Pieces From PEPNet
PEPNet's biennial conference, "Putting the Pieces Together" was held April 15-18 at the Hyatt Regency in Columbus, Ohio. If you were not able to attend, or if you did, but did not have the opportunity to take advantage of all that was offered - There is no need to worry! Throughout the week, PERSPECTIVES ace reporters (aka the Newsletter team) gathered notable resources to share with our readers!
Here are a few highlights:
Hard of Hearing Students in Postsecondary Settings: A Guide for Service Providers is NOW AVAILABLE and provides up-to-date information and resources about factors that affect students who are hard of hearing as they plan for or participate in postsecondary education and training. Free downloadable PDF files are available through our PEPNet Dissemination Center by selecting "downloads" at http://pdc.pepnet.org/. Hard copies may be purchased at www.lulu.com.
Conference participants were treated to a copy of the publication Demystifying Hearing Assistance Technology: A Guide for Service Providers and Consumers by Cheryl Davis, Samuel Atcherson and Marni Johnson. While versions of this text are included in the above mentioned Hard of Hearing Students in Postsecondary Settings Guide, this book is also available at www.wou.edu/~davisc. Contents include Audiological Considerations in the Management of Hearing Loss, Communication Access Options: Hearing Assistance Technology, References and Resources.
PEPNet is developing a Teacher "Tool Kit" to assist itinerate teachers as they make their rounds to various schools. The "kit" will contain information that can be given to students, teachers, principals, parents, social workers, audiologists and speech-pathologists and will include handouts, DVDs, links to materials and resources, websites, podcasts and other pertinent information. At this time materials are being collected and cataloged, and a website is being created. Your input is welcome. To offer suggestions for items include, contact Desiree Duda at desiree.duda@pepnet.org
Stout Vocational Rehabilitation Institute: Online Vocational Rehabilitation Courses PEPNet has collaborated with the University of Wisconsin - Stout Vocational Rehabilitation Institute to develop two online, continuing education courses to enhance professionals' abilities to understand and effectively provide services to individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing. The first course - Working with Individuals who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing includes units on Deaf Culture and Language, Working with Sign Language Interpreters and Assistive Listening Devices.
The second, more advanced course, covers Employment Services, Psychometric Testing and Vocational Evaluation. For more information on these online offerings, go to http://rlr.uwstout.edu, www.pepnet.org.
The Speech to Text Services Network (STSN) helped to coordinate several presentations during the conference that were focused on speech to text services. Information from these presentations is available online through the STSN website. You can find these resources as well as comprehensive information about speech to text services online at www.stsn.org.
The PEPNet Online Notetaker Training is alive and well. To date, more than 5,000 individuals across the country have accessed the training. Students learn effective notetaking strategies and can complete the training at their convenience. Service Coordinators can access a toolkit for implementing a notetaker program which suggests selection criteria, policies, and practices for using student notetakers effectively. The Online Notetaker Training is FREE and available at www.pepnetnortheast.rit.edu/onlinenotetakertraining.html
Transition: Constructing a Path to Success with Appropriate Tools - Presented by Theresa Johnson, Education Specialist from Houston, Texas and Jennie Bourgeois, PEPNet Outreach Specialist from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, this workshop highlighted the importance of secondary and postsecondary professionals working together in the IEP process to create a smooth transition plan for students. Clear transition plans as part of the IEP process are- not only good practice, but a required mandate by the U.S. Department of Education.
The U.S. Department of Education through the Office of Special Education Programs requires states to "coordinate measurable, annual IEP goals and transition services that will reasonably enable the student to meet thei postsecondary goals". To help states collect this data, the National Secondary Transition Technical Assistance Center (NSTTAC) was established. NSTTAC developed the I-13 Checklist, as an OSEP-approved resource for states to use for data collection or to compare to their own state's current monitoring system.
Go to the NSTTAC.org website for more information and resource links related to transition issues. This website is extremely user friendly and chock full of information!