After the Basic Skills Course or Refresher Course

What Happens After a Transcriber Completes Training?

The transcriber and the sponsor (if there is one) will receive the transcriber's Final Report by email a week or so after the course is complete.

Read more: Course Reports

Once the transcriber graduates with a passing grade, the TypeWell Transcriber software can be installed and activated on their laptop. (The software shouldn't be activated earlier, since TypeWell software is licensed only for use by graduates of the transcribing course.)

Immediately after graduating, the new transcriber should have a short period of guided practice time. If possible, assign a mentor to the new transcriber and put in place procedures to assure that high-quality transcribing services will be provided to consumers.

Ordering the Transcribing Software

Once a transcriber completes the Basic Skills Course or Refresher Course and receives a passing grade on the Final Report, they are eligible to license the TypeWell Transcriber software or to have it licensed (by an employer) for their use. If the software license is purchased using a standard method of payment (credit card or PayPal), then it will be available immediately for installation and activation.

To provide full communication access services, the transcriber and reader should use two separate computers or devices that are linked wirelessly.

TypeWell Everywhere

The TypeWell Everywhere feature is not for classroom use. It is for the transcriber's personal use, so they can practice the abbreviations while typing emails, reports, instant messages, etc. TypeWell Everywhere is integrated into the Transcriber software or it can be licensed as a standalone program. The standalone version lacks several important features that are necessary for providing communication access services, and so it does not replace the TypeWell Transcriber software.

During their training, new transcribers actually receive a free trial of TypeWell Everywhere! They are welcome to use this trial software both during and immediately following the training. Once this trial software expires, they can uninstall it and simply use the built-in version of Everywhere that comes with their Transcriber software program. Or, they can sign in to their TypeWell account and extend that software license to continue using the standalone version of Everywhere.

First-Semester Support from TypeWell

As of May 2020, we instituted the following to provide additional support to new transcribers:

• Two Skill Consultations will be scheduled and conducted by a TypeWell teacher during the new transcriber's first semester of work (after they successfully complete the course).
• The Turbo 1 Courselet will be added to the new transcriber's training account after they successfully complete the two first-semester Skill Consultations. This courselet teaches more advanced abbreviations.

These Skill Consultations and the Courselet are now included in the fee for the Basic Skills Course - Training Package ($899). This updated training model will ensure that first-semester transcribers receive a minimum level of mentoring during the critical first few months of work.

Guided Practice for New Transcribers

Although a newly-trained transcriber could begin providing services immediately after completing the transcribing course, we advise that a new transcriber be given time to practice transcribing in real classes or meetings for 2 or 3 days before beginning to provide live services for a client.

It is most ideal for a new transcriber to work with an experienced transcriber by teaming or shadowing a class, or by discussing transcripts of classes done independently. The Transcript Analysis Checklist should be used to guide and focus the mentoring discussions.

The best training is when the transcriber is providing real communication access for a real reader.

Newly-graduated transcribers will continue to hone their transcription skills after graduation while providing service in classes and meetings. We advise that the new transcriber avoid practicing transcribing for prolonged periods without having a reader actually using the transcript for communication access. The responsibility of providing real-time access for another person builds solid transcribing skills, unlike the sometimes sloppy habits that can develop when "no one else is looking."

Mentoring New Transcribers

As mentioned above, an experienced transcriber makes an ideal mentor for a new transcriber. We encourage that paid time be provided to both the new transcriber and the experienced transcriber for mentoring sessions. These sessions should be frequent at first, and then continue on a regular monthly basis as the new transcriber becomes more experienced.

If an experienced transcriber is not available to mentor the new transcriber, the site service coordinator should act as the mentor, guided by the Transcript Analysis Checklist.

TypeWell also offers remote mentoring services at a very reasonable hourly cost!

The service coordinator should provide the new transcriber with basic information about site policies and expectations before the new transcriber begins practicing in classes or meetings. Read more: Defining Your Service Policies

Quality Assurance

The Final Report about each new transcriber's skills includes recommendations about their readiness to provide direct services to consumers. Transcribers who need more skill development before providing services are given supplemental practice suggestions. We strongly encourage that you follow our recommendations about each transcriber's readiness to provide services.

New transcribers should not be put into assignments for which they are not ready. Doing so would be a disservice to the students/readers, to the site's goals to provide appropriate services to students and others, and to the not-yet-ready service provider. Only transcribers who have successfully mastered the skills needed to provide high-quality communication access services should transcribe in classes and meetings.

Also, we do not recommend that first-year transcribers take on math and science classes. Such technical classes require advanced abbreviation techniques and are best transcribed by experienced transcribers who have completed the additional Math Mode Basics course.

Good education and solid learning of the basic skills needed by a transcriber are only the first steps in providing high-quality speech-to-text services to consumers. Each site and each service provider should regularly monitor the quantity and quality of information provided by transcribers to students and other readers.

We provide several tools for objective measurement of a transcriber's skills. These include the Self-Test of abbreviation use (a built-in feature of the TypeWell Transcriber software), the Transcript Analysis Checklist, and the Goals and Strategies page (provided to the transcriber during training).

Read more: Quality Assurance Measures

We strongly encourage every site and every independent contractor to develop policies and procedures related to the smooth running of their TypeWell support service program. Those policies should be explicitly communicated in writing to the transcriber, instructors, students, parents (in pre-college settings), and all others involved in the service delivery.

Do you have additional questions?

We are always available to talk one-on-one with new transcribers and their supervisors to help make the transition into the workplace setting smooth and successful!