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Prepare to empower all learners with an online master of education (M Ed) in special education with an emphasis in early childhood special education from the University of Missouri (Mizzou).
This program illustrates the importance of evidence-based assessments, interventions and instruction to serve children of all abilities from infancy into elementary school. Whether to advance or recharge your career, explore techniques for improving learning outcomes, managing behavior and developing instructional plans based on a student’s diagnosis.
About the online M Ed in early childhood special education
As an educator, you strive to connect with all students. Yet, you acknowledge that your classroom — and the student body overall — isn’t uniform. In response, you’re expected to identify a student’s strengths, understand where they may be struggling and provide the necessary supports to help them thrive academically and socially. Added to this, interventions and special education instruction increasingly take cultural factors and family involvement into account.
This online master’s in early childhood special education equips you to foster success and a love of learning among a school’s or program’s youngest pupils. In growing your knowledge of evidence-based instruction and intervention methods, this program:
- Helps you better support all early learners, including those with developmental disabilities, assigned to gifted programming and at risk for school failure
- Prepares you to effectively collaborate with students’ families and conduct interventions in a culturally consistent manner
- Expands your perspective of special education’s historical, cultural and legal factors
- Stresses the importance of translating research into practice for designing, implementing and evaluating instructional and intervention programs
- Introduces you to the services and supports available to students and families
- Highlights best practices for assisting individuals and groups in school, family and community contexts
Quick facts
Official name
Master of Education in Special Education with an emphasis in Early Childhood Special EducationCampus
Program type
Master's degreeAcademic home
College of Education & Human Development | Department of Special EducationDelivery mode
100% onlineAccreditation
Higher Learning CommissionCredit hours
30Estimated cost
$16,854.00*This cost is for illustrative purposes only. Your hours and costs will differ, depending on your transfer hours, your course choices and your academic progress. See more about tuition and financial aid.
Career prospects
Continue to connect with and encourage your students — from those with mild or moderate disabilities to those requiring behavioral interventions to gifted pupils interested in enrichment opportunities. This online master’s in early childhood special education upgrades your foundational knowledge to keep you competitive as a preschool, kindergarten and elementary or special education instructor — all expected to keep steady demand over the next decade, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Consider this credential to enhance or move up in your career as an:
- Child-care center worker
- Early childhood practitioner
- Early interventionist
- Head Start teacher
- School counselor
- Special education teacher
Program structure
The online M Ed in early childhood special education requires 30 credit hours, including a 24-credit-hour core sequence and six credit hours of electives.
Earn your degree entirely online, taking courses on a semester schedule. No campus visits are required. Students typically take one or two classes each semester and finish in two years.
Core courses
Build your knowledge base in early childhood and special education through courses covering:
- Special education research methods and their applications
- ABA and theories of behavior management
- Developing evidence-based interventions
- Assessing, diagnosing and developing instructional plans for special needs students
- Early childhood instructional methods
- Parental involvement techniques, including for homeschooling
- Language and literacy development for children up to age 8
Review all requirements for the online M Ed in early childhood special education.
Delivery
100% onlineCalendar system
Semester-basedTypical program length
2 yearsTypical course load
1 or 2 classes each semesterAccreditation
The University of Missouri is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission, one of six regional institutional accreditors in the United States.