The Bachelor of Arts degree in American Sign Language (BA-ASL) emphasizes excellent teaching in American Sign Language. This degree enables the student to acquire competence in expressive and receptive skills and familiarity with the literature and culture of the deaf community. While this degree is targeted toward a teaching certificate, sign language interpreters will find this degree supportive of their professional goals.

Teacher certification plans are offered in conjunction with the major study of ASL and the M.S. degree program in Deaf studies and Deaf education. Details concerning requirements for teacher certification and professional education course requirements should be obtained from an undergraduate advisor in ASL, the graduate advisors in Deaf studies and Deaf education, and/or from the College of Education and Human Development section of the catalog.

A new student initiating study at ÐßÐßÊÓƵ University must meet all admission requirements of the university. Transfer students or students who wish to enter the Department of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education (DSDE) programs by change of major must meet admission requirements and have a minimum grade point average of 2.50 or better. Grades of “D” are not acceptable as course completion for required classes in departmental majors, nor are they acceptable as course completion for classes to be used as professional electives by student majors within the department.

ÐßÐßÊÓƵs of Study

All majors in this department must complete the basic General Education Core Curriculum requirements of ÐßÐßÊÓƵ University for their academic foundation course work. Faculty advisors will provide direction to the student concerning departmental requirements within the Core Curriculum when course choices are available to meet the university’s Core Curriculum requirements. The Department of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education requires all transfer, freshmen-level, and senior-level students to see a faculty advisor within the department. Further, this department strongly encourages all students to seek academic advisement from the faculty for efficient matriculation through the undergraduate program. Advisors may be seen during the university posted time for each semester or by appointment. Descriptions of required courses are listed in the catalog.

Degrees Offered

Undergraduate

Bachelor of Arts in American Sign Language

Graduate

Master of Science in Deaf Education

Doctor of Education in Deaf Studies and Deaf Education

Bachelor of Arts in American Sign Language

The bachelor’s degree program in American Sign Language (ASL) prepares students for teaching in schools offering ASL for “foreign language” credit in an EC-12 program. Each student must complete a REQUIRED departmental core of courses. In addition, each student will complete pedagogy courses required for licensure.

All students must satisfy provisions of the Texas Success Initiative program, which are listed elsewhere in this catalog. College Readiness courses do not count in the GPA (except for determining full-time status and issues related to probation and suspension) and do not count toward graduation.

The degree of Bachelor of Arts in American Sign Language will be awarded upon completion of the following minimum degree requirements:

1. General Education Core Curriculum: 42 hours
   1. Social Science Requirement – PSYC 2301 (3 hours)
   2. Communication Requirement – DSDE 2371 (3 hours)
   3. Math Requirements – MATH 1314 and PSYC 2471 (6 hours)
2. Major Requirements: 45 hours
   DSDE 1372 (3 hours), 1373 (3 hours), 1374 (3 hours), 1375 (3 hours), 1376 (3 hours), 1377 (3 hours), 1378 (3 hours), 2371 (3 hours), 2372 (3 hours), 2377 (3 hours), 3301 (3 hours), 3307 (3 hours), 4308 (3 hours), 4309 (3 hours), 4310 (3 hours), 4311 (3 hours).
3. Other Requirements (27 hours)
   1. Courses required for teacher certification (can be used for professional electives) are: PEDG 2310 (3 hours), PEDG 3310 (3 hours), PEDG 3320 (3 hours), READ 3326 (3 hours), PEDG 3380 (3 hours), and PEDG 4340 (3 hours).
   2. Also required by this program is a three-hour practicum DSDE 4309 (3 hours) in American Sign Language and Student Teaching PEDG 4630 (6 hours). Students taking the teacher certification route need to add an additional course from the list of interpreting courses to meet minimum graduation hour requirements. Students are required to earn a B or higher in all education courses and a C or higher in all major courses.
   3. Also required by this program is a three-hour practicum in interpreting DSDE 4309 (3 hours) and Student Internship DSDE 4319 (3 hours). Students are required to earn a C or higher in major courses and a B or higher in DSDE 4309 and DSDE 4319.
4. Minor - No minor required.

TOTAL number of required hours: 120

Graduate ÐßÐßÊÓƵ

The Department of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education offers training and Master of Science degrees in Deaf Studies and Deaf Education and a Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) degree in Deaf Studies and Deaf Education.

Master of Science Degree in Deaf Education

The ÐßÐßÊÓƵ University deaf education program is certified by the national Council on Education of the Deaf (CED), and graduates are eligible for professional certification through that accrediting agency. In addition, a graduate may apply for state license as a teacher of deaf children. The program welcomes deaf graduate students. The minimum number of 36 hours for the Master of Science degree is required; however, additional courses may be required for certification as per candidate specialization. ÐßÐßÊÓƵ graduates are expected to be skilled in sign language and must complete a minimum of 450 hours of supervised practicum/internship with deaf education.

The program requirements for the major and the areas of specialization are listed below.

Required DSDE courses: (Minimum number of hours–39) 5310, 5311, 5313, 5318, 5319, 5320, 5321, 5322, 5326, 5328, and 5329. Also required is a minimum of two clinical practicum courses, 5309 for elementary student experience and 5309 for secondary student experience. Additional courses may be needed for certification as per candidate specialization.

Required Pedagogy (PEDG) courses: 5330, 5344, 5345, 5350, and 5387. Also required is Deaf Education Internship (student teaching in a classroom with deaf children) PEDG 5383.

For an area of specialization required by NCLB legislation for being certified as “Highly Qualified,” the following steps have been developed to assist students in the process.

Step 1: Requested “area” should be addressed with the deaf education faculty (requires that the student present a transcript for a review of the total courses that have been taken under the requested “area.”

Step 2: After approval from faculty, the student may take the Content Area Proficiency (diagnostic) test at ÐßÐßÊÓƵ (currently a cost of $10).

Step 3: Graduate faculty will create a deficiency plan.

Step 4: Take specific courses, depending on your area of specialization.

As a note, some students request to transfer courses or have courses waived for various reasons. For all course transfers, waivers, or substitutions, university policy applies. A written request must be made to the graduate faculty committee (departmental) prior to the G-3 Degree Candidacy form. At no time can waivers or substitution of courses result in students accumulating less than a minimum of 36 credit hours for the degree. Waivers, substitutions, and transfer courses are not automatically accepted. These courses must be reviewed and approved by the graduate faculty (departmental), department chair, and graduate dean. For waivers, transfers, and substitutions of pedagogy courses, the student must make the request with the Pedagogy Department in the College of Education and Human Development.

Admission to the Master's Degree ÐßÐßÊÓƵ

Applicants for admission to the master’s degree program in the Department of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education (DSDE), except for students who are deaf (see below), are ranked for admission based on the following criteria:

1. A formula established by the Graduate Council. The formula is calculated based on (GPA* x 100) + Verbal GRE + Quantitative GRE score. The formula score must be greater than or equal to 550.**
2. Evidence of American Sign Language competency
3. Relevance of the undergraduate training
4. Three letters of support
5. An essay including the applicant’s philosophy of education and professional goals. The essay will be used to identify writing ability required for successful completion of the DSDE graduate program
6. Admission interview with DSDE faculty

*Applicants who do not have a cumulative undergraduate GPA of 2.5 or above may be denied admission because of state certification requirements.  Such applicants may be given provisional acceptance as a pre-graduate or may be allowed to take post-baccalaureate course work to improve their GPA at the discretion of the DSDE admission committee.

** Deaf applicants who have a severe to profound hearing loss may choose to submit above average performance intelligence scores (preferably the performance scale of the WAIS-IV) in lieu of the GRE.  Acceptance and ranking of such applicants will be at the discretion of the DSDE admission committee, provided that all other criteria are satisfied.

Doctor of Education Degree in Deaf Studies/Education

ÐßÐßÊÓƵ University is one of only a few universities in the U.S. offering a doctoral degree in Deaf studies or Deaf education. ÐßÐßÊÓƵ is addressing a critical national and international shortage of doctoral-trained educators of the deaf. Graduates of the doctoral program take leadership roles in schools for the deaf or become teacher trainers in university settings. Both hearing and deaf applicants are accepted.

The ÐßÐßÊÓƵ University Doctor of Education in Deaf Studies and Deaf Education is a minimum 60 hours of course work and six hours of dissertation. The program courses are categorized as follows:

Required number of hours: Core – 30

6301, 6302, 6303, 6304, 6305, 6307, 6308, 6314, plus six hours from any of the following 6310, 6311, 6312, 6313*

* in some special circumstances, 6313 is used as a research course to satisfy Statistics/Research required hours. Must be approved by advisor and department chair.

Required number of hours: Statistics/Research – 9

6309, 6315, other approved Statistics course, or 6313 by approval

Required number of hours: Cognate – 21

21 hours of courses at the doctoral level that are approved by advisor/department chair prior to prelims being passed and by doctoral committee chair/department chair after prelims have been passed.

After passing prelims, the doctoral candidate may begin to take the dissertation course. Once the student begins taking this course, it must be taken each semester until passing the defense of the dissertation. If the dissertation defense occurs in Summer I session, the candidate will have to take dissertation in the Summer II session since commencement occurs in August (Summer II session).

Admission to the Doctoral Degree ÐßÐßÊÓƵ

Applicants for admission to the doctoral program in Deaf studies and Deaf education, except for students who are deaf (see below), are ranked for admission based on the following criteria:

1. A formula established by the Graduate Council. The formula is calculated based on (GPA x 100) + Verbal GRE + Quantitative GRE score. The total formula score must be greater than or equal to 610.*
2. Must have a master’s degree in deaf education or related field.
3. Evidence of sign language competency.
4. Must have completed a minimum of three years of professional experience with deaf or hearing-impaired children or adults.
5. Three letters of support.
6. An essay including the applicant’s philosophy of education and professional goals. The essay will be used to identify writing ability required for successful completion of the DSDE doctoral program.