SpedPro

Doctoral Opportunities at the University of Illinois

By Jim Halle on Nov. 25, 2009.

Thinking about A Doctoral Program?
Explore the Opportunities in Special Education
at the University of Illinois

Ongoing Grant/Funding Opportunities:

SCORE

The purpose of Project SCORE: Preparing Leaders in Secondary Curriculum, Outcomes, and REsearch is to prepare knowledgeable, dynamic leaders (doctoral and post-doctoral) in the field of special education with expertise in developing secondary curriculum for students with severe disabilities.  Individuals will actively participate in research, teaching, and service activities with faculty and community collaborators who are already engaged in issues related to secondary curriculum and severe disabilities. Students will gain competency in a number of areas including access to the general curriculum, evidence-based research practices, policy and advocacy, cultural and linguistic diversity, collaboration in inclusive settings, and service-learning. Monthly stipends and support for tuition, conference travel, and research are available. Please contact Professor Stacy Dymond at sdymond@illinois.edu for more information.

FOCAL

The purpose of Project FOCAL: Focusing on Causality and Assessment to Train Leaders in Children’s Communication Disabilities (Preparation of Leadership Personnel) is to prepare doctoral students in the areas of assessment and the etiology of communication disorders in children with disabilities. The project brings together faculty and scholars from the departments of Special Education and Speech and Hearing Science, with cooperation from the Division of Disability Resources and Educational Services, for the purpose of preparing knowledgeable, influential, and visionary leaders. Individuals will be trained to conduct research and teach through a collaborative, cross-disciplinary training model. Graduates of the program will be prepared to join Special Education or Speech and Hearing faculties at colleges and universities, where they will conduct research, teach, and provide service. Students will gain competency in a number of areas including research with children who have communication disabilities and cross-disciplinary collaboration. Monthly stipends and support for tuition, conference travel, and research are available. Please contact Professor Jim Halle at halle@illinois.edu for more information.

Please visit our Departmental website:

http://education.illinois.edu/sped/index.html

Deserving a careful test

By John Lloyd on Nov. 25, 2009.

On the US radio show All Things Considered 24 November 2009, I heard a remarkable story about an individual who, after many years in a comatose state, reportedly began to communicate.

Twenty-three years ago, a Belgian car-crash victim [Rom Houben] was diagnosed as being in a vegetative state. But doctors now say he appears to have been conscious the whole time. The man is now communicating using a special touchscreen. Neurologist Steven Laureys, who leads the Coma Science Group at the University of Liege in Belgium, says people in non-communicative states are misdiagnosed up to 40 percent of the time.

The means of communicating sounds vaguely familiar: Communication by typing while someone (a “faciliator?”) supports one’s arm? Today the story is in the local newspaper (click image at right). Fortunately, some coverage of the story reveals skepticism about the source of Mr. Houben’s communications. See Professor Arthur Caplan’s comments in the Associated Press article linked in the image here and his comments from MSNBC. See, also, coverage by Brandon Keim in Wired and Rob Quinn in Newser.

I wish Mr. Houben and his family well, but I hope Dr. Laureys will test whether Mr. Houben can answer questions correctly when the people supporting his hand during typing cannot see the touch screen.