1. (a) Speech-language pathology assistant/aide training should include the following:

   1. (1) Orientation:

      1. (A) Required introductory training (S.O.S. Managing Support Personnel):

2. (i) History of use of support personnel;

   1. (ii) ASHA policies/Code of Ethics;

      1. (iii) Registration procedures;

         1. (iv) Roles and responsibilities of SLP and support personnel;
         2. (v) Caseload and scheduling;
         3. (vi) Supervision of support personnel;
         4. (vii) Developing training plan; and
         5. (viii) Documenting supervision; and

      2. (B)

         1. (i) Training by supervising speech-language pathologist:
3. (a) (a) Review of support personnel regulations/Code of Ethics;

4. (b) (b) Policies and procedures of school/co-op;

   1. (c) (c) Due process procedures;

      1. (d) (d) Charting, daily record keeping, lesson plans;
5. (e) (e) How to use available therapy materials; and

6. (f) (f) Other clerical tasks.

   1. (ii) Format for ongoing training. Subsequent to the speech-language pathologist selecting students for individual or group drill and practice sessions directed by the assistant/aide, students’ IEPs and lesson plans are reviewed and activities discussed;

   2. (2) Observation (SLP and support personnel on-site):

      1. (A) SLP provides services and interacts/directs observations of the SLP-A; and
      2. (B) Ensures understanding, models service delivery;

   3. (3)

      1. (A) Participation (SLP and support personnel on-site).

      2. (B) SLP and assistant/aide work together during drill and practice sessions as the assistant/aide practices the following under the supervision of the SLP:

         1. (i) Monitoring correct and incorrect productions;
         2. (ii) Recording responses;
         3. (iii) Appropriate methods to correct incorrect productions;
         4. (iv) Providing directions to students regarding activities;
         5. (v) Behavior management for individual students and small groups of students;
         6. (vi) Techniques that can be used to elicit improved sound, word, phrase, or sentence production;
         7. (vii) Methods of positive reinforcement; and
         8. (viii) Reliability checks; and

   4. (4) Implementation (SLP-A provides therapy while SLP observes):

      1. (A) SLP supervises and provides feedback to SLP-A;
      2. (B) Reliability checks completed frequently at first;
      3. (C) Periodic reliability checks completed;
      4. (D) Discusses issues relevant to directing successful drill and practice sessions; and
      5. (E) SLP determines need for additional training.

7. (b)

   1. (1) Each time the speech-language pathologist assigns new groups or individual students, changes therapy approach, or modifies therapy targets, the above training format should be utilized.
   2. (2) Training should emphasize competency-based skill acquisition.
   3. (3) Speech-Language Pathology Assistant/Aide Competency Checklist can be used to facilitate training of tasks assigned to the assistant/aide.

Codification Notes: “ASHA” means American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. "SLP" means speech-language pathologist. "SLP-A" means speech-language pathologist assistant/aide.