Students With Disabilities
NYS Teacher Center Extension Certification
Two major changes have occurred in the past few years regarding Students With Disabilities Certifications and the extension of grade levels and subject areas. For complete details of changes, please click here
Currently, New York State Teacher Centers are the ONLY approved provider of either of the extensions listed below.
Students With Disabilities Grade Level Extensions:
In June of 2018, the NYS Regents approved a new certification pathway for NYS SWD educators interested in extending their existing grade level certification to address the growing shortage of certified SWD teachers in NYS.
SWD Subject Area Extensions:
Effective July 1, 2021, SWD teachers who teach one or more subject areas in a special class in grades 7-12, with some or no students under alternate assessment, must either:
1) be certified in each subject area that they teach, or
2) meet the teaching experience requirement for the statement of continued eligibility (SOCE) and have an active SOCE application in TEACH in each subject area that they teach.
In 2021 Teacher Centers were approved to offer the subject area extensions to meet SOCE requirements in ELA, Math and Biology.
For a complete listing of FREE professional learning opportunities supported by our Statewide Leadership grant including the SWD Extension courses, please check out our current catalog. There are also FREE courses being offered by Individual Teacher Centers which may include SE course. Those courses can be found here. Registration for all courses is on a first-come, first-served basis and is available via Frontline.
Each 45-hour CTLE grade level extension course below includes three areas of learning (subsets): Knowledge of Students, Instructional Strategies and Professional Practice. Each subset is made up of 15 hours, composed of five 3-hour sessions of learning specific to the subset area. Upon successful completion of the 45 hours and with the teaching experience identified below, teachers can apply for the certification extension with NYSED. To see if you are eligible to apply, please read the FACT sheet.
Early Childhood (Pre-K-K) Special Education CTLE Certification Extension Series: This series provides the requisite minimum of 45 hours of acceptable CTLE focused on early childhood education. Please note: eligible teachers must have a Student with Disabilities 1-6 NYS Certification and a minimum of 3 years teaching experience at 1st and/or 2nd grade levels.
7-8 Special Education CTLE Certification Extension Series: This series provides the requisite minimum of 45 hours of acceptable CTLE focused on middle level education. Please note: eligible teachers must have a Student with Disabilities 1-6 NYS Certification and a minimum of 3 years teaching experience at 5th and/or 6th grade levels.
10-12 Special Education CTLE Certification Extension Series: This series provides the requisite minimum of 45 hours of acceptable CTLE focused on middle level education. Please note: eligible teachers must have a Student with Disabilities 5-9 NYS Certification and a minimum of 3 years teaching experience at 8th and/or 9th grade levels.
Each 45-hour CTLE subject area extension meets the requirements of SOCE. For those who wish to apply for Special Education Limited Subject Certification extension through NYS, eligible special educators must be current holders of NYS Students with Disabilities Grades 5-9 or 7-12. 45 total hours of approved Special Education CTLE coursework is one part required to apply for certification extension. The first session of this course is dedicated to understanding the benefits and limitations of the extension.
ELA: Through this 45-hour program, teachers will deepen their knowledge of thinking, reading, writing, listening and speaking to understand English at the secondary level in order to foster lifelong literacy skills. Objectives for learning align with the competencies detailed in the NYS Content Specialty Test in English Language Arts (2014) and as further refined in the NYS Next Generation Standards for English Language Arts. Through self-assessment protocols and with the guidance of a content specialist and current practitioner, teachers will strengthen their knowledge of these skill domains through analysis of standards and models. They will identify individual skill challenges and engage in research-based learning strategies to address gaps. Teachers will practice thinking about, reading, and listening to complex texts from multiple and diverse perspectives while demonstrating proficiency in writing and speaking effectively for a variety of purposes.
Math: Teachers will deepen their knowledge and skill in Secondary Mathematical Content and Practices. Objectives for learning align with the competencies detailed in the NYS Content Specialty Test in Mathematics (2018). Through self-assessment protocols and with the guidance of a content specialist and current practitioner, teachers will strengthen their knowledge of mathematical standards. They will identify individual skill challenges and engage in research-based learning strategies to address gaps. Teachers will practice applying content that is centered in fundamental math practices to achieve proficiency in Mathematics.
Biology: Teachers will deepen their knowledge of Biology content and concepts. Objectives for learning align with the competencies detailed in the NYS Content Specialty Test in Biology (2018). Through self-assessment protocols and with the guidance of a content specialist and current practitioner, teachers will strengthen their knowledge of complex biology structures, systems and processes and sharpen their expertise in the mathematics and literacy skills used in the discipline of science. They will identify individual skill challenges and engage in research-based learning strategies to address gaps. Teachers will practice applications of content using elements of Next Generation Science Standards to achieve proficiency in Biology.