MAILED: June 21, 2001
EAU CLAIRE - A University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire faculty member has
received $8,165 from the UW-System’s Undergraduate Teaching and Learning Grant
to implement a project to benefit faculty and students in the field of
communication disorders.
Dr. Linda Carpenter, professor of communication
disorders, has created a project titled “Videotapes for Case Studies in
Communication Disorders,” an extension of her 1996 book, “Case Files:
Interactive Studies in Language Assessment.”
“We’re now in 2001 and it’s time for a new edition.
Rather than redoing the text, we’re creating new case studies,” Carpenter
said. “For academic aspects of teaching, there is a need at this moment for
case materials.”
And according to Carpenter, the availability of such
materials on videotape is currently very limited. Carpenter’s goal is to
produce high-quality, commercially viable materials that present case materials
and resources for instructional use. Students and faculty could purchase these
materials for class, or for out-of-class assignments.
“We hope to have six cases. Each case will have several
videotape clips,” Carpenter said. “The focus is on helping individuals learn
how to do assessments of people who are referred for evaluation of suspected
communication disorders.”
Participants will include one student each from
preschool, second grade, fifth grade, middle school and high school, as well as
one adult. At the moment they still need fifth grade, middle and high school
participants.
Even though this project is designed to help the
participants as well as students and faculty, Carpenter said she finds it
difficult to find people in those age groups willing to participate. “Parents
are understandably concerned about spotlighting their children’s
disabilities,” Carpenter said, noting that it’s often a matter of helping
both parents and participants understand they’re not going to do anything that
would be embarrassing or awkward.
The project will include 20 to 30 minutes of videotape of
each participant. There will be interviews with the subjects, story-telling and
conversational samples as well as interviews with parents of the younger
children. Background information, case histories and test performances also will
be provided. Each case could be used individually for a more in-depth study in
the university setting.
With the help of Thinking Publications and Post House,
the project will be completed by the end of June 2002. Both businesses are based
in Eau Claire.
Carpenter said they plan to start taping first and decide
on the delivery format later. She would like to have the video material
available for downloading from the Internet, but for the convenience of the
viewers (downloads can take a long time) a CD ROM may be put out first, with the
Web site following.
“This product will get created with the help of the UW
System, which is a nice thing,” Carpenter said.
The Undergraduate Teaching and Learning Grant is a newly
established program that seeks proposals aimed at improving undergraduate
teaching and student learning. It is designed to strengthen UW System resources
and better meet the needs of the institutions that apply for System funds.
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RM/NW
[Administrative Offices]
[News Bureau]
Janice B. Wisner
UW-Eau Claire News Bureau
Schofield 201
(715) 836-4741
newsbur@uwec.edu
Updated: June 21, 2001
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