Educational administrators have expressed concern about the capacity of school districts to train interveners. This concern has been addressed through the use of technology and online training for interveners. Because of the low incidence of deafblindness,1 the majority of prospective interveners are hired as classroom aides to work with students who are deafblind before they receive any training in deafblindness. The online University programs are ideal because they offer training through a hybrid model. Individuals take classes and complete the coursework, while at the same time working with students who are deafblind. Evidence has shown that interveners can indeed increase their knowledge and skills while on the job. Data collected on the USU intervener training program (offered since 2006) showed this model of online training to be an effective way of training Interveners. Pre and post testing was done with students, and their average score on knowledge was 46% upon entering the program. At the completion of the program, their average knowledge score was 96%.2 Furthermore, experience has shown that the local capacity is enhanced when ongoing support and technical assistance is provided by federally funded State Deafblind Projects to interveners as they complete their university training programs.
1The most current National Child Count conducted by the National Center on Deaf-Blindness (12/1/19) counted 10,627 children & Youth who are Deaf-Blind. Only 8% (872) of those children received the services of an intervener.
2Alsop, L.,(2008, December, 4) Performance Narrative Final Report, Consortium for National Paraprofessional Training in Deafblindness [Grant}. Grantee: P116B041212. Utah State University.
Selecting an Intervener
In her article Selecting an Intervener for a Student Who Is Deafblind (2007), Cindi Robinson stated “Finding the right person to be an intervener for a child who is deafblind is essential. Much of the decision about whom to hire as an intervener for a specific student is based on the instincts of the interview team members and their direct knowledge of the student. It is also important for the interviewers to have a clear understanding of the skills and abilities required of interveners before beginning the interview process. Because of the specialized skills and qualities that are required, questions asked in an interview with an intervener candidate should be more comprehensive than those asked of typical paraprofessional candidates. Additionally, the interview team must glean information about a candidate that they may not be able to ask for directly.
It is essential that an intervener have a strong interest in working with children who are deafblind. The team must ascertain a candidate’s level of experience with children (both with and without disabilities). However, it is possible that an individual with little or no experience, but a high degree of interest and a willingness to learn, may be the best candidate. The candidate should also have realistic expectations about working with a student who is deafblind or deafblind with additional disabilities. The work can be very intense and demanding, and interveners must be able to handle the pace and intensity of the work.
An intervener should sincerely like the child with whom he or she works. The bond between an intervener and a student is critical for success because it is the foundation for a student’s learning, development, and socialization. A good match between a student and an intervener in terms of personality and energy level is important. An intervener must be aware of the importance of touch and movement and cannot have difficulties with personal space or touching that would interfere with his or her ability to work with a student. Even if a student has some useable vision or hearing, most children identified as deafblind rely on touch to help them gather information and learn. The intervener will have to learn the hand-under-hand method of interacting (a technique of guiding a child’s hands to explore and manipulate items), as well as work in close physical proximity to his or her student, sometimes with their bodies touching. Interveners need good observation skills and the ability to learn about the child from the child. They must be able to incorporate the strategies demonstrated and modeled by service providers from a wide variety of disciplines. In addition, they must be able to accept feedback from these many service providers. The ability to collaborate is essential because interveners work closely with teachers and related service providers. They should be comfortable sharing with other members of the educational team the information and techniques that work well with a student.”
Possible Interview Questions
- Tell us about your experience with children, including those with disabilities.
- Do you have experience with children who have sensory impairments—blind or visually impaired, deaf or hard of hearing, or deafblind?
- What is your educational background? Have you taken classes at the community college or university level? If so, what topics did you study?
- Why are you applying for this position? What is your interest in deafblindness?
- Do you have sign language skills? If not, would you be willing to learn? (Probe whether candidates would be willing to take classes outside of work hours at a community college or at your agency. It is recommended that the intervener learn sign language before beginning to work with a student.)
- Children who are deafblind use touch to learn, communicate, and move. (Provide the candidate with a scenario to explore how he or she feels about personal space and touching and his or her comfort level to work in close proximity with a tactile learner.)
- What are your hobbies? What types of activities do you enjoy? (Probe the energy level of the candidate and assess the goodness of fit with the student.)
- If you were selected for this position, you would need to attend an in-depth intervener training program. Would you be willing to commit to participating in training?
- This position requires ongoing collaboration and teamwork with both the student’s teacher and other members of the child’s educational team. Have you ever worked on a team before? Describe your experiences in this area.
- What are your long-term goals? Where do you see yourself in five years? (Probe whether the intervener plans to stay in the position for some length of time. Continual staff changes are extremely difficult for children who are deafblind)
Qualities needed by an intervener include:
Creativity
Flexibility
Ability to multitask
Organizational skills
Realistic expectations
Good observational skills
Willingness to attend trainings
Good collaborative teaming skills
Willingness to accept input and feedback
Comfort with advocating on behalf of a child
Comfort with touch and close physical proximity
Willingness to learn and apply knowledge and skills
Willingness and ability to learn about the child from the child
Ability to wait, wait, wait for a student to process and respond
Ability to show rather than describe, or to show and describe simultaneously
Comfort with sharing and modeling effective student strategies with professionals
High degree of interest in working with a child with a combined vision and hearing loss”
From Selecting an Intervener for a Student Who Is Deafblind (2007). Cindi Robinson, Deafblind Specialist and Intervener Training Coordinator, Arizona Deafblind Project.
Job Descriptions
Here are sample job descriptions for interveners. Specific details vary, depending on the state and district. These can be used and adapted as needed