MTLE Special Education Core Skills study plan
MTLE Special Education Core Skills · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 7 hours per week
Special Education Core Skills content domain (weights not published in source)
Map the full Special Education Core Skills content domain into a personal checklist of subareas (legal/foundational concepts, disability categories and characteristics, assessment, IEP development, instructional planning, behavior, collaboration) and rate confidence 1-5 on each
Define each major disability category under IDEA and list two classroom implications per category from memory
Explain the six core principles of IDEA (FAPE, LRE, IEP, procedural safeguards, parent participation, nondiscriminatory evaluation) in your own words
Build a spaced-repetition deck of 60+ terms covering special education vocabulary and legal terminology
Set a weekly study schedule that reserves the two longest blocks for the heaviest subareas identified in goal 1
Your checkpoint
A dated 8-week calendar plus a confidence-rated subarea checklist and a 60-card terminology deck
Special Education Core Skills content domain (weights not published in source)
Trace the referral-to-placement timeline: child find, pre-referral intervention, evaluation, eligibility determination, IEP meeting, and services
Distinguish Section 504 accommodations from IDEA special education services with two concrete examples each
Summarize procedural safeguards, prior written notice, and discipline protections including manifestation determination
Compare the roles of general education teacher, special education teacher, related service providers, and paraprofessional in IEP implementation
Answer 40+ practice items on foundations and legal/ethical practice, logging every miss with the reason it was missed
Your checkpoint
A one-page flowchart of the special education process and an error log of at least 40 practice items categorized by cause
Special Education Core Skills content domain (weights not published in source)
Describe characteristics, prevalence, and common learning profiles for high-incidence disabilities (specific learning disability, speech/language impairment, other health impairment, emotional disturbance)
Describe characteristics and support needs for low-incidence disabilities (autism, intellectual disability, deaf/hard of hearing, visual impairment, deaf-blindness, traumatic brain injury, multiple disabilities)
Differentiate accommodation, modification, and assistive technology with three examples of each
Explain the components of a present levels of performance statement and write two model PLAAFP statements
Complete 50 practice items on disability characteristics and legal/foundational content
Your checkpoint
A disability-category reference table (characteristics, implications, typical supports) plus two written PLAAFP statements scored against a self-made rubric
Special Education Core Skills content domain (weights not published in source)
Explain norm-referenced versus criterion-referenced assessment and when each is appropriate
Interpret standard scores, percentile ranks, stanines, and standard deviations in a written summary a parent could understand
Identify the purpose of screening, diagnostic, progress-monitoring, and alternate assessments
Describe how to select, administer, and score a curriculum-based measurement probe accurately
Explain test reliability, validity, and bias concerns in evaluating students from diverse backgrounds
Your checkpoint
A plain-language score-interpretation guide covering at least five score types, plus one scored CBM probe with a written progress statement
Special Education Core Skills content domain (weights not published in source)
Write three measurable annual IEP goals with baseline, target, criteria, and method of measurement
Draft a complete mock IEP for a hypothetical student covering PLAAFP, goals, services, accommodations, and least restrictive environment justification
Align short-term objectives or benchmarks to each annual goal
Explain how transition planning and postsecondary goals are developed for students aged 16 and older
Answer 40 practice items on assessment and IEP development, updating the error log
Your checkpoint
A complete mock IEP document with at least three measurable goals and aligned benchmarks, reviewed against a 10-point quality checklist
Special Education Core Skills content domain (weights not published in source)
Apply explicit instruction, modeling, guided practice, and independent practice to a skill of your choice in a written lesson plan
Compare co-teaching models (one teach/one assist, station, parallel, alternative, team) and state when each fits
Design three differentiated materials or tasks for one lesson objective
Explain universal design for learning principles and embed at least two in a lesson
Describe strategies for teaching reading, writing, and mathematics to students with disabilities
Your checkpoint
A full lesson plan with UDL elements, differentiation for three learner profiles, and a stated co-teaching model with rationale
Special Education Core Skills content domain (weights not published in source)
Conduct a functional behavior assessment summary: define target behavior, identify antecedents and consequences, and state a hypothesis
Write a behavior intervention plan with prevention, teaching, and response strategies
Distinguish positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, and punishment with classroom examples
Describe collaboration practices with families, general educators, and outside agencies, including culturally responsive communication
Answer 40 practice items on instruction, behavior, and collaboration
Your checkpoint
A behavior intervention plan for one hypothetical student, including an FBA summary and a progress-monitoring method
Special Education Core Skills content domain (weights not published in source)
Complete a full-length timed practice test under exam conditions and record the score
Review every missed item and classify each error as content gap, misread question, or process error
Re-drill the 30 weakest flashcards and the top five weak subareas from the error log
Restate the six IDEA principles, the special education process, and score interpretation from memory without notes
Finalize a one-page exam-day strategy sheet covering pacing, guessing rules, and question-stem reading
Your checkpoint
A timed practice test score with a categorized error analysis and a one-page exam-day strategy sheet
Milestones
Week 2: Score at least 75% on a 30-item self-quiz covering IDEA principles and the special education process, and confirm the terminology deck has 60+ cards
Week 4: Explain five score types and the disability-category table aloud in under 10 minutes without notes, and score at least 70% on a 40-item mixed practice set
Week 6: Mock IEP passes all 10 checklist points, and practice-set accuracy on assessment and IEP items reaches 80%
Week 8: Full-length timed practice test completed with a recorded score, every miss analyzed, and all five weak subareas re-drilled