New Master of Education course sequence to be introduced this summer
University of Houston-Victoria students who plan to take courses in the graduate special education program with an applied behavior analysis concentration will begin taking new courses this summer to help them prepare for a national exam to become a board certified behavior analyst.
The UHV School of Education, Health Professions & Human Development recently received approval from Applied Behavior Analysis International for the Master of Education in special education with an applied behavior analysis concentration’s verified course sequence for the fifth edition task list, a standard list of competencies from the national Behavior Analyst Certification Board, which establishes certification requirements. Classes under this sequence will be taught beginning this summer.
This spring semester is the last semester students will be admitted under the degree plan with the fourth edition task list, said Andria Young, a professor of special education and special education program coordinator.
“With a verified course sequence, students will have their coursework automatically accepted by the Behavior Analyst Certification Board when they apply to take their national exam,” Young said. “When programs have verified course sequences, students do not have to get their transcripts analyzed by the board to determine whether their coursework met the requirements.”
Without the board’s approval, students would need to go through a complicated process to prove their coursework met requirements. The concentration will have seven courses, including two new classes. One new course will focus on supervision and the other will go through the history of the foundational concepts of behavioral analysis.
“This new course sequence will have some more content in areas that we didn’t see as much before, such as the history of behavior therapy,” said Fred Litton, dean of the school. “This will help our students become more well-rounded professionals.”
The fourth edition classes are being phased out, Young said, and the Behavior Analyst Certification Board will cease testing under the fourth edition after December 2021.
For more information about the applied behavior analysis concentration, contact Young at younga@uhv.edu or go to www.uhv.edu/education/graduate-degrees/special-education/applied-behavior-analysis.
The University of Houston-Victoria, located in the heart of the Coastal Bend region since 1973 in Victoria, Texas, offers courses leading to more than 80 academic programs in the schools of Arts & Sciences; Business Administration; and Education, Health Professions & Human Development. UHV provides face-to-face classes at its Victoria campus, as well as an instructional site in Katy, Texas, and online classes that students can take from anywhere. UHV supports the American Association of State Colleges and Universities Opportunities for All initiative to increase awareness about state colleges and universities and the important role they have in providing a high-quality and accessible education to an increasingly diverse student population, as well as contributing to regional and state economic development.
