Differentiating AT Services- Overview

One-size-fits-all AT service delivery from a district level AT Team is neither sustainable nor an AT best practice.  Services should be tailored based not only on the needs of the student, but on the needs of the school team. To build AT capacity at the school building level, AT services can be offered based on need and can vary in frequency, intensity, and duration. The AT team can mentor service providers at the building level by meeting with them and talking about the AT services they feel most comfortable taking on themselves.  This leads to more refined conversations about how the district level AT team can help them develop their knowledge and skills. This requires that the district level AT service providers are cognizant of when to move out of the consultation/evaluator role which is a more expert/informative model, when to move toward a more collaborative/ partnership role, and when to employ a coaching role that seeks to transfer AT skill sets to the building level service providers.

AT strategies are most effective in the context of the classroom with school teams that have participated in the SETT process, and who know the student best. School teams can be encouraged to take on gradual ownership of AT consideration and the evaluation process. The transfer of AT skill sets benefits more students and is a logical outcome of building capacity.

For more information about Differentiating AT Services, check out the Resources and Ideas links in this section