The Shared Map | Free continuing education course
Whose Communication Counts?
Culture, Language, and Emerging Communicators
- Free
- 2 hours
- 0.2 ASHA CEUs (continuing education units)
- Intermediate level
- Opens October 12, 2026
A self-paced, interactive course for speech-language pathologists (SLPs) from The Shared Map, an American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) Approved Continuing Education (CE) Provider. Meets ASHA’s 2-hour requirement in culture, language, and identity (subject code 7030).
Work through real cases, then see what ASHA guidance and research say.
Pre-register (it’s free)Pre-registering is not enrolling. We’ll email you on October 12, when the course opens.
What to expect
Every person communicates, but not every person’s communication is equally recognized. Students who communicate through gestures, movement, augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), a home language, or in ways a team does not expect are easy to overlook. So are the families who know them best.
This interactive course asks one question throughout: who might we be overlooking? Through short, realistic cases, you’ll practice recognizing communication across modes, languages, and cultures; separating what you observe from what you assume; working with families and interpreters; responding when a family declines a recommended support such as AAC; and planning assessment and goals that don’t rest on a single standardized score.
By the end of this course, you will be able to:
- Identify assumptions about communication, culture, and language that may affect whose communication is recognized in educational and clinical settings.
- Distinguish descriptive observations from interpretations when documenting the communication of emerging communicators, including the family’s perspective.
- Describe practices for collaborating with interpreters and with families who decline a recommended support such as AAC.
- Develop an assessment or goal plan that draws on the person served, their family, and professional observation and data.
Built for busy SLPs
Interactive from start to finish
Every case asks you to make a choice first. Then you see new information and what ASHA guidance and research say, and you can look again.
Three sources in every case
The person, the family, and professional observation and data.
Questions colleagues really ask
Ten everyday questions about culture, language, and identity. Pick your reply, then see what the evidence says.
Short screens, tap to choose
Works on your phone. Pause anytime and pick up where you left off.
Leave with something you can use
Build your own one-page list, Practices I’m Taking With Me, to print or keep on your phone.
No quiz
Nothing is graded. There are no wrong turns, only more to see.
Course outline
| Orientation: Who Gets Seen? | 913 |
| Module 1: Self-Check | 1,697 |
| Module 2: What Counts as Communication?“He Doesn’t Participate” and “What Did You See?” | 1,944 |
| Module 3: Whose Perspective Is Missing?“I Can Translate” and “We Don’t Want the Device” | 2,373 |
| Module 4: From Present to Included“Same Score, Same Decision?” and “With Only What’s There” | 2,218 |
| Questions SLPs Ask | 2,067 |
| Module 5: Act | 746 |
| Course evaluation | 188 |
| Total words | 12,146 |
Credited time is based on counted course text at 100 words per minute.
About continuing education credit
This course is offered for 0.2 ASHA continuing education units (CEUs), Intermediate level. It meets ASHA’s certification maintenance requirement of 2 professional development hours in culture, language, and identity.
The Shared Map reports completions to ASHA once a month, at the start of the month, for the previous month.
Learning assessment
There’s no graded quiz. Learning is assessed through decision points in every case, each followed by feedback, new information, and a chance to look again, and through a closing practice plan.
Satisfactory completion
Respond at every decision point and complete the course evaluation.
Common questions
About the course and credit
Is the course really free?
Yes. There’s no charge for the course. If you want your ASHA CEUs recorded on an ASHA CE transcript, ASHA’s CE Registry charges its own annual fee ($28 for ASHA members, $38 for nonmembers). The Registry is optional.
Does it count toward ASHA’s 2-hour requirement in culture, language, and identity?
Yes. It’s 2 hours of content in culture, language, and identity, offered under ASHA subject code 7030. ASHA leaves it to each certificate holder to decide which courses fit their practice, and this course was built for this requirement.
Do I need to join the ASHA CE Registry?
No. ASHA says learners aren’t required to join the CE Registry or earn ASHA CEUs for certification maintenance. The Registry is how ASHA CEUs are awarded and shown on your ASHA CE transcript. If you don’t use it, keep your own record of completion.
When will the course show up on my ASHA CE transcript?
The Shared Map reports completions to ASHA once a month, at the start of the month, for the previous month. ASHA places the CEUs on your transcript once your Registry fee for that year is paid.
How do I request ASHA CEUs?
Follow the steps at the end of the course, and request your ASHA CEUs when you finish. ASHA can’t award CEUs retroactively, which means they can’t be added later if you didn’t request them when you completed the course.
Will it count toward my state license renewal?
Requirements vary by state. Check with your state licensing board about the kinds of credit and documentation it accepts.
Is there a test?
No. To complete the course, respond at every decision point and complete the course evaluation. Nothing is graded.
Can I take it on my phone, and stop partway through?
Yes. The course works on a phone, tablet, or computer, and it saves your progress on that device so you can pick up where you left off.
Who is it for?
Speech-language pathologists who work with emerging communicators in schools, clinics, early intervention, or home settings. Other educators are welcome. To earn ASHA CEUs, you need to meet ASHA’s eligibility criteria; you don’t need to be an ASHA member.
Questions this course helps you answer
Will using two languages confuse a child with a disability?
Research hasn’t found that it does. The course shows what the evidence says, and how to talk about it with families who have been told otherwise.
Does AAC stop children from learning to talk?
Research reviews have found that it doesn’t, and the course covers what families can realistically expect.
Can a family member interpret at a meeting?
It happens often, and ASHA urges caution, especially for evaluations. The course practices what to do instead, including how to brief an interpreter.
What does a standard score mean for a child who is learning English?
Sometimes much less than it seems. The course walks through when a score fits a child, and when it doesn’t.
What do I do when a family says no to a recommendation?
The course practices getting curious before persuading, so a “no” can turn into “not like this.”
Presenter
Suzanne Fabel, MA, CCC-SLP, SAS, SDL, CAGS
Master of Arts (MA); Certificate of Clinical Competence in Speech-Language Pathology (CCC-SLP); School Administrator and Supervisor (SAS); School District Leader (SDL); Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study (CAGS)
Suzanne Fabel is a speech-language pathologist with more than 25 years of experience who works in a supervisory role with New York City Public Schools Speech Services. The work includes supervising speech-language pathologists and designing professional development for those who serve students with significant communication needs. Areas of expertise include AAC, early communication, and prelinguistic communication. Suzanne Fabel created The Shared Map, a set of assessment and intervention resources for early communicators.
Disclosures
Financial: Suzanne Fabel is the owner of The Shared Map, which sells assessment and intervention resources. This course is free, and no purchase of any resource is required.
Non-financial: Suzanne Fabel is employed by New York City Public Schools in a supervisory role. This course is independent of New York City Public Schools and is not endorsed by it.
Be the first to know when it opens
The course is free and opens October 12, 2026.
Pre-register (it’s free)Questions? hello@thesharedmap.com