Catherine Crowley and Miriam Baigorri lead their Teachers College Columbia University speech language pathology graduate students on annual trips to Ghana, West Africa. There, they work in hospitals and schools for people with communication disabilities including those with autism, intellectual disabilities, cerebral palsy, hearing loss, and speech and language disorders. Read More
Category: Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC)
Ghana Winter 2013: Professional Development Retreat
Dr. Catherine Crowley and Miriam Baigorri lead their graduate students in speech-language pathology at Teachers College Columbia University to Ghana each year to provide free services to people with communication disorders and to build capacity and exchange knowledge and skills with their colleagues in Ghana. This January 2013 three-day professional development retreat focused on Augmentation and Alternative Communication (AAC) including narrative stories, adapted from Carol Grey’s excellent work in “Social Stories”, word walls, and general education AAC materials, i.e., the calendar, schedules, and math. Fifty teachers from Ghana’s Unit Schools attended. Unit Schools are schools of about 2 or 3 classrooms for students with intellectual disabilities within general education schools. Ten general education teachers attended along with dignitaries from Ghana’s Ministry of Education Division of Special Education including Mr. Thomas Otaah, Mr. George Pat Takie, and Mr. Kobina Baidoo, and Ms. Sara Stryker of the United States Embassy in Accra, Ghana. Read More
