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Cued Language |
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Definition of Levels
Temporary Permit Holder (not a certification level): an individual who either because of relocation or limited experience and training has not yet taken or passed the Utah Cued Language State Level Assessment (UCLSLA), but because of urgent or emergency circumstances has been requested to provide services. As no level of skill has been ascertained, this person should only provide fundamental communication services in the specific situation for which his/her permit has been granted.
Level I Transliterator--Basic: an individual who performs with limited skills and/or knowledge of function which may limit client comprehension and development.
Level II Transliterator--Functional: an individual who performs with adequate skills and/or knowledge of function which may limit client comprehension and development.
Level III Transliterator--Competent: an individual who performs with substantial skills and/or knowledge of function.
Level IV Transliterator--Proficient: an individual who performs with comprehensive skills and knowledge of function.
Allowable Practices
Because of the nature of cued language assessment, Allowable Practices are not applicable.
Length of Certification
Temporary Permit
The Temporary Permit is intended as a temporary solution to extraordinary circumstances. It is granted by the director of certification to both the requesting agency and the transliterator on a contractual basis. The permit remains in force for the amount of time agreed upon by the sponsoring agency, the transliterator, and the director of certification, as long as the conditions of the professional development plan are met. If the transliterator is functioning under the additional mentoring requirements, he/she must also be able to document meeting with a mentor twelve or more hours a month. The maximum time a temporary permit shall remain in effect is one year. The requirements of the temporary permit are no longer enforced if the transliterator passes the Utah Certification Test at any level.
Level I - Basic
Level I certification is intended for those who are at an entry level to practice Cued Language transliterating. Candidates must retest after one year. In the event the candidate does not advance to a Level II or higher at this testing, the candidate will no longer be certified.
Level II - Functional
Level II certification is intended as a level of emerging proficiency. Candidates must retest after one year. In the event the candidate does not advance to a Level III or higher at this testing, the candidate will no longer be certified.
Level III - Competent
Level III certification is intended as a level of substantial skill. Candidates must retest after two years. In the event a candidate regresses to Level II or lower, the candidate will no longer be certified. If candidates do not advance to Level IV at this testing, they must retest in two years.
Level IV - Proficient
Level IV certification is intended as a level of comprehensive skill and knowledge. Candidates must retest in four years. If they do not retain a Level III or IV certification at the time of retesting, they will no longer be certified.
Any transliterator may, at any time, elect to attempt either a higher level of the Utah Cued Language State Level Assessment or the Cued Language Transliterator National Assessment. Upon notification of passing to the higher Utah level, the transliterator is automatically transferred to the requirements of that level and a new renewal cycle begins. Transliterators who pass the national assessment are required to inform the Utah Interpreter Program, or they will continue to be subject to the requirements of their current Utah certification level.
Certification Renewal
To maintain certification, there are annual renewal requirements for all levels. The only exception is for the temporary mentored permit holders. These permits will be reviewed quarterly to ensure that the interpreter/ transliterator is meeting the conditions of the professional development plan and meeting with a mentor for the agreed-upon number of hours monthly.
Renewal of certification for all other levels includes the following requirements, which must be met before the expiration date of the certification as listed on the interpreter/transliterator's certification identification card and in the permanent DSDHH file:
Levels I, II, III, IV:
payment of annual maintenance fee
completion of annual maintenance form
completion of 20 approved workshop hours annually
If the transliterator allows his/her certification to expire, recertification will be necessary.
To be considered for certification renewal, a transliterator must submit to the director of certification a Certification Renewal Form at least one month prior to the expiration of his/her current certification. Certification Renewal Forms will be accepted up to six months prior to expiration of certification and up to thirty days after date of expiration if accompanied by a late fee.
The director of certification shall review the transliterator's Certification Renewal Form and determine whether the qualifications for renewal have been met. If the qualifications for renewal have not been met, the director of certification will notify the transliterator by certified mail within 15 working days of receiving the Certification Renewal Form.
Upon notification of denial of renewal, the transliterator may schedule a review of the request for renewal with the director of certification up to the date of the expiration of his/her certification.
Certification From Other States or Organizations
The only interpreter certification recognized by the State Board of Education, other than the DSDHH Utah Cued Language Transliterator Certification, is the Cued Language Transliterator National Certification.
Transliterators with other state-level certification endorsed by the Training, Evaluation and Certification Unit will be accepted in Utah at their current level of certification with the same renewal requirements.
Examinations
Examinations shall be required to determine qualification for all levels of certification. All examination instruments and materials shall be reviewed by the Utah Certification Advisory Board and approved by the DSDHH director of certification prior to the use of the instruments and materials in determining certification qualifications.
Two phases of testing shall be administered to determine whether a candidate is qualified for certification.
Phase One: Written Examination
The Written Assessment is designed to serve as a medium through which an individual's knowledge of information fundamental to the role and responsibilities of a cued language transliterator can be measured and documented. Included are questions pertaining to situational applications of the Transliterator Code of Conduct (Metzger & Fleetwood), the Code of Ethics of the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf, Inc., logistical and cultural issues in facilitation communication, cueing research, interpreting/transliterating terminology, and relevant organizations. Candidates who pass the Written Assessment with 90% accuracy will be notified within four hours of the completion time if they have remained at the test site, or they will be notified by mail within two weeks if they do not remain after taking the Written Assessment.
Phase Two: Performance-Based Examination Phase two of the certification examination process is a performance-based examination. Each task, expressive and receptive, has been formulated such that it parallels actual transliterating situations with regard to setting, consumer background, function of a cued language transliterator, speed of message (as measured in syllables per second), and diversity of topics, as well as how the information lends itself to chunking strategies.
The performance-based examination shall be given to a candidate who:
1. Has passed the written examination.
2. Has remitted the performance-based examination fee.
3. Has been scheduled for the examination.
4. Has had sufficient time on the day of the scheduled performance test to adequately warm up by previewing the provided materials.
Examination Scheduling
If an individual has been approved for candidacy, he/she shall be scheduled for a certification examination. Every effort shall be made to accommodate a candidate's schedule insofar as it is practical. Testing will be sponsored by the Division of Services of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing a minimum of four times annually.
Examination Procedures
The written examination shall be supervised by the director of certification or his/her designee. The candidates shall complete the examination in the presence of an assigned DSDHH test proctor.
The performance-based examination shall be supervised by the director of certification or his/her designee. The examination shall be conducted at the Utah Community Center of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing or other DSDHH-approved locations.
Each candidate shall be allowed the opportunity to utilize a training booth equipped with audio- and video- tapes, for the purpose of warming up, at least 60 minutes prior to the examination.
Each candidate shall be videotaped while he/she demonstrates expressive and receptive language skills.
Each candidate shall be assigned to a test monitor who will provide test instructions, assist the candidate with video and audio equipment, and collect the completed test materials.
Scoring of Examination
Within 21 days of the completion of the examination, the director of certification shall distribute the candidate's examination tapes to a DSDHH-approved certification rating team.
Rating of the expressive and receptive skills portion of the assessment shall be completed by the Training, Evaluation and Certification Unit. The examination materials and rating form shall be returned to the Utah Community Center of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing within the time frame determined by the TECUnit.
Notification of Examination Results
Written Examination
The director of transliterator assessment shall notify the candidate of passing or failing the written examination four hours after completing the Written Assessment if the candidate is available. If the candidate is not available, the results of the Written Assessment shall be mailed within 14 days. A successful candidate will be scheduled for the performance-based examination at this time. A candidate who fails the written examination must resubmit an application, including fee, and again be approved for candidacy for certification prior to retesting.
Performance Examination
Within one week of receiving a tabulation of the completed rating forms, the director of certification shall submit the name of a successful candidate to the State Board of Education for recommendation for certification. A candidate who passes the certification examination shall be notified and awarded his/her certification by the State Board of Education or the Board's designee.
A candidate who fails the performance-based examination shall be notified by the director of certification within two weeks of the receipt of the completed rating forms.
A candidate's videotaped performance shall remain in the DSDHH office for 45 days from the date of notification of test results. Unless the test has been appealed, tapes may be erased or used as inter- and intra-rater reliability check tapes, assuming a release has been signed.
Appeal of Examination Process
The DSDHH director of certification shall hear an appeal of the examination results filed by a certification candidate only when he/she claims that the prescribed examination procedures (see IV. Certification Examination Process, C. p. 5) were not followed. An appeal will not be reviewed on the basis of disagreement with the judgement of the rater(s) of the examination.
A candidate may file an appeal at the time of testing or at any time up to 30 days from the date of notification of his/her test results. Appeals received after the 30-day limit shall not be reviewed.
An appeal must be in writing and delivered by certified mail to the DSDHH director of certification. The candidate filing the appeal shall include in the appeal a complete explanation of event(s) that occurred at the testing session which he/she feels was a deviation from specific examination procedures.
The director of certification shall include in his/her review (but is not limited to) the following information:
1. The candidate's written statement.
2. The candidate's performance test videotape.
3. Documentation submitted by any concerned party.
4. The certification policy and procedure manual.
The DSDHH director of certification shall determine the merit of the appeal and either grant or deny the appeal.
The appeal decision shall be sent by certified mail to the candidate within 45 days of receiving the request for appeal. No fee shall be charged for an appeal. If the appeal is granted, the candidate may be scheduled for the next examination. The candidate shall be required to sit only for the test component(s) he/she failed. The candidate shall not be assessed any additional fee for the examination.
The candidate may request a review of the director's decision. This review shall be conducted by the Certification Advisory Board Appeals Committee. The request must be submitted in writing to the Certification Advisory Board within 30 days of receiving the appeal decision. The chair of the Certification Advisory Board and two other members designated by the chair shall then review the director's decision and uphold or override the decision. The chair will notify, by certified mail, both the candidate and the director of certification within 45 days of receiving the review request.
Emergency Temporary Permit
There may occur situations wherein one of two criteria exist. A qualified, but uncertified, transliterator might relocate to Utah but will not have had the opportunity to take the Utah Cued Language State Level Assessment. He/she may like to begin providing services until the opportunity is presented to take the test. This interpreter/transliterator may have even received some level of certification under another agency not approved by the TECUnit, and thus not approved in Utah. This situation would satisfy one of the criteria for an emergency permit: the transliterator has the necessary skills but has not yet taken the Utah Cued Language State Level Assessment.
There may exist a situation wherein an individual who is currently certified under Utah's system is asked to provide services that would normally be considered outside of the scope of the transliterator's skill. For example, a deaf consumer may make a request in a legal setting for the services of a specific transliterator who holds intermediate rather than master certification. While these types of situations might also satisfy the criteria for issuing an emergency permit, all parties, hearing and deaf, need to understand that there are potential conflicts that might arise, including possibly inaccurate interpretation or transliteration and unethical or unprofessional behavior.
A transliterator, in conjunction with the requesting agency or business, may submit an Emergency Temporary Permit Request Form to the director of certification. The director shall, within two working days, grant or deny the permit request and inform both of the parties of the decision. Should the request be denied, the director may, at his/her discretion, suggest alternative transliterators to fill the request.
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