FEATURE

AG Bell Academy for Listening and Spoken Language®
Launches a New Certification Program for Educators of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing using an Auditory-Verbal Approach

Anita Bernstein, LsLS Cert. AVT® , Director of Therapy Services, VOICE for Hearing Impaired Children

In November 2007, the AG Bell Academy for Listening and Spoken Language® (The Academy) announced a new professional
certification program, Listening and Spoken Language Specialists® (LSLS ®), which encompasses Certified Auditory-Verbal
Therapists (LSLS Cert. AVT®) and Certified Auditory-Verbal Educators (LSLS Cert. AVEd®).

The AG Bell Academy is the certification body of the AG Bell Association which administers and sets standards for Auditory-Verbal Certification. Its aim in expanding the certification program to include educators is designed to increase the number of qualified and

distinguishable spoken language specialists who are available to help bring the option of spoken language to families whose children

with hearing loss are learning to listen and speak.

As a consequence of increased accessibility to early intervention and innovations in hearing technologies such as cochlear implants,

digital hearing aids, and integrated FM systems, there has been an explosion in the demand for spoken language specialists to provide

intervention to children with hearing loss. The Academy projects that the LSLS designation will become the standard parents look for if they choose a listening and spoken language outcome for their child.

Within the LSLS certification there are two separate distinctions– one for Auditory-Verbal Therapists and one for educators
– the examination given will be the same for both subcategories, however, the official designation will differ depending on the educational experience and work environment of the individual. The Academy developed the new LSLS designations based on the results of a job analysis conducted by PrometricTM, the leading global provider of comprehensive testing and assessment services. The analysis demonstrated that
the core tasks, skills, and knowledge used by listening and spoken language professionals have more similarities than differences.
All LSL specialists aim to develop spoken language through maximizing listening skills. A LSLS Cert AVT® focuses on guiding parents

to be the primary listening and language stimulators, provides intervention in a one on one setting and promotes the mainstream as the

immediate education placement option. A LSLS Cert. AVEd® focuses on teaching various sized instructional groups in classroom settings to prepare children who are deaf or hard of hearing to enter mainstream education and to support them there. A detailed description of the
LSLS certification process and the guiding principles for Cert AVTs® and Cert AVEds® can be viewed on the Academy website
www.agbellacademy.org/certification.htm. The new certification exam will be administered for the first time at the 2008
AG Bell biennial convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in June 2008.

These new guidelines for Listening and Spoken Language Specialists form the foundation for the VOICE Auditory Verbal Training and Mentorship Program. In the past only those able to provide intervention following the principles of AVT were eligible to participate in the
Mentorship Program. The new designation has now made it possible for educators, who work with groups of deaf or hard of hearing children who are learning to listen and speak, to take advantage of the VOICE Pilot AV Training Program being supported by the Ministry of Education.
Parents, children with hearing loss and school boards are looking forward to increased availability of highly specialized professionals who

support the spoken language communication development of children with hearing loss.

ag bell academy
Principles of LSLS Auditory-Verbal Therapy
1. Promote early diagnosis of hearing loss in newborns, infants, toddlers, and young children, followed by immediate audiologic

management and Auditory-Verbal Therapy.

2. Recommend immediate assessment and use of appropriate, state-of-the-art hearing technology to obtain maximum benefits of auditory
stimulation.

3. Guide and coach parents* to help their child use hearing as the primary sensory modality in developing spoken language without the

use of sign language or emphasis on lipreading.

4. Guide and coach parents* to become the primary facilitators of their child’s listening and spoken language development through
active consistent participation in individualized Auditory-Verbal Therapy.

5. Guide and coach parents* to create environments that support listening for the acquisition of spoken language throughout the
child’s daily activities.

6. Guide and coach parents* to help their child integrate listening and spoken language into all aspects of the child’s life.

7. Guide and coach parents* to use natural developmental patterns of audition, speech, language, cognition, and communication.

8. Guide and coach parents* to help their child self-monitor spoken language through listening.

9. Administer ongoing formal and informal diagnostic assessments to develop individualized Auditory-Verbal treatment plans,
to monitor progress and to evaluate the effectiveness of the plans for the child and family.

10. Promote education in regular schools with peers who have typical hearing and with appropriate services from early childhood
onwards.

An Auditory-Verbal Practice requires all 10 principles*

* The term “parents” also includes grandparents, relatives, guardians, and any caregivers who interact with the child.
(Adapted from the Principles originally developed by Doreen Pollack, 1970)

Adopted by the AG Bell Academy for Listening and Spoken Language®, July 26, 2007.

Ministry of Education Supports the VOICE Training and Mentoring Program in the Auditory- Verbal Approach
Anita Bernstein, LSLS Cert. AVT®, Director of Therapy Services, VOICE for Hearing Impaired Children

In the past decade increasing numbers of parents and professionals have became aware of the Auditory-Verbal Approach as a viable option for children with hearing losses. The Auditory-Verbal Approach is one of the communication intervention options presented to parents when their infant’s hearing loss is identified through the Ontario Provincial Infant Hearing Program. Parents who choose cochlear implants for their child
with a profound loss will also became involved in Auditory- Verbal intervention to ensure their child maximizes the hearing now available through this technology.

Educators and clinicians have sought out training in the Auditory-Verbal approach so that they could better support the growing numbers of children with hearing losses in mainstream classroom settings who were developing spoken language through hearing. Canadian
professional training programs introduce teachers of the deaf and speech-language pathologists to the Auditory-Verbal approach but do not allow for a thorough understanding of the methodology or practical application of Auditory-Verbal intervention.

VOICE has been well aware of the shortage of AV trained professionals and since 1992 it has provided an AV Training/Mentorship program which has successfully impacted a number of communities through its “train the trainer” model. The VOICE Training Program mentors
professionals by pairing teachers of the deaf or speech pathologists with certified Auditory-Verbal Therapists so that they can gain insight and practical experience in this approach. Upon completion of the training and the required experience, these professionals have the foundation to pursue AV certification as Listening and Spoken Language Specialists and then will be able to train others within their institutions.

In 2007, the Ontario Ministry of Education became increasingly cognizant of the growing need for AV trained professionals and recognized the expertise of the long-standing VOICE program. In the fall of 2007 a Pilot AV Training/Mentorship Program supported by the Ministry of Education was launched in four Ontario School Boards. Currently six professionals from the Lambton Kent District School Board, the St Clair Catholic District School Board, the Peel District School Board, and the Toronto Catholic District Board are training under the mentorship of a VOICE Certified Auditory-Verbal Therapist. The primary goal of the mentorship is to achieve a long-term change in services provided to students who are deaf and hard of hearing in their prospective boards by making available the option of on-going provision of AV communication development. The ultimate goal is to train Listening and Spoken Language Specialists who are capable of providing intervention in the Auditory-
Verbal approach and facilitate the transition of students from the Infant Hearing Program to the educational environment.

Since the launch of the pilot program in September 2007, information and/or presentations about the program have been provided to at least seven additional school boards. VOICE SEAC representatives have been instrumental in educating school boards about the availability of the Mentorship Program. If you would like more information about the AV Training/Mentorship Program, please contact Anita Bernstein, Director of Therapy Services at the VOICE office 416-487-7719 or abernstein@voicefordeafkids.com.