Word Finding Difficulties

Differential Diagnosis & Word Finding Intervention

Online Graduate Course in Word Finding Difficulties


Summer 2016
Online Graduate Course in Word Finding
SPE 525: Child Word-Finding: Intervention for Students with Language and Learning Disabilities

What: SPE 525, a 1 semester hour of graduate credit online graduate course in Child Word Finding will be taught starting June 27, 2016, by Dr. Diane German using the book, Word Finding Intervention Program, Second Edition (WFIP-2). Participants in this course will study one of the most prevalent language challenges among school children today, Word Finding Difficulties. See course description below. Through their studies participants will:

  • Acquire an understanding of the lexical access system underlying typical and atypical expressive language;
  • Learn to profile the three most prevalent Word-Finding error patterns;
  • Study a comprehensive intervention program, including retrieval strategy instruction, for learners challenged with Word-Finding;
  • Gain insights as to how Word-Finding difficulties impact on oral reading and written language; and
  • Become familiar with Differentiated Instruction in Word-Finding (word finding accomodations in the classroom) that reduces retrieval load, but not the workload inherent in classroom activities, exams, and homework.
Who: Professor Diane J. German, Ph.D.

Where: Online from National Louis University, Chicago, IL.

When: June 27, 2016 to July 29, 2016 . Final Assignment due August 2, 2016.

How: Registration now open. For specific information, email Dr. Diane J. German at dgerman@nl.edu.

Tuition: Special Tuition Rate Tuition rate for this 1 semester hour graduate course is $360, 1/2 the regular NLU tuition. (This rate reflects of 2015-2016 rate and is subject to an adjustment for 2016-2017 due to cost of living-related tuition increases). Fax credit card payments only to 847-465-4746. (Note that there is only one telephone number for the graduate registrar.) Personal check payments should be sent with your registration to: Graduate Registrar, National Louis University, 1000 Capitol Drive, Wheeling, IL 60090-7201.

Note: Completion of SPE 525 fulfills the 30 Certificate Maintenance Hours (CMHs) of professional development needed to maintain your ASHA Certificate of Clinical Competence (CCC) for each 3-year certification maintenance interval.

Please Email Diane J. German with questions or to receive introductory course material once you have registered for this class. She looks forward to meeting you in class.

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Reflections from five Speech-Language-Pathologists who recently completed SPE 525, Word-Finding Intervention:

Diane, Thank you for providing a fantastic class!  It is so refreshing to walk away with knowledge and tools that I can use immediately.  It is also refreshing to learn something new!  So often, I take a course or attend a conference only to feel as if the only thing I gained is CEU hours.  Thank you for making me work hard, think deeply about how I am using my new knowledge, and most of all, making me a much better therapist!

Jan Curley, M.S., CCC-SLP
Speech-Language Pathologist
Lake Highland Preparatory School
March 2014

“I just completed the Summer 2013 online course in Word Finding through National Louis University. I am currently preparing to return to school next week, armed with the new knowledge I gained this summer and I am so excited to work with my students and bring these new skills to help them with their word finding needs! During the course this summer, I was able to meet with one of my students, who agreed to participate as a case study for the course. I wish I could describe the look on his face when I met with him the second time, after teaching him retrieval strategies for specific words in our first meeting. The proud smile that crossed this middle school boy's face when he easily retrieved the words was remarkable, and I am looking forward to helping my other students feel the same relief this young man experienced.”

Beckie L. Seney, MS, CCC-SLP
Speech-Language Pathologist
Region One Schools
August 2013

“I'm finding it hard to put into words (funny since this was a word finding class, right!!) exactly what this course has offered.  I now feel well versed in the area of word finding.  I'm confident about the information learned and am already using what I have learned.  I commented to Dr. German that this class reaches far beyond just the treatment of students with word finding difficulties.  She is right when she encourages us to make a 'shift' in our thinking.  It really has been an eye opener about how I approach not only word finding but also so much more.  I would like you all to know that this opportunity has changed my thinking for the better. I plan on using what I have learned and will remember this class as I do so (and the word rhododendron ...  my evasive word, to which I applied retrieval strategies, will NEVER leave my head again!).”   

Pam Bordas, MS, CCC-SLP
Greenwich Central School District
August 2013

 

Thank you so much for the opportunity to take your class!  It is one of the only post-graduate level classes I have taken that directly impacts how I deliver therapy to my students."

Beth McNamara, MS, CCC-SLP
Speech-Language Pathologist
Timony Grammar School
August 2013

"The class has forever changed my thinking about word finding difficulties and will change my treatment plans and classroom accommodations of children with word finding difficulties starting immediately."

Brooke Perkins, M.S., CCC-SLP
Speech-Language Pathologist
Lyon School
August 2013

"The knowledge I gained will be invaluable to me in my work with my elementary students.  I hope to encourage others to take this course."


Mary Washburn, MS, CCC-SLP
Speech-Language Pathologist
Peregrine Elementary
August 2013

Also read an article about SPE 525, written by Tatyana Elleseff, a student in the Summer 2012 SPE 525 course offering.

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