Graduation Checklist For Speech & Hearing Science: Fill & Download for Free

Here is our story, our adopted daughter, Kaitlin, is s now 29.We knew she was smart at age 3. She could draw, sing and dance like a 5 year old.She wasn’t a very healthy child. Her autoimmune system is very weak. The first two week of every school year she would get sick and miss school. That was also part of her IEP. She has GERD, ear infections and IBCShe was held back in kindergarten a second year because she missed the cut off date for first grade by 20 days. I begged them not to do it, and I told them I am a teacher and I know what I ‘m talking about, but no they wouldn’t listen!She finally goes to first grade and in October all kids get tested to see what skills they will need to learn from this 2 page check list by the end of the year.Her teacher tells me, Kaitlin, passed everything on the checklist for passing first grade skills already and she believes she is gifted and wants to sign her up for the school district ‘s gifted program! No kidding! I told everyone that 18 months ago and no one would listen to me!So Kaitlin gets into the gifted program but starts having problems by 3th grade. Turns out she also has a learning disability and needs speech and language services. Then 3 months later she also has ADD and is on meds. The IEP committee agrees that remaining in the gifted program is better than going back into regular classes. The support of special education and her friends in the gifted program will help her along.This worked until about 7 th grade. Special education teachers didn’t understand or know how to help a gifted LD student when they had struggling regular LD kids to work with, so the IEP wasn’t followed and my very shy daughter didn’t speak up and say anything!In high school, it was a mixed bag of classes. Some AP classes, struggled with math, still and always got As in art classes.She was re-evaluated her senior year and still qualified for special education, so she could get help in college.It took her 6 years to graduate, but in her defense, she had at one time 3 majors. She dropped one major just one semester before getting that listed as a major for her graduation. She failed algebra and had to take that over, still because of the LD problem. She never went to the special services program on campus to get help. Too shy? Didn’t want people to know? I don’t know! Her professors knew she was eligible for help but if she did take advantage, there wasn’t anything they could do! I spoke to the centers director but unless she availed herself, there wasn’t much they could do!You see we learned that while she was taking her required Speech 101 class, she suffered from severe anxiety disorder! Our family doctor prescribed medicine for her to take before each speech to stop her hands from shaking so bad. I should have know better but I was too busy being, guess what, a special education teacher for the school district working with the alternative kids with the worst kids and our other adoptive son was one of them who took up all our time and efforts! How bad was that!Now, Kaitlin lives with me and does some art work for tee shirts for some minor money. She can’t be with other people because of her depression and anxiety.That’s not all! She has also discovered another special education label, that we both agree with! She took a 60 point checklist and scored a 59/60. I did the same checklist and scored 54/60. We are certain without a doubt that she had High Functioning Autism. This she took at age 27.So you see not everything was caught and diagnosed back when she was in grade school or high school because of her unusual makeup and complexity. Even I as her mother didn’t know or understand, but my focus was else unfortunately with an unemployed, alcoholic husband and a mentally ill, special education son who took up the rest of my time after was was teaching all day. A sad excuse, but one nevertheless!Kaitlin struggles daily. I try to help but it’s hard when she wouldn’t let me help her go to a therapist or take medicine. She is afraid to take the first step!It is not easy for anyone to have any handicapping condition, but to have so many of them and not get them all diagnosed when in a school district was even harder. I know everyone did the best they could understand the circumstances, but the person it affects still continues to suffer, long after IEPs and schooling and college is over! Please keep persons like Kaitlin in your thoughts and prayers!

The two men were given completely different assignments so it’s hard to compare them.In 1979 Deng Xiaoping gave the country and the Party a goal of establishing a xiaokang society (general peace, moderate prosperity and a just legal order based on sound moral foundations) by 2021, the 100th. anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party, and they’ve been working on it full time ever since. (President Xi recently reminded everyone about it, calling it ‘the Chinese Dream’). They’re working to a plan, and it’s important to understand that Chinese Presidents – whatever else they want to do – are expected to accomplish the work that planners have scheduled during their ten years in office.People speak dismissively about President Hu without understanding the assignment the planners gave him, his personal sacrifice, or his accomplishments. The planners told him that, to meet Deng’s 2021 deadline of moderate prosperity, Hu would have to double everyone’s wages within ten years and double the size of the economy so that, in addition to the higher wages China could afford extra investment to develop the country. A Western entrepreneur would have fainted on the spot.Hu’s ten years nearly killed him –as you can see in his recent appearances – but he did doubled the economy and everyone’s wages, too. Imagine how Americans would feel about a President who doubled everyone’s wages and doubled the US economy in two terms. We’d worship him as a God, put up statues, shrines, name our cities and our children after him. Well, that’s what President Hu did: he got everyone a 100% raise and doubled GDP without the wheels coming off China’s economy – something that Western media predicted almost daily at the time.Having myself (barely) managed staffs of a few hundred I am in awe of anyone who can manage 10 million civil servants on behalf of 1.3 billion citizens and double all their wages while growing an increasingly complex economy at warp speed. But Hu was a genuine genius. As a dirt poor 19-year-old undergraduate in the toughest engineering school in China he was managing a staff of 200 while getting straight A’s and leading the ballroom dancing club.Then there’s Robin Daverman’s observation about Hu’s contribution to governance:The fourth Politburo class was headed by Hu Jintao, whose biggest contribution was the development and formalization of social-experiment-based policy development. Nowadays, almost every policy proposal is first tried in villages/towns/cities, the data reviewed and analyzed, before rolling out nationally. Policy development is almost managed as your double-blind, randomized clinical trials. The vast majority of the policy proposals die in the experimental phase, because even if it’s completely out of good intentions, the reality is what it is, and some things just don’t work under the current social conditions. That “Trial Spots” process is formalized under Hu. Basically he wanted everything to be done as scientifically and objectively as possible. Europe has started doing some of these “trial spots” thingy with the idea of universal income, but China has been doing this for the last 30+ years and they have a whole mature system to support it and manage it.Like everyone, the Chinese want predictable, well-drafted, uniformly administered laws, but they know that laws alone cannot create a civilized society, which is why they expect more than crime prevention from their government. For them civilization is Confucius’ dàtóng[1] society, which no laws can accomplish. Thus the raison d’être of the Communist Party is to serve as the vanguard and protector of their civilizational dream and blaze a trail towards dàtóng, which assumes that people will follow the example of virtuous leaders who, in China, have always been government officials.So the Party has assumed responsibility for, first, creating a xiaokang society, as President Hu explained in his speech in 2006, when he explained that, to create a harmonious, well-governed, tranquil xiaokang society, the Party must practice and demonstrate six qualities:Democratic rule of law, minzhu fazhi;Fairness and justice, gongping zhengyi;Honesty and fraternity, chengxin youai;Abundant energy," chongman huoli;Stable orderliness, anding youxu; andHarmony between people and the environment, ren he ziran hexie xiangchu, leading to sustainable development.He explained that the ultimate goal of the well-managed xiaokang society is to produce a dàtóng society composed of free individuals who will ‘take from each according his ability and give to each according to his need’. The Party published Hu's speech and added five policy goals for 2020:A more democratic system;Rights of people more honored;Differences between regions (provinces, metropolises, towns, countryside) more equalized;More reasonable income distribution and allocation of public resources;Improved standards of living for families.We are now only two years away from Hu’s goal and his legacy–which will not be achieved without the efforts of Xi Jinping. I guess we should wait a few years before we judge either of them..President Xi’s assignment is to maintain the economy’s momentum and carry the baton across the finish line: he will preside over China’s first real xiaokang society – the Lesser Prosperity – which Confucius described 2,500 years ago but only existed in an imaginary Golden Age – and even that imaginary Golden Age did not deliver prosperity as evenly or as lavishly as the one we’ll see in 2021.Thanks to men like Hu carrying out their assignments, China has come a long way since 1979. The government eliminated urban poverty in 2016 and are focusing on eliminating the remaining pockets of rural poverty by President Xi’s 2020 deadline. The planners have even published a checklist, 23 Indicators of a Xiaokong Society with wonderfully bureaucratic, wonky criteria like:SOCIAL HARMONY 10: Sex ratio of senior high school graduates:Ratio of unemployed females to unemployed males,proportion of females in junior or senior high school graduates,proportion of women in civil serviceratio of women’s average payment to that of menThe xiaokang society/Chinese dream is a praiseworthy goal and a wonderful achievement, but Master Kong said it’s only a preliminary stage in China’s evolution: beyond xiaokang lies the Promised Land of datong, the era of Greater Unity. Here’s the Master himself, in a famous conversations from The Book of Rites:Once Confucius was taking part in the winter sacrifice. After the ceremony was over he took a stroll along the top of the city wall and sighed mournfully. His disciple Tzu Lu, asked: ‘Why does the Master sigh?’ Confucius replied:‘Today the Great Way is hidden and the world is the possession of private families. Each regards as parents only his own parents, as sons only his own sons; goods and labor are employed for selfish ends. Hereditary offices and titles are granted by ritual law while walls and moats must provide security. Ritual and righteousness are used to regulate the relationship between ruler and subject, to insure affection between father and son, peace between brothers, and harmony between husband and wife, to set up social institutions, organize the farms and villages, honor the brave and wise, and bring merit to the individual. Therefore intrigue and plotting come about and men take up arms. The Duke of Zhou achieved eminence for this reason: he was constantly attentive to ritual, made manifest their righteousness and acted in complete faith. He exposed error, made humanity his law and humility his practice, showing the people wherein they should constantly abide. If there were any who did not abide by these principles, they were dismissed from their positions and regarded by the multitude as dangerous nuisances. This is the period of Lesser Prosperity.‘The practice of the Great Way, the illustrious men of the Three Dynasties – these I shall never know in person. And yet they inspire my ambition! When the Great Way was practiced, the world was shared by all alike. The worthy and the able were promoted to office and men practiced good faith and lived in affection. Therefore they did not regard as parents only their own parents, or as sons only their own sons. The aged found a fitting close to their lives, the robust their proper employment; the young were provided with an upbringing and the widow and widower, the orphaned and the sick, with proper care. Men had their tasks and women their hearths. They hated to see goods lying about in waste yet did not hoard them for themselves; they disliked the thought that their energies were not fully used, yet they used them not for private ends. Therefore all evil plotting was prevented and thieves and rebels did not arise, so that people could leave their outer gates unbolted. This was the age of Grand Unity’.On June 1, 2021, President Xi will announce that China has achieved a xiaokang society and decree a national holiday so everyone can celebrate the country’s extraordinary accomplishment. He’ll then announce that China’s next goal is establishing a datong society: an age of Grand Unity.The planners are already working on wonky schedules and checklists.Now to have states, families, and selves is to allow each individual to maintain a sphere of selfishness. This infracts utterly the Universal Principle, gongli, and impedes progress. ...Therefore, not only states should be abolished, so that there would be no more struggle between the strong and the weak; families should also be done away with, so that there would no longer be inequality of love and affection [among men]; and, finally, selfishness itself should be banished, so that goods and services would not be used for private ends. ...The only [true way] is sharing the world in common by all (tienxia weigong) ...To share in common is to treat each and every one alike. There should be no distinction between high and low, no discrepancy between rich and poor, no segregation of human races, no inequality between sexes. All should be educated and supported with the common property; none should depend on private possession. ... This is the way of the Great Community. [Kang Youwei, Liyun Zhu called dàtóng Shu].Hu’s only reward for sacrificing his health was to open the Three Gorges Dam, the greatest engineering feat in world history and one dear to his heart, since he’s a hydrological engineer. That alone guarantees him a place in China’s pantheon of very good rulers. And the Chinese have kept scores on every ruler they’ve had in the last 3,000 years and rank them pitilessly.

English is a very small part of the deeper problem. What our graduates need are success skills.Why do we aim for success?Because it makes us happy. So the final aim is to be happy, or to make others(clients, stakeholders) happy. By solving their problems.You might be educated, but can you use it to solve problems? ("I have a great pen, high quality paper, great spelling skills....but I cannot write") We have come a long way from the century old Industrialization era where a job meant doing the same thing, the same way as a 1000 other people.We often overestimate the importance of technical/core skills and undermine the importance of soft skills. They are deeply intertwined. Here's my water tank model to show how it works:Skills are essential, but without the right opportunity they will just spill away.Soft skills determine if your skills can reach the needed people.As you grow, your 'influence' increases. These are your leadership skills.They determine how many people you can serve at the same time. Note that a change in one aspect impacts the other three.Typical profiles you see in real life: (There are many more. I cover only a few here)Let us now look at each of these aspects in a little more detail.CORE SKILLSMoving from a problem oriented mindset to a solution oriented mindsetDo you have the analytical skills to identify the cause of a problem? Or can you not look beyond your opinion?Solution: When you crib with your friends about anything, don't stop at "What is the problem?". Think "What can the solution be?" If you draw a blank, why would anybody hire you to solve their problems?Move from "What will I get?" to "What can I give?"We often behave as if graduation is the license to a good life. "How can they pay me so less!!", "That job will let me fly abroad", "This job can be a great launchpad to my post graduation", "What's the use of graduating if they won't give me a job?". We spend very less time on "What can I contribute?".Solution: Remember that the company that gives you your first job is INVESTING in you. Don't think about a 'Job that will give you XYZ'. Think about 'XYZ you can do in this career'. What makes you suited for this career? What have you done in life to prove it? Are you remotely interested in the job? For the sake of commitment if not passion? Have you thought about it?. What is the value that YOU bring? People are not going to pay you for your degree. They pay you for the contribution that degree is supposed to make you do. "Why should we hire you?" is not just another interview question to be mugged up.Move from a 'Proving that you are good' to 'Being good' modeWe often have a 'exam oriented' view of life. Why understand if learning by rote is enough? Why research if I can study from a guide? Why study for 6 months if 6 weeks can get me passing grade? Why put in more effort if I am not going to get a better rating? In short, the focus is "Tell me what is needed to prove I am good enough", and then come up with short cuts to achieve it. This is a strategy to avoid failure, not to achieve success. We then end up with a certificate, but no skills.Solution: In college, chill out all you want, but think are you doing something useful? For anybody? If not studies, are you learning music? Or are you into sports? Are you improving, failing, learning? Do you hate exams but love programming? Are you participating in contests? Maybe you think, some subjects are useless - are you great at the others? You have the luxury of making mistakes. Use it. You should always have a 'story' and not a 'checklist'. So what's your story? That forms the prologue to your career story. In short, learn sincerity.TEAM SKILLSNo matter how great you are, real life projects cannot be accomplished by one person. You need to work in a team. Your talents are useless if nobody wants to work with you. This is largely under-estimated.How do you handle egos, conflicts, diverse perspectives, convey your ideas, build consensus?Solution: Genuinely do some project - even if it's not an academic one. Play team sports. Organize a college festival. Exercise your team work muscles. Or learn from others. This single aspect involves many more things:Person Vs Issue: Do you always stop at "Who is at fault?" or proceed to "What is the issue?"Blame Vs responsibility: Do you think "Its OK to fail as long as its not MY fault" or "What do WE do now to make it succeed?"Managing conflicts: You might not agree with many things. Not be friends. But can you work together? Towards a common goal?Can you move from ideas to execution?In the real world, there is no difference between not executing an idea, and not having an idea at all. Do you keep talking or can you get a team together to do something. What have you done? Who benefited? What was the impact? Was there a better way to do it?It sounds too much. But you are simply preparing to be useful to the real world. Having a hammer(qualification) is no use if you won't or can't use it!Do you understand the difference between an entitlement based and merit based mentality?We think we do. But would you be OK being led by a junior in your college, if he is more skilled?Solution: Understand that meritocracy is not effort or experience based, but result based. Working hard is not great - it's NORMAL. Being lazy is below normal. And if you work really hard, but produce nothing - leave alone appreciation, you might have a productivity problem! Are you able to produce results? Do you measure yourself based on those results? Or do you ask "Tell me the minimum result needed to get my salary!!"?Goal alignment: Do you care about those you work for?How can you help somebody if you do not know what they want? Have you researched the company? Studied what they do? Identified their challenges? Examined how you fit in? How you can contribute? Or are you just there because they offer the highest pay package. Then the interview becomes a discussion, not an 'exam'.Solution: These are not 'Frequently asked interview questions' to be cracked. This shows that you actually CARE! This is true for every project that you do. Who are you trying to help? What do they want? What can you give? If you are rejected in the interview, it's not because you got the answer wrong, it's because you never cared enough anyway. Isn't that fair?INFLUENCE(LEADERSHIP SKILLS)This is not about giving speeches(oration skills). You can be a great orator, but deliver nothing. You can deliver great things as promised, demonstrate integrity...but not have great oratory skills. Leadership is about building trust. Having people work for your cause becomes much easier if they trust you. Call it your 'personal brand'Clarity of thought: "What do I exactly mean?"Note that I put this under leadership skills. Knowing our thoughts clearly is the first step to communicating it to others. Articulation follows naturally.What we mistake for poor language skills, fluency skills is often lack of clarity of thought.Try framing your thoughts in your native language. If you are still slow - your clarity is lacking. If you are crystal clear, the English will improve slowly. And people will not mind!!!! If you get a guy with all above skills, plus crystal clear thoughts, would you lose him for English speaking skills?Integrity: Say what you mean and mean what you sayThis builds trust. Be it attending a meeting on time, or informing about a delay yourself. People do not want perfection. They are happy if you try your best. But many don't. Credibility, jobs, careers and businesses are lost.Learning attitude: Learn to fail and learnBe OK with committing mistakes and allowing others to do so to. This frees you up to try new ideas rather than stick to the comfort of old tried and tested ones. Encourage new mistakes, help avoiding old onesDon't fall for the 'Identity' trapThere are no good and bad jobs/projects. 'HOW do you do it?' is infinitely more important than 'WHAT do you do?'. YOUR unique flavor lies in your action, not your designation. Are you doing something new? Or still learning from something old? Then it's good enough. Stop worrying and start working!Market yourself, help more peopleMany people look down upon this(See the "I let my work speak" profile above) Real marketing is saying "Can I help you?" to as many people as possible. If you are helping the same number of people even after 5 years, how are you growing? How are you making a bigger difference?Being Proactive: Can you make it happen?Do you keep justifying "Why I got left behind?" or keep thinking "How do I move ahead?". Do you ask 'Can somebody tell me what to do?' or 'What do I need to make it happen?' and then go get it? Companies would rather invest in people who can make things happen by themselves. Be a go-getter.In summary:Note that your academic scores play a very small role compared to your core skills and attitude towards work. Good team skills means more people want to work with you. Good leadership skills means you can help more people. When your skills and leadership start exceeding your opportunities, bigger opportunities and responsibilities automatically come your way. You don't have to beg for it. People give them to you to get a bigger bang for their own buck! That's how real growth happens. It's a win-win, not a struggle!I know each attribute described above demands a separate explanation to understand deeply and implement practically - which is not achievable through a Quora answer. I can do seminars for your college provided the audience is looking for genuine long term success(not 'shortcuts'). Please message me to discuss.Thanks for the A2A Rishabh Jhunjhunwala and sorry for the delay.If you like this answer you might also like My answers that make me happy.(Not for reproduction)