Developed by the National Technical Institute for the Deaf,
Rochester Institute of Technology

The National Technical Institute developed the C-Print System, a computer-assisted notetaking system, fifteen years ago for the Deaf, to use for their deaf and hard-of-hearing college students. In 1997, San Diego Unified School District was invited to participate in a research project to evaluate the effectiveness of this system for secondary level D/HH students. Currently, 3 C-Print captionists have served 16 students at 5 school sites.

How C-Print Works:

The software system consists of a trained captionist with a specially programmed laptop computer that uses common word processing applications. The captionist sits behind the mainstreamed student, who also has a computer, and enters the instructor’s lecture and discussion in abbreviated shorthand on the keyboard.

The word abbreviations are based on word frequency studies of adult conversation and written documents, as well as tapes of actual classrooms. C-Print software automatically expands the words to their original form, and, after a three-second delay, the full text appears on the student’s computer.

A key feature of the software is the ability to customize its abbreviation dictionary to a particular subject.

Educational Benefits:

• Provides a different communication option. Valuable for students who do not use sign language as their primary mode of communication.
• Provides a system that has been researched and successfully used specifically for deaf and hard of hearing college students.
• Provides equal communication access, consisting of both text online during classtime, and hardcopy notes.
• Provides a system that is competitive with other professional notetaking services.

C-Print Captionist Training:

Until recently, C-Print training for new captionist was available exclusively at NTID, in Rochester New York. This year, San Diego was named as the West Coast C-Print Training Site, and the first local training was provided in Feb. 1999. The next San Diego training is scheduled for Spring, 2000.

Training:

Required training for new captionists requires the following:

• Week One, involves a self-taught training that includes a curriculum workbook and a series of 30 audiotapes.
• Week Two, involves a 40-hour workshop hands-on training with a master trainer. Concentration on skills development with intense practice on active listening, review of abbreviation system, summarization of notes, ergonomics, and introduction to deaf culture.