Vermont Business MagazineThe Stern Center for Language and Learning has recently become the first teacher training program in Vermont to be accredited by the International Dyslexia Association (IDA). The accreditation is a result of the decision by the IDA to accredit all certified Academy of Orton-Gillingham Practitioners and Educators (AOGPE) programs based on the alignment of AOGPE’s training with IDA’s Knowledge and Practice Standards for Teachers of Reading.
The International Dyslexia Association is an international organization dedicated to addressing the complex issues of structured literacy learning for all learners, especially those with dyslexia. The IDA endorses effective teaching approaches and related clinical educational intervention strategies, supports and disseminates interdisciplinary research, and facilitates examination into the causes of reading difficulties and early identification of dyslexia.
The IDA’s Knowledge and Practice Standards were developed to create licensing and professional development requirements that were more relevant to the needs of struggling readers and students with dyslexia and other related learning difficulties. The IDA standards designate what knowledge, strategies, and skills are vital, according to current research, for all teachers of reading to have to be able to teach all students to read proficiently. The standards utilize a diagnostic and prescriptive phonics approach that requires direct multisensory instruction.
The Stern Center has been one of 16 AOGPE accredited training programs in the country since 2010 and is now one of only four IDA accredited training programs in New England. Earning this distinction establishes that the Stern Center’s teacher training and curriculum is aligned with the content of IDA’s Knowledge and Practice Standards, therefore recognizing the Stern Center as a provider of reputable, reliable services driven by research.
The Stern Center for Language and Learning is a nonprofit dedicated to enriching the lives of learners because all great minds don’t think alike. Since 1983, we have worked with children and adults to help them reach their academic, social and professional goals. We provide research-based learning evaluations and customized instruction, including those with learning disabilities, dyslexia, language disorders, social learning challenges, autism, attention deficit disorders and learning differences. We design and deliver customized professional learning programs and system development using current research and trends in education. Through the Cynthia K. Hoehl Institute, we work with schools and individual educators in early literacy, oral language, reading, written language, social cognition, executive functioning and math. We have offices in Williston, VT and West Lebanon, NH. Scholarships are available. More information may be found at www.sterncenter.org.