New Jersey teachers who want to work with students in special education and other shortage areas will be able to earn their degrees online and at a lower cost, after the state Department of Education last month approved five new programs through the New Jersey Center for Teaching and Learning.

The Office of Recruitment, Preparation and Certification, in a letter dated October 7, approved the programs, so that already certified teachers can obtain credentials in teaching students with disabilities or in the sciences, more easily and at lower cost. .

“There is a chronic shortage of special education teachers in New Jersey,” said Robert Goodman, executive director of the center. “We think this could be a game-changing solution.”