D744 Student Teaching I in Elementary and Special Education is the first of two student teaching courses in WGU's dual elementary and special education route. It is a mandatory course for candidates seeking initial licensure.
The dual route asks you to teach in ways that serve general and special education learners together. You will be judged on the same five competencies as other tracks, but your plans need to show how one lesson reaches learners with different needs.
Course at a Glance
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| University | Western Governors University |
| Code | D744 (check your degree plan) |
| Program | Bachelor of Arts, Special Education and Elementary Education (Dual Licensure) |
| Series | First of two |
| Competencies | Five |
What D744 Covers
| Competency (summarized) | Dual-route meaning |
|---|---|
| Effective instruction and assessment | Lessons that work for a mixed group |
| Professional improvement through reflection and collaboration | Working with general and special educators |
| Learning and developmental patterns | Individual and typical development |
| Professional dispositions and ethics | Respect, confidentiality |
| Reflects on practice | Analysis with evidence |
The sessions cover communication and collaboration, accepting feedback, positive learning environments, and technology and online learning.
Teaching a Mixed Group
Universal Planning
Plan once with options built in: visuals, choice of response, clear steps and extra time. These benefit many learners without singling anyone out.
Example (illustrative): In a writing lesson, all pupils receive a picture prompt and sentence starters. Pupils may write, dictate or draw and label. The check is the same objective, a complete sentence about the picture, with different ways to show it.
Collaborating Across Roles
You may work with a general educator, a special educator and aides. Agree who leads each part and keep communication respectful.
Reflection Across Both Lenses
Say what you learned about both elementary instruction and individual supports.
Typical Work and Approaches
| Work type | What it tests | Approach |
|---|---|---|
| Teaching | Instruction for mixed groups | Build options into plans |
| Observations | Response to feedback | Log and act |
| Sessions | Communication, technology | Apply one idea |
| Reflection | Analysis | Evidence from both settings |
Using the Synchronous Sessions
Required sessions address communication and collaboration, accepting feedback, positive learning environments, and technology and online learning. In a dual route, each theme has a double meaning: communicating with a general educator and a special educator, handling feedback from two perspectives and building environments that welcome all learners.
| Theme | Dual-route question | Try this |
|---|---|---|
| Communication and collaboration | Who needs to know what about the plan? | Share the plan with both educators in advance |
| Accepting feedback | Do the two sets of advice agree? | Ask for a short joint debrief |
| Positive environments | Does every learner have a way in? | Add visuals and choice to routines |
| Technology | Does the tool support or exclude anyone? | Test it with accessibility in mind |
Documenting Your Work
Dual-route candidates juggle more paperwork than most. Keep a simple system: a folder for lesson plans, one for feedback, one for reflection notes and one for session takeaways. Label items by date and competency, and anonymize any pupil work on saving.
Culturally Relevant Teaching
WGU asks candidates to explore culturally relevant materials and methods. For a mixed group, that might be a book with characters pupils recognize, a maths problem about local places or inviting families to share traditions.
Describe the choice, the response and what you learned. Include what did not work, because honest evaluation shows willingness to explore.
Planning with Built-in Options
In a dual route, the most useful planning habit is to design options at the start rather than adding them afterwards. Think about how pupils will access the content, how they will practice and how they will show what they know. Offering two or three routes for each lets many learners succeed without separate lessons.
| Part of the lesson | Option ideas |
|---|---|
| Access | Spoken and written directions, pictures, a model |
| Practice | Partner work, manipulatives, quiet independent task |
| Showing learning | Speak, write, draw, build |
Record how pupils used the options and what you changed. That record is strong evidence for the competency on learning and developmental patterns.
Where Students Get Stuck
- Two sets of expectations. Ask mentors to align feedback.
- Over-differentiating. Keep plans workable.
- Privacy.
- Time.
Study Tips for D744
- Build supports in from the start.
- Talk to both educators about goals.
- Keep dated notes.
- Prepare for each session.
How We Help with D744
Send your prompt, rubric and feedback. We provide model examples and editing feedback. See the education assignment help guide.
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Plan for Every Learner in the Room
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Frequently Asked Questions
The dual elementary and special education route, according to WGU's program guide.
Yes, for initial licensure candidates.
Five.
Communication, feedback, positive environments, technology.
Student Teaching II in Elementary and Special Education.
No.