Latest / Live in the Lab Schools / Ep #11 - HILIA: How Inclusive Learning Involves All in the Lab Schools

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Ep #11 - HILIA: How Inclusive Learning Involves All in the Lab Schools · Live in the Lab Schools

0:08
Andy Goveia: This week on Live in the Lab Schools, we have some people from the HILLIA program, which is based in the lab schools.
0:13
Andy Goveia: It's the Heart of Illinois Low Incidence Association.
0:15
Andy Goveia: They're here to talk about their work meeting students who have low incidence disabilities.
0:20
Andy Goveia: You're in for a great conversation.
0:21
Andy Goveia: Stay tuned.
0:22
Andy Goveia: My name is Ben Webb.
0:23
Andy Goveia: This is Andy Govey.
0:24
Andy Goveia: Welcome to Live in the Lab Schools.
0:34
unknown: Mr.
0:35
Andy Goveia: Govey, how's your week going?
0:36
Andy Goveia: It's Monday.
0:38
Andy Goveia: We just got done with a college council meeting.
0:41
Andy Goveia: Uh-huh.
0:42
Andy Goveia: It's going fine.
0:43
Andy Goveia: And then the whole afternoon afterwards, just record what we're doing.
0:45
Andy Goveia: We're recording.
0:47
Andy Goveia: It's good.
0:47
Andy Goveia: We're back.
0:48
Ben Webb: It's been a month since we've recorded.
0:52
Ben Webb: We honestly did a bunch of recordings back to back and then realized after the fact, oh, we we might need another episode.
0:58
Ben Webb: And you did your remote episode that's going live soon.
1:01
Ben Webb: Yes.
1:01
Ben Webb: I did my episode with Molly Allen.
1:04
Ben Webb: So like we we worked ahead and then we kind of petered out towards the end where we need a little bit more content.
1:10
Ben Webb: February is a crazy month of teaching.
1:13
Ben Webb: Well, and I I would argue like February is a crazy month, but so is the months to come.
1:18
Andy Goveia: Like between now and the end of school.
1:20
Andy Goveia: Yeah, we have standardized testing.
1:22
Andy Goveia: So like the IAR ISA window is nuts.
1:26
Andy Goveia: Um and you guys have ACT season, right?
1:29
Andy Goveia: SAT season.
1:30
Ben Webb: And then end of your concerts will hit, graduation, prom.
1:33
Ben Webb: It's gonna be a busy.
1:34
Ben Webb: So I'm I'm glad we're kind of getting ahead of schedule again, so that when we get closer and closer to the end of the school, it's just like, all right, queue up episode.
1:41
Ben Webb: We already pre-recorded.
1:43
Ben Webb: Yeah.
1:43
Ben Webb: I'll do my best to not reference things that are current so as not to get so when this episode drops at the end of March.
1:50
Ben Webb: We have a frequent listener who has shared, hey, you're saying things out of order.
1:54
Ben Webb: And I'm like, I know.
1:55
Ben Webb: Who cares?
1:56
Andy Goveia: Let us live our lives.
1:57
Andy Goveia: Um that's not why we're here today, though, to talk about grievances.
2:01
Andy Goveia: We are here.
2:02
Andy Goveia: Uh, as I said in the the intro, we have some people from the HILIA program, which uh, if you're not familiar with HILIA, you're gonna learn a lot about it today.
2:12
Andy Goveia: Uh again, like I said in the intro, HILIA stands for the Heart of Illinois Low Incidence Association.
2:18
Andy Goveia: Primarily, it is a program that exists to serve certain uh low incidence disabilities in this area.
2:25
Andy Goveia: And the three people here today are gonna share more about that and what they do.
2:28
Andy Goveia: So we are welcoming Lisa Kendall, HILIA Director.
2:33
SPEAKER_04: Hello, Dr.
2:34
Andy Goveia: Molly Turner, uh, an itinerant teacher, lead itinerant teacher of the deaf.
2:39
SPEAKER_05: Hello.
2:40
Andy Goveia: And then Lisa Tabeka, uh lead teacher of the visually impaired.
2:44
SPEAKER_05: Hello.
2:45
Andy Goveia: Welcome.
2:45
Andy Goveia: We are so glad you're here.
2:47
Andy Goveia: Um, let's do this.
2:48
Andy Goveia: So, could each of you take a second and walk us through who you are and how you ended up in the role you were in?
2:56
SPEAKER_04: All right, let's go ahead and start.
2:58
SPEAKER_04: This is Lisa Kendall.
3:00
SPEAKER_04: Uh, I am the HILLIA director.
3:02
SPEAKER_04: I had to think about it, but this is my 25th year in special education.
3:08
SPEAKER_04: I have been in this particular role since 2012.
3:12
SPEAKER_04: Um, the role has shifted and changed, ebbed and flowed throughout the course of my time here.
3:18
SPEAKER_04: But um what I did prior to this was focus all on the age group of high school students, and coming to this particular position has allowed me to work with students and staff in programming ages three through 22, um, which is of particular interest.
3:39
SPEAKER_04: And being able to work with a variety of professionals over the co the region that we work with is um something that keeps me doing this job.
3:52
Andy Goveia: Molly.
3:54
SPEAKER_00: Yes, um, I am Molly Turner, the lead itinerant teacher of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing with HILIA.
4:00
SPEAKER_00: This is my 13th year working in the field of deaf education and my first year in this current role.
4:07
SPEAKER_00: Um, prior to beginning my work in HILIA programming at the lab schools, I earned an undergraduate degree in deaf ed from ISU and a graduate degree from Washington University in deaf education.
4:20
SPEAKER_00: Um, and after graduate school, I was excited to return to where my journey began, contribute to programming that closely aligned to my studies and be part of the strong collaboration between the lab schools and the university.
4:34
SPEAKER_00: So all of my career has been spent um both in the special education department at ISU and at the lab schools.
4:42
Andy Goveia: Molly and I started together way back when.
4:45
Andy Goveia: First year together.
4:46
unknown: Oh yeah.
4:46
Andy Goveia: 13 years ago.
4:49
Andy Goveia: Feels like a lifetime.
4:50
Andy Goveia: Uh Lisa Tobacca, what about you?
4:52
SPEAKER_05: Yes, the other Lisa.
4:53
SPEAKER_05: Um, this Are you always the other Lisa?
4:56
SPEAKER_05: Well, it's like Lisa T or Lisa K, you know, it can be confusing some days, but um, this school year marks my 18th year with HILIA.
5:07
SPEAKER_05: And I will say that my role within HILIA has uh changed and evolved throughout the years.
5:14
SPEAKER_05: Um, but I will say that one thing is just for certain that I have been so fortunate to work with the best students, the best families, staff, and service providers.
5:26
SPEAKER_05: As a graduate of Illinois State University, um having completed the undergraduate program in low vision and blindness, I've also enjoyed collaborating with ISU and just promoting that undergraduate program.
5:39
SPEAKER_05: And then more recently, they added a master's program really just to focus and foster um those future TVIs.
5:46
SPEAKER_05: And so it's just been great to um have that collaboration.
5:51
SPEAKER_05: Um, and I can't really imagine doing anything else.
5:54
SPEAKER_05: So yeah, that's me.
5:57
Ben Webb: I feel like we have so many interviews where it's like, okay, got the dream job.
6:01
Ben Webb: So it's just kind of cool to hear that.
6:04
Andy Goveia: That's a really cool thread about a lot of people we've interviewed this year.
6:06
Andy Goveia: It's just talking about the job being a fit or something they've been passionate about or interesting.
6:11
Andy Goveia: And it's a cool thread that people may not recognize about people coming to work here.
6:16
Ben Webb: So and one of the questions that we often ask, and we kind of get back from whether it's like we are in charge of a building or we're in charge of a certain age group.
6:24
Ben Webb: So, like we always kind of talk through like take us through what your programming is, or like in this case, take us through what HILIA is, how does it operate, the students, its position in relation to the lab schools.
6:37
Ben Webb: And I I say that with an understanding of there's some sensitivity about what you can and cannot talk about.
6:42
Ben Webb: Um, but like what about in relation to the entire region services?
6:46
Ben Webb: So, kind of like what can you share about that in terms of like HILIA and that component?
6:52
SPEAKER_04: Yeah, so the heart of Illinois Low Incidence Association, so easy to serve.
6:57
SPEAKER_04: HILIA, right?
6:58
SPEAKER_04: You you don't usually hear us refer to it in its formal name.
7:02
SPEAKER_04: Um but HILIA was formed to promote, establish, and maintain a continuum of services for children with the low incidence disabilities or eligibilities of deafness, hearing impairment, andor visual impairment.
7:19
SPEAKER_04: So HILIA is a regional special education program that exists in collaboration with six partnering entities.
7:27
SPEAKER_04: We partner with Bloomington School District 87, Livingston County Special Services Unit, Tri-County Special Ed Association, McLean County Unit 5, Illinois State University Lab Schools, and the Regional Office of Education number 17.
7:49
SPEAKER_04: So we serve students within um the four counties of McLean, Livingston, DeWitt, and Logan, in over 30 school districts and an estimated 4,000 square miles.
8:04
SPEAKER_04: Um, and then these students that have unique vision and hearing needs are met through a continuum of services, either through HILIA services in the students' homeschool districts or HILIA services at Illinois State University lab schools.
8:20
Andy Goveia: So that's Ben and I were counting that as six different educational units.
8:26
Andy Goveia: HILIA, if you want to call it the seventh.
8:28
Andy Goveia: So like you have six different educational units you are spanning across.
8:32
Andy Goveia: Right.
8:33
Andy Goveia: So how we talk we talked to you as like you're the third unit of the lab schools, but like what does the actual like governance of HILLIA look like?
8:42
Andy Goveia: How does how does the operation operate?
8:45
SPEAKER_04: How does the operation operate like I like it?
8:48
SPEAKER_04: That's a that's a that's a good Monday phrase.
8:50
Ben Webb: English teacher here is gonna throw a yellow, like a red flag on that one.
8:54
Ben Webb: Football's over.
8:56
SPEAKER_04: So there's six partnering entities, four of them are students that we serve.
9:02
SPEAKER_04: So we start serve students from District 87, Unit 5, and then the two special ed cooperatives, Livingston County Special Services Unit and Tri-County Special Ed Association.
9:17
SPEAKER_04: The Illinois State University Lab Schools, as we'll say, a fifth member of this regional program, um, is where we have all of the staff that service the students.
9:30
SPEAKER_04: Um, we have our itinerant staff that service students out in the homeschool districts.
9:34
SPEAKER_04: We also have staff then that service students in the Illinois State University lab schools, either Metcalf or UHI.
9:43
SPEAKER_04: And then the Regional Office of Education, being that sixth partnering entity, um, is our fiscal agent and the operating body that that houses different programs.
9:55
SPEAKER_04: Um the governing body of HILIA, uh, you would say are the um the board that consists of the four directors of special ed of the four entities that we service and the director of the lab schools.
10:12
SPEAKER_04: So those five individuals make up the HILIA board.
10:15
SPEAKER_04: Um, and that is the decision maker for the program itself.
10:21
Ben Webb: And you guys have figured out teleportation because that's some major square footage and some crazy amount of coverage.
10:27
SPEAKER_04: We have figured out teleportation.
10:29
SPEAKER_04: Okay.
10:30
Andy Goveia: Wow, you heard it here.
10:31
Andy Goveia: Leaders in educational practice and space-time travel.
10:35
Andy Goveia: Um how long uh has HILIA been around then?
10:41
SPEAKER_04: So HILIA in this um current form with these six partnering entities was formed in 1996.
10:50
SPEAKER_04: Um, with the premise of servicing students with low incidence disabilities.
10:55
SPEAKER_04: The services provided um have evolved certainly throughout the years to meet the ever-growing needs, changing needs of both the students that we serve as well as our districts that we partner with.
11:09
Andy Goveia: Awesome.
11:09
Andy Goveia: So let's get into what I love about working with you all in the HILLIA programming is you are very much a student-first group of people, and you always are using student-first language and putting them first.
11:22
Andy Goveia: So I think what a lot of people might want to know is when HILIA gets involved in a student's education because of that disability or that eligibility, who is then eligible?
11:33
Andy Goveia: What services do they get?
11:34
Andy Goveia: How do we deliver those services?
11:37
Andy Goveia: What is the actual student side of what we've just talked about look like?
11:41
SPEAKER_04: Sure.
11:42
SPEAKER_04: So students eligible for a 504 plan or an individualized educational program known as an IEP, under the categories of hearing impairment, deafness, or low vision blindness are those students that are eligible for HILIA services.
12:01
SPEAKER_04: Um together, um, the home school districts 504 team or IEP team work to determine student needs and how best to meet them on the continuum.
12:12
SPEAKER_04: So when I say continuum, we're referring to a continuum of services that range from different services and placement.
12:21
SPEAKER_04: Our continuum includes a range of HILIA services in the homeschool district or HILIA services in the lab schools.
12:30
SPEAKER_04: Our services that are in the home school districts are provided by itinerant teachers of students with visual impairments or teachers of the deaf heart of hearing.
12:39
SPEAKER_04: Those itinerant teachers collaborate with building level teams in the home school district to ensure that students' comprehensive educational needs are addressed.
12:49
SPEAKER_04: And then HILIA services in the lab schools are provided by a team of educators with expertise in the areas of deaf, heart of hearing, and low vision blindness.
13:00
SPEAKER_04: Students receiving those services are transported to the lab school by their home school district.
13:06
SPEAKER_04: And it does maintain to be a team decision whether HILIA services take place in the homeschool district or in the lab schools, and that is all based on individual student need.
13:18
Andy Goveia: So you guys are all going to talk about low vision blindness, deaf and hard of hearing.
13:23
Andy Goveia: HELIA also has, we also have, at least in the lab schools, a speech pathologist that works with students as well as a special education teacher that also works to support students.
13:32
Andy Goveia: So not only do we have those specialized um teachers, we also have some other supports based on that student's specific needs, what services they receive.
13:41
SPEAKER_04: Sure.
13:42
SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
13:42
SPEAKER_04: So hearing impairment, deafness, low vision blindness are always eligibilities that our students have that are receiving our services.
13:51
SPEAKER_04: But there are students that have additional eligibilities or disabilities that also receive services from us.
14:00
SPEAKER_04: Um, it's just those areas then are serviced through other individuals that have expertise in those particular areas.
14:09
Andy Goveia: So, what is the home district involvement in education look like if they're receiving services through HILIA in the lab schools?
14:16
SPEAKER_04: So if we have students that are receiving HILIA services in the lab schools, the lab schools are known as the serving school.
14:25
SPEAKER_04: Um, it is simply the place that services take place.
14:30
SPEAKER_04: Uh there is no simplicity about that necessarily, but the home school district is still very much involved.
14:39
SPEAKER_04: Um and everything in regards to student data, residency requirements, um, special education services that must be provided are all the responsibility of the student's home school district to ensure.
14:55
SPEAKER_04: I like how you said there's no simplicity about I know it makes it makes it sound like it's pretty simple, but it's it's a pretty elaborate.
15:03
SPEAKER_04: These these students that have these areas of need um have some pretty significant needs.
15:09
SPEAKER_04: Um and I think we do a real good job in servicing them, whether that be those HILIA services in the home school district or the lab schools.
15:18
Andy Goveia: I think you touched on the simplicity, um, just of how involved the collaboration is between home districts and the team within the HILIA programming.
15:28
Andy Goveia: Like it's not just because a student is being serviced by HILIA, they are not then automatically a HILIA student.
15:36
Andy Goveia: They are, but they are also still a Unit Fiverr, a District 87.
15:39
Andy Goveia: I mean, they are still there's kind of multiple identities that student still carries because of the team nature of decision making about their specific services and programming.
15:50
SPEAKER_04: Yep.
15:51
SPEAKER_04: Those students are registered at both their homeschool and at Metcalf or UHI.
15:55
SPEAKER_04: Those students are transported by their home school through their um busing system.
16:02
SPEAKER_04: Um, student fees and different things like that all go through the students' homeschool.
16:08
SPEAKER_04: Um, and yes, the collaborative nature, there is not a student receiving HILLIA services at the lab schools where we are not in contact with the homeschool andor their presence at IEP meetings is is required.
16:26
Ben Webb: Sometimes I feel like, and I t tell me if I'm wrong.
16:29
Ben Webb: Always Well I am always wrong.
16:32
Ben Webb: Um, there's kind of a perception that we at the lab schools are kind of like our own like walled garden.
16:39
Ben Webb: I'm glad to hear, and I think I I know this because I get to work with you guys, like how collaborative you are in those other districts and also in the lab schools, like you are a part of so many teams supporting so many students.
16:52
Ben Webb: So I love hearing that, and I just I'm glad for that because sometimes I think we get a bad rap about like, well, they go to this, you know, walled off garden that is either Metcalf or UHI.
17:04
Ben Webb: I did not mean to go down the octave when I started saying that, but I did.
17:07
Ben Webb: You got serious.
17:10
SPEAKER_04: Yeah, yeah.
17:11
SPEAKER_04: Right.
17:12
SPEAKER_04: Special education, which is what we all do, whether it be in the lab schools or whether it be in the homeschools, is not done in a silo.
17:21
SPEAKER_04: Um, by nature, all of us special educators, whether that be focusing in deaf heart of hearing, low vision blindness, we work as teams to um focus on the comprehensive students' needs.
17:33
SPEAKER_04: And even my colleagues know and hear this all the time that working with them um is so much better than just working by yourself.
17:44
SPEAKER_04: And and you don't get the same result um working by yourself as you do working with a team, especially with a team of varied individuals, um, varied lenses and perspectives all coming together to meet student needs.
18:00
Andy Goveia: I've had the privilege, and you probably have too, Ben, throughout the years of I I had Lisa Tobeka in my classroom for my first couple years, and she saved me.
18:07
Andy Goveia: Kept you in line.
18:08
Andy Goveia: Literally.
18:09
Andy Goveia: I my first couple years were a disaster, and she can attest.
18:13
Andy Goveia: Um, she saved me on a number of occasions.
18:15
Andy Goveia: And I've had I've I've not gotten to work with Molly because Molly always seems to work with our littlest students when she was site-based.
18:22
Andy Goveia: Yeah, it's fine.
18:24
Andy Goveia: Um but the the amazing teachers that you all are.
18:28
Andy Goveia: So let's get into the teaching side of this.
18:30
Andy Goveia: Um, take us through what teaching as a member of the HILIA team looks like, both in an itinerant setting, which both of you are, but you've also been site-based.
18:40
Andy Goveia: So, kind of what is site-based teaching look like?
18:42
Andy Goveia: What does itinerant teaching look like?
18:44
Andy Goveia: Take us through what teaching is like for you both.
18:47
SPEAKER_00: Sure.
18:48
SPEAKER_00: So, students enrolled in the HILLIA programming at the lab schools for deaf and hard of hearing receive targeted, intensive instruction in listening, language, and speech.
19:00
SPEAKER_00: They learn in a total communication environment that uses a range of supports to strengthen both expressive and receptive language skills.
19:09
SPEAKER_00: So things like sign language, American sign language, cued speech, um, AAC, listening and spoken language, um, and by AAC alternative and augmentative communication devices.
19:25
SPEAKER_00: Um, staff within our HILIA programming at the lab schools include teachers of the deaf, an audiologist, and speech language pathologist, an LBS1 interpreters and paraprofessionals.
19:40
SPEAKER_00: And our students at our programming at the lab schools have the opportunity to learn in special education classrooms and or within the general education setting.
19:52
Andy Goveia: So, what is that intensive instruction in those different communication modalities look like?
19:58
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, um, so the intensive instruction in listening language and speech really means that there is a structured, focused, and often repeated practice designed to build specific skills deeply rather than broadly.
20:15
SPEAKER_00: So we know our students who are deaf and hard of hearing need um explicit instruction to um grow and excel in these areas.
20:25
SPEAKER_00: So they have the opportunity to work on these skills explicitly all day long with all the wonderful professionals that we work with, like the teachers of the deaf, the speech pathologist, um, the a teacher of the deaf that works on oral rehabilitation.
20:43
SPEAKER_00: Um, and so those individuals help to build those skills in our students.
20:50
SPEAKER_00: And the whole team um collaborates closely to work on the generalization of all of these skills too.
20:57
SPEAKER_00: And um, I would be remiss not to mention our audiologist because without her there to support the equipment side of things, um, all of that stuff would be that much harder and nobody would have the best access that they could.
21:11
Andy Goveia: Shout out to Allie Sharon, HILIA Audiologist.
21:14
SPEAKER_00: That's right.
21:16
SPEAKER_05: I can kind of pick up from there just to kind of talk a little bit about the visually impaired side of things.
21:22
SPEAKER_05: And so for those students who um might require that more intensive services, such as the daily braille instruction, we do look to HILIA for programming at the laboratory schools.
21:32
SPEAKER_05: And so these students um may receive that daily instruction in the braille code, but then also within the areas of the expanded core curriculum.
21:42
SPEAKER_05: Um and really instruction in that area encompasses like assistive technology, career education, compensatory skills, independent living skills, recreation and leisure, um, self advocacy, sensory efficiency, and social interaction.
21:59
SPEAKER_05: So a lot Lots of different things encompass that expanded core curriculum, really taking place throughout the school day.
22:08
SPEAKER_05: But then additionally, students who require instruction in the use of the white cane may receive services from a certified orientational mobility specialist.
22:17
SPEAKER_05: And then often those lessons take place in the general education classroom.
22:22
SPEAKER_05: They might take place in special education classroom, really just a combination of both of those things to ensure that those needs are being met.
22:31
Andy Goveia: You both mentioned self-advocacy.
22:33
Andy Goveia: Molly, can we go back to you for a second?
22:34
Andy Goveia: What does some of that self-advocacy look like for those students who are deaf or hard of hearing?
22:40
SPEAKER_00: Sure.
22:41
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
22:41
SPEAKER_00: So self-advocacy for students who are deaf and hard of hearing is a broad set of skills.
22:48
SPEAKER_00: And those improve with age and experience, but we are always working on helping our students be as independent as possible.
22:59
SPEAKER_00: So it begins with everyday actions like in the school and can extend to like understanding and navigating legal rights and roles in the community.
23:08
SPEAKER_00: So things as simple as being able to put your own equipment in, connect devices, like, you know, connect the hearing assistive technology to your implants and/or hearing aids, Bajas, asking for things to be repeated, asking to move yourself in the classroom all the way up to just understanding your rights and what you have access to when you're out and about in the community.
23:36
SPEAKER_00: So all of that starts at a young age and as early as preschool, we're helping kids start to figure out how to put devices in, know when things are dead and need new batteries and things like that.
23:48
Andy Goveia: So, Molly, a lot of what you've kind of talked about with that self-advocacy and the work that you do with those students seems to be that there's a loss of something due to the communication on some of those interpersonal social emotional skills that you've kind of described.
24:02
SPEAKER_00: Of course.
24:02
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
24:02
SPEAKER_00: So students who are deaf and hard of hearing often miss out on those incidental learning opportunities.
24:10
SPEAKER_00: Um they're spending a lot of time focusing on listening if they're um using like listening and spoken language, andor they need the incorporation of sign language to be able to access things.
24:24
SPEAKER_00: And if that is, you know, not happening in that moment, then they might be missing on out on some of that incidental stuff that's happening around them, um, which is so important for kids in learning like social cues, emotional nuances, humor, and just natural interaction patterns.
24:43
SPEAKER_00: We learn so much incidentally that we aren't even like explicitly being taught.
24:48
SPEAKER_00: So missing out on this stuff can impact um peer relationships and belonging, understanding social norms, self-confidence and identity, emotional regulation and awareness.
25:00
SPEAKER_00: And because of these gaps, our students may experience things like isolation, frustration, lower self-esteem compared to their hearing peers, and especially in settings where communication access isn't optimized.
25:14
SPEAKER_00: So that is why we are working on explicitly teaching them these things and being sure that our students that we work with have all of the appropriate accommodations and modifications in place so they um, you know, have that access and those skills.
25:32
Andy Goveia: And so the IT, in a lot of what you both have said, the itinerant angle simply is you are taking those services on the road.
25:41
Andy Goveia: You're going and you are you are stopping in, visiting classroom, visiting students on a frequency as determined by their IEP and their goals to provide all those services versus whether they're site-based.
25:53
Andy Goveia: I don't think I'm asking a question here.
25:54
Andy Goveia: I think I'm kind of summarizing.
25:55
Andy Goveia: Site-based, that's happening because you're assigned, like Dr.
25:59
Andy Goveia: Turner, this is your classroom.
26:00
Andy Goveia: Here are your students.
26:01
Andy Goveia: They've been assigned to the lab schools.
26:03
Andy Goveia: You're doing all of that work in your, for lack of a better word, your kindergarten classroom, your pre-K classroom.
26:08
Andy Goveia: That's happening.
26:09
Andy Goveia: But if you're itinerant, like both of you are now, you're taking that toolbox of services and skills that you would provide in the classroom and doing it here, there, and everywhere according to the schedule set forth in IEPs.
26:22
Andy Goveia: So you have to be super adaptable.
26:24
Andy Goveia: I think I'm trying to say there's a lot of adaptability in the itinerancy side of things.
26:30
Ben Webb: Well, and that's that's why I asked about teleportation, because that might be I don't know how many different locations that might be in a single day.
26:39
Ben Webb: It just sounds like that's a great point.
26:40
SPEAKER_05: Yeah, yeah.
26:42
Andy Goveia: That's yeah.
26:43
Andy Goveia: So Lisa to make it back to you on the for students of with visual impairments, you talked about braille instruction being a huge part of their learning, especially from an early age.
26:54
Andy Goveia: So, what does daily braille instruction kind of look like for those students?
26:58
SPEAKER_05: Yeah, so we kind of talked about that, you know, if placement was determined at the laboratory schools and they were receiving that daily braille instruction, that's typically provided by that teacher of students with visual impairments.
27:09
SPEAKER_05: And we we primarily focus on the literacy and then the nemeth code.
27:13
SPEAKER_05: And that nemeth code is really that braille code for encoding math and scientific notation.
27:18
SPEAKER_05: Um, I'm just touching base on a few things, obviously, but we do encompass um the areas of tactile graphics to ensure our students can access those materials with their hands.
27:28
SPEAKER_05: And then we also focus on that expanded core curriculum that I mentioned before, really just to promote the learning across the entire school day.
27:35
Andy Goveia: What does the expanded core look like for students who have visual impairments?
27:39
SPEAKER_05: Yeah, so I kind of rambled all those things off earlier, but it's really those set of nine specialized areas addressed by the educational team, the teacher of students with visual impairments, and then that orientation mobility instructor.
27:52
SPEAKER_05: And really the goal behind the expanded core curriculum is really just to emphasize the specialized instructional needs for students who are blind or have low vision.
28:01
SPEAKER_05: And then most often these areas are included on the student's IEP and really just focus on that additional learning that our students with visual impairments need in order to be functioning at the same rate as their cited peers.
28:16
Andy Goveia: So let's go back really quick, since both of you have been site-based and now you're both lead itinerant teachers in your respective areas.
28:23
Andy Goveia: I think a site-based teacher, for all intents and purposes, not to devalue what they do, pretty consistent, probably day-to-day.
28:31
Andy Goveia: The routine is probably going to be the your schedule's gonna be pretty.
28:36
Andy Goveia: I know I'm I'm overgeneralizing, and Savannah staff's gonna come for me.
28:39
Andy Goveia: Um shout out to her.
28:42
Andy Goveia: Her Lily Plumber are gonna come for me having said that.
28:46
Andy Goveia: Staff and Plumber are gonna come for me no matter what.
28:48
Andy Goveia: I might as well go for it.
28:49
Andy Goveia: Um but being an itinerant, your schedule is purely dictated by the IEP needs of your students on your caseload.
28:58
Andy Goveia: So could you both just share a little bit more about what it looks like being an itinerant teacher of students with hearing loss or who are deaf or students who are visually impaired?
29:08
Andy Goveia: Just like what does that look like to be that role with a traveling cart and traveling toolbox?
29:14
Andy Goveia: What does that look like?
29:16
SPEAKER_05: Yeah, I can take it.
29:17
SPEAKER_05: So I think um, you know, my coworkers might call me the bag lady because I have so many bags as I come in.
29:25
SPEAKER_05: The bags in my office.
29:27
SPEAKER_05: But um yes, we do travel from school to school.
29:31
SPEAKER_05: And really that frequency varies by student.
29:34
SPEAKER_05: Um, and a lot of that is really just dependent upon the amount of collaboration needed in order to ensure that those accommodations and modifications are met throughout the school day.
29:44
SPEAKER_05: And really that instruction varies throughout the day, of course, but we're always still focusing on that expanded core curriculum, whether it's through pull-out minutes or push-in with support staff.
29:56
SPEAKER_05: And then again, I just have to give a shout-out to our orientation mobility um instructor.
30:01
SPEAKER_05: She also services our students with um visual impairments in their homeschool.
30:07
SPEAKER_05: Um, but you know, just to go off your question, a typical day might look like um 55 miles up, 55 north to um our furthest district, all the way back down to Bloomington Normal, where we service students too.
30:23
SPEAKER_05: So um, we do cover a lot of ground in a day.
30:26
SPEAKER_05: And one day it could be one student, the next day it might be five or six students.
30:31
SPEAKER_05: So um I guess hence the name bag lady.
30:34
SPEAKER_05: That's a lot of bags.
30:35
SPEAKER_05: A lot of bags.
30:36
Andy Goveia: Now I know why you have so many bags.
30:38
Andy Goveia: I see her across the street with her bags, and I'm like, all right.
30:40
Ben Webb: And you now offer to help.
30:42
Andy Goveia: She's a very strong, independent person.
30:44
Andy Goveia: I'm not gonna assume she's got her bags, she's got it figured out.
30:48
Andy Goveia: So, Molly, what about an itinerant teacher of the deaf?
30:50
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so I would echo a lot of what Lisa said.
30:54
SPEAKER_00: Um, there is a lot of coming and going.
30:58
SPEAKER_00: And I was really just thinking about that typical day, and I just don't know that there is a typical day.
31:04
SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, every every day looks different.
31:08
SPEAKER_00: Um, and sometimes it's a spur of the moment, like up and run somewhere to, you know, help somebody with something or deliver a new auxiliary court or, you know, check in on somebody.
31:23
SPEAKER_00: Um, but I mean, overall, like um, yeah, the the services that we provide and the frequency, as Lisa said, varies by student need.
31:34
SPEAKER_00: Um, some students I see on a weekly basis, some I see twice a year.
31:40
SPEAKER_00: Um, it just really depends on what they need.
31:43
SPEAKER_00: Um, we can push into the general education classroom or pull them out into a special education classroom and, you know, focus on anything ranging from language to literacy, listening, self-advocacy, and social emotional skills.
32:01
SPEAKER_00: Um, and then, you know, again, that audiologist that we shouted out earlier serves an important role out in all of our districts as well, um, conducting listening checks and serving as a resource for equipment support and maintenance.
32:19
SPEAKER_00: So, yeah, that's kind of what the itinerant life looks like in a nutshell.
32:26
SPEAKER_00: There you go.
32:27
Ben Webb: So, are you a bag person?
32:29
Ben Webb: Are you a backpack person, or are you like box?
32:32
SPEAKER_00: Uh you know, I'm a bag person, but I do not have as many bags as Lisa Tobacca does.
32:38
SPEAKER_00: I just must be able to pack a little lighter.
32:42
Ben Webb: And then, Mother Lisa, are you a bag lady?
32:45
Ben Webb: Are you a box lady, or is everything on the laptop?
32:48
SPEAKER_04: Everything is not on the laptop.
32:50
SPEAKER_04: It's it's not.
32:51
SPEAKER_04: I am a backpack person um as of two years ago.
32:56
SPEAKER_04: Um, and that is um helpful in supporting my back now.
33:00
SPEAKER_04: But I don't move around the way that these guys do.
33:03
SPEAKER_04: I don't.
33:04
SPEAKER_04: So um, however, um there's a lot always going on.
33:09
SPEAKER_04: So even though I'm not moving from building to building, there are a lot of different things going on across Metcalf, UHI, and all of the individuals that we have out in district.
33:23
SPEAKER_04: We have nine individuals out in district, um, one of them being Allie.
33:28
SPEAKER_04: So we have eight itinerants that are out servicing all of those students and different needs and working as teams with those guys.
33:37
SPEAKER_04: Um, and then we have um currently 15 students at the lab schools and working with those teams to program for those students' needs.
33:47
SPEAKER_04: Um so yes, my backpack will take me wherever I need to go.
33:52
SPEAKER_04: And things are written down in a calendar handwritten for like a to-do list, and things are on the computer in a long inbox full of to-do things as well.
34:05
Andy Goveia: Yeah.
34:06
Andy Goveia: So when you come on the pod for the first time, we ask you rapid fire questions.
34:11
Andy Goveia: They are unrelated to your job-ish.
34:13
Andy Goveia: Are you ready?
34:15
SPEAKER_05: Ready.
34:16
Andy Goveia: All right, who would you say most led you into teaching?
34:24
SPEAKER_01: You're all too polite for this.
34:25
SPEAKER_01: Just throw it out there.
34:28
SPEAKER_00: I I can't say it was one person.
34:31
SPEAKER_00: I think it was just like my love for school growing up, and you know, the older I got, I enjoyed working with kids, and that's how I ended up teaching.
34:43
SPEAKER_05: This is Lisa T, and I would say I came to ISU and I didn't know what I wanted to do.
34:51
SPEAKER_05: And I went to one of those jobs, you know, where they were talking about each field.
34:57
SPEAKER_05: Um, and low vision blindness was one of the meetings, and they were like, Yeah, sign up, jobs, no problem.
35:07
SPEAKER_05: Learn Braille.
35:08
SPEAKER_05: And I was like, Okay, that sounds fun.
35:10
SPEAKER_05: So yeah, that's all.
35:12
SPEAKER_05: Here I am.
35:13
SPEAKER_05: So that's so cool.
35:15
SPEAKER_05: 21 years later.
35:17
SPEAKER_04: Um, I grew up playing school, like pretend play, right?
35:22
SPEAKER_04: And I liked being the teacher more than I liked being the student.
35:26
SPEAKER_04: Um but I will say it wasn't a who that led me into teaching.
35:32
SPEAKER_04: It probably was a a what because I was going to be either the teacher or the nurse.
35:36
SPEAKER_04: I feel like those are kind of a couple of good little serving professions that were pretty hot a little a little bit ago.
35:44
SPEAKER_04: Um and I went to Wesleyan to visit, and I went to ISU to visit.
35:50
SPEAKER_04: And um at that point in time, ISU did not have a nursing program that many years ago.
35:56
SPEAKER_04: And ISU's campus and ISU won me over.
35:59
SPEAKER_04: So that's how teaching came into play.
36:02
SPEAKER_04: Special ed was always going to be the route if I went into that.
36:06
Andy Goveia: That's awesome.
36:07
Andy Goveia: Um, okay.
36:08
Andy Goveia: What's your go-to caffeine to get through a school day?
36:12
SPEAKER_05: Diet Mountain Dew.
36:14
SPEAKER_05: I would echo that.
36:15
SPEAKER_05: Fountain Diet Mountain Dew.
36:17
Andy Goveia: I forgot about your Diet Mountain Dew.
36:19
SPEAKER_05: Coffee.
36:20
Andy Goveia: Yeah.
36:20
SPEAKER_04: Hot, not cold.
36:23
SPEAKER_04: You like cold mountain.
36:24
Andy Goveia: You like just a hot black coffee, right?
36:25
SPEAKER_04: No, I need a little cream.
36:27
SPEAKER_04: A little cream, no sugar or like just a little food.
36:30
SPEAKER_04: Yes, just a little, just a little.
36:34
Andy Goveia: I forgot you love Diet Mountain Dew.
36:35
Andy Goveia: Um, what are you pick one of these?
36:37
Andy Goveia: What are you currently watching, listening to, or reading?
36:42
Andy Goveia: It does not have to be academic.
36:45
SPEAKER_00: Well, I'm not super exciting in that realm.
36:50
SPEAKER_00: Um so if I am watching something, it is typically HGTV and just whatever is on.
36:59
SPEAKER_00: And otherwise it is a kid's show.
37:02
SPEAKER_00: Most recently, Pupstruction.
37:07
Ben Webb: Pupstru what?
37:09
Ben Webb: Right?
37:09
SPEAKER_00: It's on Disney.
37:10
SPEAKER_00: I'm sorry, Pup.
37:13
SPEAKER_00: Oh, it's not Disney's.
37:14
Andy Goveia: It's probably Disney's version of Pro Patrol, was what it is, I think.
37:17
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it's called Pubstruction.
37:18
SPEAKER_00: It's all these pups.
37:20
SPEAKER_00: Maybe a few cats and hamsters in it.
37:24
Andy Goveia: I'm so glad I'm out of that phase.
37:27
SPEAKER_05: I would say the Olympics most recently, but now that that's over, maybe the voice, I think it starts.
37:36
Andy Goveia: That's back tonight.
37:37
Andy Goveia: February 23rd is the date of recording in case you're gonna call us out for talking about those in the past.
37:41
Andy Goveia: That's right.
37:42
SPEAKER_04: Yes.
37:45
SPEAKER_04: Um honestly, I don't sit to read or sit to watch.
37:51
SPEAKER_04: Um, but I do listen to podcasts.
37:53
SPEAKER_04: Um, and so I can multitask when doing that.
37:56
SPEAKER_04: Um and I float between podcasts that are motivational, um, faith-based, some educational leadership thrown in a little bit here or there.
38:08
SPEAKER_04: Um, I kind of bounce.
38:10
Andy Goveia: Love that.
38:11
Andy Goveia: Uh what was your favorite subject when you were a student?
38:15
SPEAKER_00: I would say spelling.
38:18
Andy Goveia: Spelling.
38:19
SPEAKER_00: I liked spelling.
38:20
SPEAKER_00: Wasn't spelling the subject back in the middle of the year.
38:22
Andy Goveia: I mean, yeah, but okay.
38:25
Andy Goveia: All right, Molly Turner.
38:26
Andy Goveia: That's a hot.
38:28
Andy Goveia: Oh, I yeah, I did one of those.
38:32
Andy Goveia: That's fair.
38:34
SPEAKER_05: Sorry though.
38:36
SPEAKER_05: I love Molly.
38:37
SPEAKER_05: No one's judgment in this room.
38:38
Andy Goveia: No one has said spelling yet.
38:40
SPEAKER_00: I love it.
38:40
SPEAKER_00: It's because who says spelling?
38:42
SPEAKER_00: Dr.
38:42
SPEAKER_00: Molly Turner of the Hillia program.
38:44
SPEAKER_00: Don't ask me to spell anything.
38:46
SPEAKER_00: I'd be wrong, but I liked it.
38:50
SPEAKER_05: I think math, I don't know.
38:52
Andy Goveia: I was gonna say lunch and recess, but that seems like finally, what is your favorite thing about being a part of the lab schools?
39:03
SPEAKER_00: I I would say the people.
39:05
SPEAKER_00: I mean, I feel like we are fortunate to, you know, have lots of connections and opportunities to collaborate with a variety of people both in and outside of our building.
39:17
SPEAKER_00: And yeah, the people.
39:21
SPEAKER_05: I would agree with Molly.
39:22
SPEAKER_05: The people, the opportunities, um working with individuals like you and Ben and Yeah.
39:33
SPEAKER_04: I mean, I'd like to say people.
39:34
SPEAKER_04: Am I going to get a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a good idea?
39:36
Andy Goveia: A lot of people have said people.
39:38
SPEAKER_04: Um, you know, I and honestly, right, like the lab schools are a partnering entity of HILIA, right?
39:44
SPEAKER_04: So I love the lab schools because of HILIA.
39:47
SPEAKER_04: Um, and that's just kind of that natural way to work with a variety of people in a variety of ways outside of just these two buildings, but to bring in some different um perspectives all around.
40:04
Andy Goveia: Awesome.
40:05
Andy Goveia: Lisa Kendall, Molly Turner, Lisa Tobeka.
40:08
Andy Goveia: Thank you to the three of you for giving up some time today to tell us about your world you live in and teach in and the great work you do on behalf of the students in your program.
40:17
Andy Goveia: So thank you all.
40:18
Andy Goveia: Thanks for having us.
40:19
SPEAKER_00: Thank you.
40:20
Andy Goveia: Ben, anything else?
40:21
Ben Webb: Not that I can think of.
40:22
Andy Goveia: Rock on.
40:30
Andy Goveia: Live in the lab schools is a production of the ISU Laboratory Schools recorded on the campus of Illinois State University.
40:37
Andy Goveia: Connect with us on Facebook or Instagram at Live in the Lab Schools.
40:41
Andy Goveia: We'll see you next time.