This document presents standards and guidelines for the preparation and certification of special educators, as identified by the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC), CEC Divisions, and others. Part 1 includes the CEC Code of Ethics and Standards for Professional Practice for Educators of Persons with Exceptionalities. This section provides general guidance for professional conduct. Part 2 is designed as a reference for states and provinces in determining certification requirements for entry into the profession. It presents CEC International Standards for Entry into Professional Practice, and is coded to facilitate easy reference for each knowledge and skill item. Part 3 is presented especially for use by special education professional preparation programs. The same sets of knowledge and skills identified in part 2 are presented in a format similar to that used by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education. Standards for knowledge and skills essential for all beginning special education teachers are outlined first, followed by knowledge and skills for beginning special education teachers working with students who have deafness or hearing impairments, emotional and behavioral disorders, gifts or talents, learning disabilities, mental retardation and developmental disabilities, visual impairments, and physical and health disabilities, as well as preschool children with developmental delays. The items in parts 2 and 3 are coded by area, topic, and knowledge or skill, in order to provide a framework for creating a searchable database of knowledge and skills items. Space is provided next to each item for citing course numbers or other descriptions or examples of where the knowledge or skill is covered in the curriculum or continuing education program. (DB)