Course Syllabus

Fall 2025 | EDU-1270-VO01 - Supporting Young Children with Diverse Abilit

Online Class

Online courses take place 100% online via Canvas, without required in-person or Zoom meetings.

Faculty

Michelle Richling
View Faculty Credentials
View Faculty Statement
Hiring Coordinator for this course: Philip Crossman

Note

Many degree programs have specific general education recommendations. In order to avoid taking unnecessary classes, please consult with additional resources like your program evaluation, your academic program catalog year page, and your academic advisor.

Courses may only be used to meet one General Education Requirement.

Course Description

This course introduces students to the history, philosophy, legislation, and recommended practices for supporting children with diverse abilities from birth through age 8. The course will provide an overview of typical and atypical development and explore impacts of congenital and environmental factors on children with diverse abilities. Course topics will include family-centered practice, early intervention, at-risk populations, inclusion, referrals, and partnerships with special education and health professionals. Prerequisite: a child development course.

Essential Objectives

1. Describe, explain, and analyze historical, legal, and philosophical foundations of early intervention and early childhood special education and explain the impact of past concepts on present theories, recommended best practice, legislation, and attitudes.
2. Demonstrate an understanding of typical and atypical physical, social, emotional, cognitive, and linguistic development of children prenatal through age 8.
3. Explain how diverse and complex factors, including environment, culture, language, socio-economic conditions, and adverse childhood experiences, can impact the development of children with diverse abilities.
4. Discuss and employ a variety of strategies to observe and report on children's development and explain how and when to make referrals.
5. Describe evidence-based practices and adaptations in early childhood and school settings, including universal design, to create healthy, respectful, and inclusive learning environments for all children.
6. Explain and analyze effective approaches for collaborating with families with children of diverse abilities.
7. Identify and describe state systems, processes, and legal frameworks for supporting children and families with diverse abilities.
8. Describe the roles and services provided by early intervention professionals such as speech pathology, occupational therapy, physical therapy, etc.
9. Describe and analyze processes to prepare and implement Individualized Family Service Plans (IFSPs) and Individual Education Program (IEP) plans.

Required Technology

More information on general computer and internet recommendations is available on the CCV computer recommendations Support page.

Please see CCV's Digital Equity Statement (pg. 45) to learn more about CCV's commitment to supporting all students access the technology they need to successfully finish their courses.

Required Textbooks and Resources

*** This is a low cost ($50 or less) textbook or resource class. ***

This course uses one or more textbooks/books/simulations, along with free Open Educational Resources (OER) and/or library materials.

Fall 2025 textbook/book details will be available on 2025-05-19. On that date a link will be available below that will take you to eCampus, CCV's bookstore. The information provided there will be specific to this class. Please see this page for more information regarding the purchase of textbooks/books.

EDU-1270-VO01 Link to Textbooks for this course in eCampus.

For Open Educational Resources (OER) and/or library materials details, see the Canvas Site for this class.

The last day to use a Financial Aid Advance to purchase textbooks/books is the 3rd Tuesday of the semester. See your financial aid counselor at your academic center if you have any questions.

Artificial Intelligence(AI) Policy Statement

CCV recognizes that artificial intelligence (AI) and generative AI tools are widely available and becoming embedded in many online writing and creative applications.

Integrated: This course's generative AI policy acknowledges the use of AI is an essential skill in today's world. By using genAI for specific purposes, students become equipped with relevant skills and tools necessary to thrive in a technology-driven society. Emphasizing the mastery of generative AI should empower you to harness its potential, enhancing your problem-solving abilities and preparing you for future challenges and opportunities. Be aware, however, that any time generative AI is used at any point in the assignment without attribution it may be considered a violation of CCV's Academic Integrity Policy.

Methods

• Review materials including text, videos, articles and other resources listed
• Weekly discussion post and comments to peer posts
• Reflective journal question weekly
• Quiz (open book, untimed)
• Essay (Midtern)
• Final Reflection

Evaluation Criteria

Discussion Posts & Participation - 30%

Journal Entries - 30%

Quiz - 10%

Essay - 20%

Final Reflection - 10%

Grading Criteria

CCV Letter Grades as outlined in the Evaluation System Policy are assigned according to the following chart:

	High	Low
A+	100	98
A	Less than 98	93
A-	Less than 93	90
B+	Less than 90	88
B	Less than 88	83
B-	Less than 83	80
C+	Less than 80	78
C	Less than 78	73
C-	Less than 73	70
D+	Less than 70	68
D	Less than 68	63
D-	Less than 63	60
F	Less than 60
P	100	60
NP	Less than 60	0

Weekly Schedule

Attendance Policy

Regular attendance and participation in classes are essential for success in and are completion requirements for courses at CCV. A student's failure to meet attendance requirements as specified in course descriptions will normally result in a non-satisfactory grade.

• In general, missing more than 20% of a course due to absences, lateness or early departures may jeopardize a student's ability to earn a satisfactory final grade.
• Attending an on-ground or synchronous course means a student appeared in the live classroom for at least a meaningful portion of a given class meeting. Attending an online course means a student posted a discussion forum response, completed a quiz or attempted some other academically required activity. Simply viewing a course item or module does not count as attendance.
• Meeting the minimum attendance requirement for a course does not mean a student has satisfied the academic requirements for participation, which require students to go above and beyond simply attending a portion of the class. Faculty members will individually determine what constitutes participation in each course they teach and explain in their course descriptions how participation factors into a student's final grade.

Participation Expectations

Participation Policy

Discussions are an essential part of online learning and give the opportunity to create a social presence in an online course as well as build a sense of community. Given the high importance of discussions, we have% specific expectations required.

The posting requirements for each week will be listed in every discussion forum prompt. Be sure to read and follow these thoroughly to ensure you understand what is expected to receive full points. Each week, you are expected to post your initial post by Thursday at 11:59 pm (earlier is encouraged to get the conversation started). You are expected to post an additional 3 responses by Sunday at 11:59 pm to receive full credit.

Please read the requirements listed for the responses to peers. Do not sign in once a week to make all of your posts and be sure to check in to see if anyone has asked you questions that you need to follow up on. When responding to peers, please focus on the following expectations to keep the dialogue meaningful and robust:

• Share feedback perhaps by saying something about how much thought or detail was put into the response.
• Build on the discussion by asking deeper questions about the responses to maybe find some commonalities.
• Make a connection by noticing similarities or differences in your attributes and share an anecdote.

There is a rubric for each discussion post to review to evaluate your posts each week, please review this so you can see what the expectation is or to see why you did not receive full credit. Please keep in mind that for a 3-credit course, you should be spending 3 hours per week “in class work” and 6 hours per week on homework.

Missing & Late Work Policy

Late Work Policy

To ensure a fair and consistent learning environment for all, please plan to submit work on time. Doing so confirms that I can review and provide meaningful feedback promptly and also ensures you can engage with other students throughout the week regarding the readings and assignments and share and gain other perspectives and feedback with peers.

Because life happens, time management can be challenging and deadlines may not always be met, late work will be accepted; but do not expect to get full credit for handing in late work. You can submit assignments up to one week late. Doing so will result in a 10% deduction each day after the due date. You must complete the assignment within that week as much of our learning is scaffolded, building upon the prior week’s learning.

Should a circumstance arise that is foreseeable, I encourage you to reach out and advocate for your success in the following ways:

• Identify the problem
• Contact me to propose a solution
• Make a plan we can both agree on
• Follow up when the assignment has been submitted on the date agreed upon.

I reserve the right to revisit and change this policy if needed.

Accessibility Services for Students with Disabilities:

1. Provide disability documentation to the Accessibility Coordinator at your academic center. https://ccv.edu/discover-resources/students-with-disabilities/
2. Request an appointment to meet with accessibility coordinator to discuss your request and create an accommodation plan.
3. Once created, students will share the accommodation plan with faculty. Please note, faculty cannot make disability accommodations outside of this process.

Academic Integrity

Apply Now for this semester.