Apr 11, 2025

2025-2026 Undergraduate Catalog

Deaf Studies Major, BS in Education - ASL Education Concentration (Undergraduate Internship Program)

Progression Requirements

This program is for individuals desiring to teach American Sign Language (ASL). Those electing the ASL Education Undergraduate Internship Program must demonstrate proficiency in ASL to enroll in ASL 211 in their first semester. Individuals who need to take ASL 111 and ASL 112 should follow the graduate internship program. Progression to the ASL Education concentration (Undergraduate Internship Program) requires a 2.75 cumulative GPA after a minimum of 12 semester hours of coursework and completion of ASL 211 *. Once individuals formally progress to the concentration, they must maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.75 while in the program. Students must earn a grade of B or better in ASL 211 *, ASL 212 *, ASL 311 *, and ASL 310 , and a C or better in all teacher education courses. Students with less than a 2.75 GPA for two consecutive semesters will be dropped from the program. Students who fail to meet the standards for professional conduct during the course of their program and fieldwork will not be retained in the major.

Coursework will allow students to obtain an ASL education license (Pre K-12) at the conclusion of the program. With the selection of the Art Education area as Professional Electives, students will obtain additional teacher licensure in Art Education (K-12). With the selection of a secondary content area as Professional Electives, students begin preparation in a secondary licensure area (6-12), which may be added through additional praxis exams and/or enrollment in a subsequent graduate certificate program.

Students must obtain an advanced level or above on the Sign Language Proficiency Interview to advance to the internship and to take TPTE 475 .

Campus: Knoxville

uTrack Requirements

Universal Tracking (uTrack) is an academic monitoring system designed to help students stay on track for timely graduation. In order to remain on track, students must complete the minimum requirements for each tracking semester, known as milestones. Milestones include successful completion of specified courses and/or attainment of a minimum GPA. uTrack requirements only affect full-time, degree-seeking students.

Term 1

Natural Sciences (NS) Elective w/Lab 4 Credit Hours *
Quantitative Reasoning (QR) Elective 3 Credit Hours * (MATH or STAT)

Select one course:
ASL 200 - Visual Gestural Communication 3 Credit Hours
ASL 202 - Fingerspelling and Numbers 3 Credit Hours
ASL 211 - Intermediate American Sign Language I 3 Credit Hours *
ENGL 101 - English Composition I 3 Credit Hours * (or equivalent)

Credit Hours 16

Term 1 Milestone Notes

2.5 GPA

Complete with a grade of B or better:
¹ ASL 211 - Intermediate American Sign Language I 3 Credit Hours

Term 2

² Arts and Humanities (AH) Elective 3 Credit Hours *
Quantitative Reasoning (QR) Elective 3 Credit Hours * (MATH or STAT)

ASL 212 - Intermediate American Sign Language II 3 Credit Hours *
ENGL 102 - English Composition II 3 Credit Hours * (or equivalent)
Select one course:
EDPY 210 - Psychoeducational Issues in Human Development 3 Credit Hours *
HDFS 210 - Human Development 3 Credit Hours *

Credit Hours 15

Term 2 Milestone Notes

2.75 GPA

Complete with a grade of B or better:
ASL 212 - Intermediate American Sign Language II 3 Credit Hours *

Term 3

Natural Sciences (NS) Elective 3 Credit Hours *

ASL 311 - Advanced American Sign Language I: Educational Contexts 3 Credit Hours *
EDPY 301 - Professional Studies: Applied Educational Psychology 3 Credit Hours *
ETEC 386 - Integrating Technology into the Curriculum 3 Credit Hours
Select one course:
CMST 210 - Public Speaking 3 Credit Hours *
CMST 240 - Business and Professional Communication 3 Credit Hours *
PHIL 244 - Professional Responsibility 3 Credit Hours *

Credit Hours 15

Term 3 Milestone Notes

2.75 GPA

ASL 311 - Advanced American Sign Language I: Educational Contexts 3 Credit Hours * with a grade of B or better
ENGL 101 - English Composition I 3 Credit Hours * (or equivalent)

Term 4

³ Professional Elective 7 Credit Hours

ASL 435 - Linguistics of American Sign Language 3 Credit Hours *
EDDE 425 - Foundations of Deaf Education 3 Credit Hours *
SPED 303 - Professional Studies for Special Education and Diverse Learners 3 Credit Hours

Credit Hours 16

Term 4 Milestone Notes

2.75 GPA
Quantitative Reasoning (QR) Elective 3 Credit Hours *

Term 5

³ Professional Electives 6 Credit Hours

ASL 310 - Practicum 3 Credit Hours
EDDE 415 - Language Development of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing I 3 Credit Hours
ASL 421 - History and Culture of the Deaf 3 Credit Hours *

Credit Hours 15

Term 5 Milestone Notes

2.75 GPA
Arts and Humanities (AH) Elective 3 Credit Hours *

Term 6

⁴ Engaged Inquiries (EI) Elective 3 Credit Hours *

ASL 410 - Practicum 3 Credit Hours
ASL 422 - Deaf Literature and ASL Folklore 3 Credit Hours *
ASL 445 - Teaching of American Sign Language: Grade Pre K-5 3 Credit Hours
CSE 300 - Social Justice, Education, and Service Learning 3 Credit Hours *

Credit Hours 15

Term 6 Milestone Notes

2.75 GPA

Term 7

⁵ Unrestricted Elective 4 Credit Hours

ASL 455 - Teaching of World Languages 3 Credit Hours
⁶
TPTE 475 - Professional Internship in Teaching 1-12 Credit Hours (4 hours)
TPTE 496 - Clinical Studies 1-4 Credit Hours (3 hours)

Credit Hours 14

Term 7 Milestone Notes

2.75 GPA

ETEC 386 - Integrating Technology into the Curriculum 3 Credit Hours
EDPY 301 - Professional Studies: Applied Educational Psychology 3 Credit Hours
SPED 303 - Professional Studies for Special Education and Diverse Learners 3 Credit Hours

Term 8

³Professional Elective 6 Credit Hours

TPTE 475 - Professional Internship in Teaching 1-12 Credit Hours (8 hours)

Credit Hours 14

Term 8 Milestone Notes

2.75 GPA

Total Credit Hours 120

Footnotes

Students should apply to progress to the concentration after the completion of 12 hours and completion of ASL 211 *.
Students pursuing licensure in Art Education select ARTH 172 .
Select one Professional Elective area from the list and complete 19 Credit Hours.
Individuals selecting the Educational Interpreting Professional Elective area should take EDDE 416 .
Select any course not already required for the major. Persons selecting the Secondary Education Professional Elective area should see advisor for the appropriate methods courses to complete requirements for the secondary education license. Persons pursuing licensure in Art Education select ARTH 173 .
Students must obtain an advanced level or above on the Sign Language Proficiency Interview to advance to the internship and to take TPTE 475 .
See advisor regarding which courses are needed for secondary education licensure in the selected content area.

* Meets Volunteer Core Requirements .

Professional Electives

Art Education

Completion of the art coursework leads to an Art Education license (K-12).

ARTN 211 - Non-Major Intro to Drawing 3 Credit Hours
ARTN 213 - Non-Major Intro to Painting 3 Credit Hours
Select one course:
ARTN 221 - Non-Major Intro to Ceramic Sculpture 3 Credit Hours
ARTN 222 - Non-Major Intro to Pottery 3 Credit Hours
Select one course:
ARTN 231 - Non-Major Intro to Photography 3 Credit Hours
ARTN 241 - Non-Major Intro to Sculpture 3 Credit Hours
ARTN 265 - Non-Major Intro to Relief 3 Credit Hours
ARTN 266 - Non-Major Introduction to Monoprint and Monotype 3 Credit Hours
ARTN 291 - Non-Major Intro to Book Arts and Papermaking 3 Credit Hours
ARED 350N - Field Experience 1 Credit Hours
ARED 401 - Theory and Practice in Art Education II 3 Credit Hours
ARED 440 - Instruction, Pedagogy, and Assessment in Art Education 3 Credit Hours

ASL Translation and Interpreting

EI 335 - Interpreting Techniques 3 Credit Hours
EI 340 - Principles of Interpreting 3 Credit Hours
EI 345 - Interpreting in Educational Settings 4 Credit Hours
EI 350 - English to American Sign Language Interpretation 3 Credit Hours
EI 355 - ASL to English Interpretation 3 Credit Hours
EI 440 - Educational Interpreting Field Work 6 Credit Hours
EI 360 - ASL to English Interpreting II 3 Credit Hours

Secondary Education

Coursework develops content area knowledge needed for pursuing a secondary education teaching license (6-12). Additional credits or a graduate certificate program is necessary to obtain the secondary license.

⁷ 15 Credit Hours from one of the following areas: English, Mathematics, Natural Sciences (Biology), Natural Sciences (Chemistry), Natural Science (Earth Science), Natural Sciences (Physics), Social Science (Economics), Social Science (Geography), Social Science (Government), Social Science (History), Social Science (Psychology), Social Science (Sociology)

TPTE 352 - Field Experiences in Teaching: Secondary I 1 Credit Hours
TPTE 355 - Introduction to Secondary Schools 3 Credit Hours

Minors

Select a minor and complete 15 Credit Hours

TPTE 352 - Field Experiences in Teaching: Secondary I 1 Credit Hours
TPTE 355 - Introduction to Secondary Schools 3 Credit Hours

Undergraduates

Graduate Students

Deaf Studies Major, BS in Education - ASL Education Concentration (Undergraduate Internship Program)

Progression Requirements

Campus: Knoxville

uTrack Requirements

Term 1

Credit Hours 16

Term 1 Milestone Notes

Term 2

Credit Hours 15

Term 2 Milestone Notes

Term 3

Credit Hours 15

Term 3 Milestone Notes

Term 4

Credit Hours 16

Term 4 Milestone Notes

Term 5

Credit Hours 15

Term 5 Milestone Notes

Term 6

Credit Hours 15

Term 6 Milestone Notes

Term 7

Credit Hours 14

Term 7 Milestone Notes

Term 8

Credit Hours 14

Term 8 Milestone Notes

Total Credit Hours 120

Footnotes

Professional Electives

Art Education

ASL Translation and Interpreting

Secondary Education

Minors