This presentation includes:

1. Information forSEACONancy Grosz SagerDeaf and Hard of Hearing Programs ConsultantJanuary 21, 2010

2. This presentation includes: Educational Interpreter Waivers Update Early Start for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Infants and Toddlers CAHSEE Update

3. Educational Interpreters

4. An "educational interpreter" provides communication facilitation between students who are deaf or hard of hearing, and others, in the general education classroom and for other school related activities, including extracurricular activities, as designated in a student's Individualized Educational Program (IEP).

5. IDEA The educational interpreter is a related service provider on a student’s IEP, which means that the interpreter is an IEP team member.

6. History In 2000, the CDE convened a stakeholders group to make recommendations regarding qualification standards for educational interpreters.

7. 2002 • 5 CCR 3051.16 • By July 1, 2007, educational interpreters must be certified by the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf (RID), or equivalent.

8. 5 years The regulation was passed in 2002, to go into effect in 2007, in order to give interpreters and LEAs five years to prepare for the implementation.

9. 2002-2005 • Grants were provided to LEAs to train and assess interpreters. • A grant was provided to Palomar College to establish a one-time distance learning program for educational interpreters.

10. 2007 5 CCR 3051.16 was amended • Frequent questions about what assessments were acceptable in lieu of RID certification • Concerns raised by the California School Employees Association that interpreters had not had enough time to meet the qualification standard.

11. By July 1, 2008 By July 1, 2008, an educational interpreter shall be certified by the national Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf (RID), or equivalent;

12. in lieu of RID certification or equivalent, an educational interpreter shall have achieved a score of 3.0 or above on the Educational Interpreter Performance Assessment (EIPA),

13. the Educational Sign Skills Evaluation-Interpreter and Receptive (ESSE-I/R),

14. or the National Association of the Deaf/American Consortium of Certified Interpreters (NAD/ACCI) assessment. • This assessment is no longer given.

15. If providing Cued Language transliteration, a transliterator shall possess Testing/Evaluation and Certification Unit (TECUnit) certification, or have achieved a score of 3.0 or above on the EIPA - Cued Speech.

16. By July 1, 2009 By July 1, 2009, and thereafter, an educational interpreter shall be certified by the national RID, or equivalent;

17. in lieu of RID certification or equivalent, an educational interpreter must have achieved a score of 4.0 or above on the EIPA, the ESSE-I/R, or the NAD/ACCI assessment.

18. If providing Cued Language transliteration, a transliterator shall possess TECUnit certification, or have achieved a score of 4.0 or above on the EIPA - Cued Speech.

19. Assessments: EIPA • Educational Interpreter Performance Assessment (EIPA) http://www.classroominterpreting.org (Outside Source) • Boys Town National Research Hospital • Local test administrators (LTAs) send tapes to Boys Town for scoring • Some districts have become LTAs • Interpreter receives one composite score

20. Assessments (ESSE) • Educational Sign Skills Evaluation (I/R) • SEE Center (Los Alamitos, CA) http://www.seecenter.org (Outside Source) • Tests are given at SEE Center, but SEE Center sometimes provides local test administration • Interpreter must receive 4.0 or above on both Expressive Interpreting (I) portion and Receptive (R) portion of the assessment

21. N.B. BOTH ASSESSMENTS HAVE SIX MONTH TURN AROUND TIME.

22. Level 5: Advanced • Demonstrates broad and fluent use of vocabulary, with a broad range of strategies for communicating new words and concepts. Sign production errors are minimal and never interfere with comprehension. Prosody is correct for grammatical, non-manual markers, and affective purposes. Complex grammatical constructions are typically not a problem. Comprehension of sign messages is very good, communicating all details of the original message. • An individual at this level is capable of clearly and accurately conveying the majority of interactions within the classroom. • http://www.classroominterpreting.org (Outside Source)

23. Level 4: Advanced Intermediate • Demonstrates broad use of vocabulary with sign production that is generally correct. Demonstrates good strategies for conveying information when a specific sign is not in his/her vocabulary. Grammatical constructions are generally clear and consistent, but complex information may still pose occasional problems. Prosody is good, with appropriate facial expression most of the time. May still have difficulty with the use of facial expression in complex sentences and adverbial non-manual markers. Fluency may deteriorate when rate or complexity of communication increases. Uses space consistently most of the time, but complex constructions or extended use of discourse cohesion may still pose problems. Comprehension of most signed messages at a normal rate is good, but translation may lack some complexity of the original message. • An individual at this level would be able to convey much of the classroom content but may have difficulty with complex topics or rapid turn taking. • http://www.classroominterpreting.org (Outside Source)

24. Level 3: Intermediate • Demonstrates knowledge of basic vocabulary, but will lack vocabulary for more technical, complex, or academic topics. Individual is able to sign in a fairly fluent manner using some consistent prosody, but pacing is still slow with infrequent pauses for vocabulary or complex structures. Sign production may show some errors but generally will not interfere with communication. Grammatical production may still be incorrect, especially for complex structures, but is in general intact for routine and simple language. Comprehends signed messages but may need repetition and assistance. Voiced translation often lacks depth and subtleties of the original message. An individual at this level would be able to communicate very basic classroom content, but may incorrectly interpret complex information resulting in a message that is not always clear. • An interpreter at this level needs continued supervision and should be required to participate in continuing education in interpreting. • http://www.classroominterpreting.org (Outside Source)

25. Level 2: Advanced Beginner • Demonstrates only basic sign vocabulary and these limitations interfere with communication. Lack of fluency and sign production errors are typical and often interfere with communication. The interpreter often hesitates in signing, as if searching for vocabulary. Frequent errors in grammar are apparent, although basic signed sentences appear intact. More complex grammatical structures are typically difficult. Individual is able to read signs at the word level and simple sentence level but complete or complex sentences often require repetitions and repairs. Some use of prosody and space, but use is inconsistent and often incorrect. • An individual at this level is not recommended for classroom interpreting. • http://www.classroominterpreting.org (Outside Source)

26. Level 1: Beginner • Demonstrates very limited sign vocabulary with frequent errors in production. At times, production may be incomprehensible. Grammatical structure tends to be nonexistent. Individual is only able to communicate very simple ideas and demonstrates great difficulty understanding signed communication. Sign production lacks prosody and use of space for the vast majority of the interpreted message. • An individual at this level is not recommended for classroom interpreting. • http://www.classroominterpreting.org (Outside Source)

27. Current StatusSpecial Education Personnel Data Report

28. Waivers 2007-08 • LACOE – 1 • San Bernardino COE - 3 • Imperial COE – 5 • Desert Sands USD – 6 • Total = 15 (approved) • 110.67 not fully certified interpreter FTEs

29. Waivers 2008-09 • Lemoore UHSD – 1 • San Bernardino COE – 1 • Riverside COE – 3 • Desert Sands USD – 6 • Chino Valley USD – 2 • Imperial COE – 5 • Total = 18 (approved) • 98.92 not fully certified FTEs

30. Waivers 2009-10 • July • Placer COE – 3 • September • Kings COE – 3 • Clovis USD – 4 • Total = 10 (approved)

31. Waiver 2009-10 • November • Modesto City HSD – 3 • Solano COE – 4 • Escondido USD – 1 • Hanford USD – 1 • San Bernardino COE – 5 • Monterey COE – 10 • LAUSD – 6 • Sutter COE – 4 • Dinuba USD – 2 • Butte COE – 3 • Lindsay USD - 3 • Total = 42 • Other requests were received, but held because the interpreters did not have assessment scores.

32. November • 32 approved (all had scores between 3.0 and 3.9) • 10 denied (all had scores below 3.0) • Waiver policy approved by the State Board

33. Waiver Policy • At the November 2009 meeting, the SBE also approved a State Board of Education (SBE) Waiver Policy for Educational Interpreters Not Meeting Regulatory Standards, available at: http://www.cde.ca.gov/re/lr/wr/documents/interpreter_000.doc

34. Consent Calendar Criteria • LEA must submit current job description that reflects regulatory requirement • Must be interpreter’s first waiver request • Must be interpreter’s first year of employment • Interpreter must have current assessment score between 3.0 and 3.9

35. Non-consent Waiver Requirements If no current assessment scores, must provide EIPA pre-hire recommendation from Boys Town. • $10 mailing for kit • $75 per interpreter • 72 hour turn around once Boys Town receives tapes • Hire, hire with caution, do not hire • Does not replace assessment

36. Non-Consent Waiver Requirements LEAs must provide current assessment scores from either the EIPA or the ESSE (I/R). Current means within the past school year.

37. EIPA Pre-hire Screen • Chris Grassmeyer • EIPA Diagnostic Center • Boys Town National Research Hospital • 502-452-5039

38. Waiver Requirements • Name, date, and score of recent assessment • Names, dates, and scores of previous assessments • Date of hire • Efforts made by LEA to train interpreter since 2002 • Training efforts pursued by the interpreter since 2002 • Remediation plan signed by interpreter and union representative • Copy of current job description for educational interpreters

39. Examples (yes!) • Mentoring by RID certified interpreter • Enrollment in interpreter training program.

40. Waiver 2009-10 • January • El Dorado COE -1 • Lemoore UHSD – 1 • LAUSD – 4 • Clovis USD – 5 • Chino USD – 1 • Total = 12

41. Waiver 2009-10 • March • Plumas USD – 1 • Desert Sands USD – 4 • Total = 5 • Recommending denial for one • Two are 3rd time waivers – unsure what SBE will do

42. Waiver 2009-10 • We are currently holding Waiver Requests from four LEAs, pending receipt of current assessments or pre-hire screens.

43. Where to find training? • Contact local RID chapter (Outside Sources) for interpreters who can provide mentoring: • http://www.savrid.org • http://www.ccrid.org • http://www.scrid.org • http://www.norcrid.org • http://sdcrid.org

44. Where to find training? • SEE Center http://www.seecenter.org (Outside Source) • EIPA Diagnostic Center http://www.classroominterpreting.org(Outside Source) • Cypress College (Dennis Davino) http://cypresscollege.edu/~ddavino (Outside Source)

45. Where to find training? • Signs of Development http://www.signs-of-development.org (Outside Source) • Distance Opportunities for Interpreter Training (DOIT Center at University of Northern Colorado) http://www.unc.edu/doit (Outside Source) • Sign Language Specialists On-Line Focus http://www.signlanguagespecialists.com (Outside Source)

46. American River College CSU Northridge CSU Fresno Golden West College El Camino College Pierce College Mount San Antonio College Ohlone College Oxnard College Palomar College Riverside Community College San Diego Mesa College Where to find training?

47. Additional information on the waiver process can be found at: http://www.cde.ca.gov/re/lr/wr/othertopics.asp#interpreter, or by calling the CDE Waiver Office at (916) 319-0824.

48. Summary • Job descriptions must require interpreters to meet regulatory qualification standard. • Interpreters must be RID certified or be Level 4 or above on the EIPA, ESSE, or NAD/ACCI. • You may apply for waivers for interpreters who have not met the standard. • The waiver requests must meet specified requirements.

49. Early Start for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Infants and Toddlers

50. History of Deaf EducationThe Hundred Years War Spoken language is the most natural way for human beings to communicate. For a child who is deaf or hard of hearing, a visual language (American Sign Language) is the most natural way to communicate.