Unless otherwise noted, all Schools Conference sessions are at the intermediate level and assume general familiarity with the concepts, terminology, literature, and professional practice of the topic.
Friday, July 25
PL1 Tales from the Road
Richard D. Lavoie, MS, MEd
Drawing on his 35 years of experience as a special education teacher, administrator, and consultant, Rick will share his perspective on the state of special education and learning disabilities, and share lessons learned from some of the thousands of children with learning disabilities, parents, teachers, and specialists he has worked with. Be prepared to be challenged—and inspired!
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- Discuss major trends in the field of special education and learning disabilities
- Analyze perspectives of classroom teachers, parents, and other "stakeholders" in special education
CS1 Addressing Challenging Student Behaviors
Ted Feinberg, EdD
Instructional level: Introductory
Influencing or managing students' behavior takes significant amounts of time and energy for teachers and other staff in most schools in the U.S. This presentation provides some core principles that you can use to increase positive behaviors and reduce or eliminate disruptive, maladaptive patterns that interfere with effective learning.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- Identify some key considerations for responding to challenging behaviors in schools
- Describe core principles connected to response to intervention
- Use elements of positive behavioral supports and developmental assets as tools for behavior management
CS2 Social-Emotional Intelligence: Implications for Students
Vicki Lord Larson, PhD, CCC-SLP
Instructional level: Introductory
Do you have students who have problems understanding and interacting in social situations? Do you wonder how to help them develop their social-emotional literacy skills? Using the work of Goleman (1995, 1998, 2002, 2006) on social and emotional intelligence, we will explore the issues, evidence, and assessment/intervention strategies to enhance the social-emotional literacy skills of our students. As students learn to navigate the social world, they will also advance academically, enhance their personal social interactions, and ultimately be better able to reach their vocational potential.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- Define social-emotional intelligence/literacy based on Goleman's research
- Discuss characteristic expectations and challenges for students with social-emotional intelligence/literacy issues
- Describe intervention strategies for social-emotional literacy related to academic achievement, personal-social interactions, and vocational potential
CS3 Classroom Acoustics: Language, Listening, and Learning
Joseph J. Smaldino, PhD, CCC-A
Sponsored by Special Interest Division 16, School-Based Issues
Unfavorable classroom acoustics is an important factor in speech perception and auditory development of children. This presentation describes the classroom acoustics problem, explores the impact of undesirable acoustics, and suggests some solutions. Current brain research and models of language development provide context for the discussion.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- Describe the dimensions of classroom acoustics, including signal-to-noise ratio, background noise, and reverberation
- Discuss the American National Standards Institute standard for acceptable classroom acoustics
- List reasons why children require more favorable acoustics than adults
- Describe strategies for improving classroom acoustics
CS4 Responsiveness to Intervention (RTI): Magic or Cruel Trick?
Barbara J. Ehren, EdD, CCC-SLP
Sponsored by Special Interest Division 1, Language Learning and Education
The education world is abuzz with RTI. However, the many iterations of this approach can leave SLPs baffled about its real intent. Can RTI work magic on behalf of struggling students—as some proponents seem to claim—or is it a cruel trick? In this session you will explore what RTI is and what it is not. You will examine the opportunities this approach presents to redefine your roles in the schools, and identify pitfalls to avoid in implementing RTI approaches.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- Explain typical features of RTI models
- Identify new and expanded roles for SLPs within RTI models
- Explore pitfalls to avoid in design and implementation of RTI approaches
CS5 Beyond Cultural Competence
Alina de la Paz, MS, CCC-SLP
The beliefs we hold affect the quality of our interactions, and the success we can expect from our interventions. This session provides a paradigm within which SLPs and audiologists can work successfully with children and families of all ages, linguistic backgrounds, cultures, and ethnic backgrounds. Together we'll explore concepts and techniques to work with children and families of culturally diverse backgrounds, including the law of mind-action (attraction), non-violent communication (NVC), and relational presence.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- Describe the components of cultural competence
- Analyze your belief systems and views, and their effect on personal and professional effectiveness
- Discuss several strategies to use with culturally diverse children and families
CS6 Genetic Connections Among Communication Disorders
Shelley D. Smith, PhD, FACMG
Sponsored by Special Interest Division 2, Neurophysiology and Neurogenic Speech and Language Disorders
Genetic advances have provided valuable insights into the causes of hearing loss, resulting in more effective diagnosis and better information on management for families. Similarly, recent genetic studies have revealed possible genetic causes for language and learning disorders such as dyslexia, speech sound disorder, and specific language impairment. In this session, you'll review these studies in light of the clinical overlaps among these disorders. The possible role of central auditory impairment in connecting auditory and language disorders will also be discussed.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- Identify physical features that could indicate a genetic etiology for hearing loss or language disorder
- Determine when a referral for clinical genetic evaluation is indicated
- Describe the components of a comprehensive genetic evaluation to a client and his/her family
- Describe the clinical and genetic overlaps between speech and language disorders
- Evaluate the possible contributions of peripheral and central auditory processing on language disorders
CS7 Auditory-Linguistic Processing Disorders in Children
Jeanane M. Ferre, PhD, CCC-A
Gail J. Richard, PhD, CCC-SLP
CAPD, APD, LPD, or something else? The labels confuse the issue! This session describes the neuropsychology of auditory and language processing by presenting the continuum of processing skills that begin in preschool years and continue to develop through childhood. Processing disorders will be clinically delineated into acoustic, phonetic, and linguistic areas on the continuum. The speakers, an audiologist and an SLP, will present assessment tools to differentiate between auditory and language processing disorders, along with intervention strategies to compensate for, as well as remediate, processing deficits.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- Define and differentiate between auditory processing (AP), central auditory processing (CAP), and language processing (LP)
- List behavioral characteristics of various types of central auditory processing disorders (CAPD) and language processing disorders
- Describe typical components of CAP and LP evaluations
- Interpret assessment results to differentially diagnose CAPD or LPD
- Implement effective modifications, teach appropriate compensations, and choose effective remediation strategies for various types of CAPD and LPD
CS8 Cochlear Implant Essentials: Tech Updates, Therapy Strategies, IEP Goals, and Classroom Carryover
Mary E. Koch, MA
Cochlear implants are here to stay, and you need to be ready for them! This session provides essential information about cochlear implant technology including basic monitoring of device function; how to develop and assess listening skills; development of IEP goals; and how to facilitate integration of listening into classroom settings. The presentation covers children along the communication continuum of sign language and oral methodologies.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- Describe how to monitor function of a cochlear implant
- Describe the communication methodology continuum
- Identify three components of listening skill development
- Describe how to balance sign and listening in classroom routines
CS9 Integrating AAC/AT for Curricular Participation
Yvonne Gillette, PhD, CCC-SLP
Children with augmentative and alternative communication/assistive technology (AAC/AT) needs are more effective students when they are able to access information and send messages with an efficient technology package. An ideal model of technology integration includes internal integration (the components of the student's AAC/AT system working together) and external integration (the student's technology meshing with interactions across partners, settings, and opportunities). This session guides you in constructing technology integration plans that are effective across the curriculum and the school day. Video clips will illustrate case examples and planning formats will be provided in handouts.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- Identify the need for AAC/AT integration
- List the steps needed for internal and external AAC/AT integration
- Use the planning forms provided in the session for effective AAC/AT integration
CS10 The Motivation Breakthrough: Six Secrets to Turning On the Tuned-Out Child
Richard D. Lavoie, MEd
Every learning theory from Maslow to Gardner has "motivation" as its initial and fundamental step, yet few educators have a repertoire of effective motivational strategies and techniques. This workshop begins by exploring some widespread misconceptions about student motivation and some common strategies that are simply ineffective (competition, reward systems, punishment). We then examine specific approaches and strategies to enable you to tap into students' individual motivational styles and inspire them to reach their potential.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- Discuss three basic truths about classroom motivation
- Examine traditional classroom approaches to motivation and discuss why they are relatively ineffective
- Describe six factors that motivate human beings
- Apply these factors to develop practical, pragmatic strategies to effectively tap students' motivation
Focused, facilitated conversations on topics of special interest, roundtables offer the chance to share problems and solutions with colleagues from around the country. If there's a topic you'd especially like to discuss, please indicate it on the registration form.
Saturday, July 26
CS11 Evaluating and Managing Speech Fluency Disorders: Showing the Evidence for Practice
Tommie L. Robinson, Jr., PhD, CCC-SLP
Increasingly, clinicians are challenged to respond to questions about the "hows" and "whys" of their approaches to the management and treatment of stuttering. This session shows how evaluation and treatment approaches are linked to the research, which in turn provides support for their use. Clinical procedures and techniques are addressed and explored.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- List ways to gather information to support clinical practices
- Analyze data to determine clinical use of evaluation and treatment processes
- Apply principles of evidence-based practice when developing goals and objectives for managing speech fluency
CS12 Linking Reading Comprehension and Written Expression: Helping All Students Write About What They Read
Gary A. Troia, PhD, CCC-SLP
Reading and writing activities are often disconnected in classrooms, even though research indicates that each explains a majority of variance in performance of the other, and both rely on much of the same knowledge, skills, and strategies. Educators' desires to maximize instructional time, help students digest complex texts, and improve students' writing can all be accomplished by systematically linking reading comprehension and written expression. This session provides an overview of more than a dozen research-validated instructional practices for improving the reading comprehension and written expression of students with and without disabilities in grades K-12.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- Identify key shared features of processes and skills that underlie comprehension and composition
- State the rationale for pairing text reading and writing activities
- Use at least three different activities for teaching students with and without language learning disabilities to write about what they comprehend
CS13 Service Delivery Models: What We (Think We) Know
Sylvia F. Diehl, PhD, CCC-SLP
What's your service delivery model? How do you know it works? Are there others that might work better? So-called "alternative service delivery models" have been proliferating, driven in part by changing federal, state, and local policies. As more attention is paid to evidence-based practice, we're also looking more closely at how services are delivered. This session provides a quick history of service delivery models, examines the prevalence of "alternative" models, and critically analyzes the state of the evidence concerning service delivery. We'll discuss current challenges and promising new approaches, all with an emphasis on advancing the state of our knowledge about service delivery and the children we serve.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- Describe the history of service delivery models
- Identify major service delivery models and accompanying issues
- Discuss the impact of federal, state, and local policies on service delivery
- Summarize the major trends of the literature on service delivery
CS14 Supervising Students and SLPAs
Sue T. Hale, MCD, CCC-SLP
Sponsored by Special Interest Division 11, Administration and Supervision
This session focuses on supervisor characteristics and strategies to generate positive outcomes for students and paraprofessionals. How to best match supervisory skills to supervisees is discussed, in the context of enhancing the development of a future work force, as well as capitalizing on current personnel resources.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- List desirable characteristics for a supervisor and strategies for developing them
- Describe methods to engender positive supervisee behavior
- Use positive techniques to transfer setting-specific knowledge to supervisees
- Assist students and paraprofessionals in developing skills and knowledge within their roles
CS15 Managing Students with Dysphagia in School Settings: Key Concepts and Strategies
Rita L. Bailey, EdD, CCC-SLP, BRS-S
This presentation addresses principles for the care and management of students with dysphagia in school settings. Practical strategies for improving eating/swallowing skills, mealtime behaviors and communication, and independence in children and youth with disabilities will be addressed, using video clips and demonstrations to illustrate different approaches.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- Identify management strategies that foster safety and improvement in swallowing skills in students with dysphagia
- Identify management strategies that facilitate improvement in mealtime behaviors in students with dysphagia
- Identify management strategies that promote communication and independent functioning at mealtimes for students with dysphagia
CS16 Breaking the Silence: Working With Children With Selective Mutism
Joleen R. Fernald, MS, CCC-SLP
Selective mutism (SM) is a social and communication anxiety disorder of childhood. With the prevalence of SM rising to an estimated 1 in 143 (compared to autism at 1 in 150), it is a disorder that merits significant attention and focus. However, the SLP's role in the assessment and treatment of children with SM remains elusive. This session helps you understand the differences between shyness and SM. We'll discuss how to assess and treat SM in children, and specifically address the SLP's role in working with children with SM.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- List the five DSM IV criteria required for a diagnosis of SM
- Identify three methodologies commonly used in the treatment of SM
- Summarize the speech-language pathologist's role in working with children with SM
CS17 Workload and RTI: Living Happily Ever After
Barbara J. Ehren, EdD, CCC-SLP
As SLPs become encouraged that responsiveness to intervention (RTI) approaches can provide opportunities to redefine their roles in schools, the question becomes: How do we implement these new roles with everything else we have to do? RTI cannot be viewed as adding to our already-full plate. To promote RTI implementation the "workload" concept of provision of services must be married to RTI. In this session you'll learn practical RTI implementation ideas in the context of a workload approach.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- Discuss RTI implementation issues
- Analyze the "workload" approach to service provision for application to RTI implementation
- Design an action plan for addressing workload and RTI implementation
CS18 Assessing Social Communication in Asperger's Syndrome
Timothy P. Kowalski, MA, CCC-SLP
Individuals with Asperger's syndrome have significant difficulty with social-pragmatic language. Their ability to effectively engage and communicate is hampered by deficits that standardized tools fail to target and many SLPs have not been adequately trained to evaluate. This session offers eleven tools to evaluate the social-communicative features of Asperger's syndrome that neuro-typical individuals find odd, unusual, or downright offensive. We will also discuss how to apply this information to develop operant-based goals and appropriate intervention strategies for children with Asperger's syndrome.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- Define the term "social pragmatics"
- Describe why many well intentioned social-pragmatic goals are not achievable for individuals with Asperger's syndrome
- Discuss eleven tools designed to assess social-pragmatic deficits
CS19 Strategies That Motivate Adolescents With Language Disorders
Vicki Lord Larson, PhD, CCC-SLP
This session focuses on expectations for and challenges of adolescents who have language disorders. General intervention strategies and service delivery models that motivate adolescents are presented. Specific strategies that enhance the students' thinking, listening, speaking, reading, and writing are discussed and illustrated as they advance the students' academic progress, personal-social interactions, and vocational potential.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- Describe the three stages of adolescence and their implications for intervention
- Discuss the characteristic expectations for and problems of adolescents with language disorders
- Explain various service delivery models and their effectiveness with adolescents
- Describe approaches to intervention that motivate adolescents to learn
Review interesting research projects, case studies, and service delivery models submitted by your colleagues from around the country.
Sunday, July 27
Review interesting research projects, case studies, and service delivery models submitted by your colleagues from around the country.
CS20 Caseload/Workload: Moving Forward
Mary J. Beasley, MA, CCC-SLP
For speech-language pathologists who struggle with large caseloads and other professional responsibilities, the workload approach offers a combination of flexibility as well as best practice. This session explores the caseload/workload concept by reviewing its history and how it has been implemented. Successful models are highlighted and specific resources discussed, with an emphasis on moving from conceptual understanding to real-world implementation.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- Discuss the development and implementation of the caseload/workload concept
- Locate and use resources to support implementation of workload approaches
- Identify specific professional challenges in meeting students' needs
- Use caseload/workload resources to address your professional challenges
- Discuss the connections of a workload approach to federal, state, and local legislation, policies, and procedures
CS21 Update on Autism Spectrum Disorders
Gail J. Richard, PhD, CCC-SLP
As the incidence of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) continues to escalate, the range of severity and types of disorders makes it difficult for clinicians to make confident decisions on assessment and intervention. This session presents practical clinical suggestions for effective diagnosis and treatment of ASD in school-age children. Research evidence that supports or refutes various intervention techniques, including new ASHA documents designed to assist SLPs in addressing these disorders, is reviewed.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- Define and explain differential criteria within autism spectrum disorders using both medical and educational criteria
- Identify strengths and limitations of current treatment methodologies to make informed intervention decisions
- Use ASHA documents and research results to substantiate diagnostic and treatment decisions
CS22 Working With Interpreters/Translators and English-Language Learners
Henriette W. Langdon, EdD, CCC-SLP
This session offers strategies for forming successful partnerships with interpreters/translators (I/Ts) to determine if an English-language learning (ELL) student is experiencing a language/learning problem and, if so, how to assess it, report results to parents and others, and create intervention plans. You'll learn to use the briefing, interaction, debriefing (BID) process to plan and conduct contacts with students and parents, and discuss ways to enhance your provision of services to students and their families.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- Use the BID process to form successful partnerships with I/Ts
- Select appropriate I/T candidates to work with you
- Discuss the roles of SLPs and I/Ts in successful parent conferences, assessment, reporting of assessment results, and intervention
- Describe the assets and limitations using the services of I/Ts and become proactive in participating in research in this topic area
CS23 Scaling Up: Working With Preschool Teachers to Make Research-Practice Connections in Emergent Literacy
Laura Justice, PhD, CCC-SLP
"Scaling up" means using scientifically-validated, efficacious practices in everyday environments. In this session, we examine scientifically-validated approaches that promote children's emergent literacy development, and consider ways to get these approaches into the everyday environment of preschool classrooms, particularly those serving at-risk children. We will try to understand who preschool teachers are, and what they believe and understand about emergent literacy. We will also explore how effective professional development happens and what teacher-SLP partnerships look like, drawing from the professional development literature.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- Identify three scientifically-validated approaches to promoting children's emergent literacy development
- Discuss five barriers to implementing effective practices in literacy in early childhood settings
- Describe three elements of effective professional development of teachers that promote change in instructional practices
PL2 Partnership as Power: Relationships That Enhance Professional Success
Sue T. Hale, MCD, CCC-SLP
Productive partnerships in the workplace allow professionals to exercise greater control over tasks, and result in greater workplace satisfaction and reduced stress and burnout. This session focuses on enhancing effective partnerships and minimizing the negative impact of less-than-effective partnerships. Learn to nurture effective workplace relationships to empower you and enhance your professional effectiveness.
After completing this session, you will be able to:
- Identify partnerships that enhance productivity and efficiency
- Employ effective team-building strategies
- Increase job satisfaction and reduce job stress through networking strategies
- Minimize the effects of work relationships that reduce productivity and effectiveness
