This week, Chris chats with Michaela Ball, TWT’s Audio Engineer & SLP Grad Student, about getting a certification in Assistive Technology while she finishes her Master’s degree. They have a lively discussion about why Chris thinks that the time and money spent on AT certification could be better spent on other kinds of professional development.
Before the interview, Chris and Rachel discuss a recent experience Chris had in a classroom of young students playing Minecraft, including using Immersive Reader to read text in the game and learning about coding while playing Minecraft.
Key Ideas This Week:
🔑 In many parts of the US, there are lots of SLP jobs available without needing a specific certification to get the job. AT jobs may or may not be more competitive depending on the area you work in.
🔑 People who choose to get certification have good reasons to do so, but getting a certification can be a large expenditure of time and money that could be spent more effectively in other ways.
🔑 RESNA certification could be useful in situations where professional competence is called into question or to improve your resume when looking for AT jobs. Chris has heard from RESNA-certified colleagues that their certification was not very useful in improving their day-to-day work as an AT professional.
Help us develop new content and keep the podcast going strong! Support our podcast at patreon.com/talkingwithtech!
Visit talkingwithtech.org to access previous episodes, resources, and CEU credits that you can earn for listening to TWT episodes!
Otto Lana: Autistic Advocate, Writer, Actor, and AAC User
Rémi Morin - Creating the Canadian-French Version of LAMP:WFL as a Parent
Emily Macklin, Neha Sharma, & Amber Skerry: Supporting Communication for Deafblind Students
McKinzee Steve, Danielle Welge, & Kendra Everette (Part 2): Providing High-Tech AAC as a Tier 2 Early Childhood Intervention
McKinzee Steve, Danielle Welge, & Kendra Everette (Part 1): Providing District-Led 1:1 AAC Training to Parents
Emily Taylor: Using Social Media to Promote Your AAC Resources
April Wallace & Christina Stader - Specific Language System First Approach Q&A
Dr. Barry Prizant (Part 2): Is ”Spelling to Communicate” Authentic Communication?
Dr. Barry Prizant (Part 1): Echolalia and Gestalt Language Processing
Kimberly Neely: The Trauma-Informed SLP
Barbara Gruber & Ashley Grady: Supporting Accessibility and Inclusion at the Smithsonian Institution
Tiffanie Zaugg: Creating an AAC Facilitator’s Guide for a School District
Ashley Waterman: Supporting Language as a Parent of an AAC User
Judith Schoonover (Part 2): The Role of OTs in AAC Assessment
Judith Schoonover (Part 1): Quickly Create AT Solutions From Common Objects
Recast: AAC Modeling Roundtable
Recast: Chris Klein: The Importance of Motor Planning
Recast: Shaun Pearson & Chris Chicoskikelly: The AAC Agreements
Recast: Core Words Roundtable
Jordyn Zimmerman: Overcoming Limiting Beliefs in the Education System
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
Navigating Life After 40
Teaching Learning Leading K-12
Regenerative Skills
The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast
The Mel Robbins Podcast