AET Associate ET Membership

Associate Educational Therapist is the first step on the pathway of AET's Professional membership track. Associate ET membership is open to individuals who have met AET's basic professional coursework requirements and are either in practice or beginning their practice as an educational therapist.  Associate ET membership is a required step toward ET/Professional membership.
 

Associate ET membership benefits include:

  • Access to the member area of the website and to the archived Journals and articles
  • A subscription to The Educational Therapist Journal
  • An electronic copy of the AET Professional Directory
  • Listing in the AET Member Directory
  • Listing in the AET Referral Directory (with BCET Supervisor's consent)
  • Option of a hyperlink from The Referral Directory and Member Directory to a personal web page
  • Professional level discounts to AET events, including workshops and conferences
  • Access to AET Study Groups

There are a number of requirements that must be met to successfully complete your Associate ET membership application. This list will help you determine when you are ready to submit your application. All parts of the application must be submitted at one time in order to avoid delays in processing.

  • Associate ET Application: Download and complete the application.
  • Academic Worksheet: Please fill out the academic worksheet, included with the application, so that every course requirement is identified clearly. Successfully showing that you have completed all of the coursework required by AET is the most critical part of the Associate ET application process. It is possible to become an Associate ET member without having taken all of the required classes, but extensive documentation of work experience and acquired field competency is required to be approved by the Flex Committee. For more information about the academic requirements, see the course descriptions below.
  • Résumé: Please provide a current résumé.
  • Reference Letters: Please provide the reference letter form to two people who know you in a professional capacity. You may fill in the top section with your own information for the convenience of the people making your references. Send the reference letter form as an email attachment directly to the referrer, or provide them with a hard copy. References should be returned to you to be submitted with the rest of your application. If preferred, the reference letters may be returned to you in a sealed envelope to maintain confidentiality.
  • Transcripts: You may submit copies or scans of OFFICIAL TRANSCRIPTS that verify completion of the coursework requirements. Unofficial transcripts can not be used to approve your membership. Please make sure your transcripts are legible, as some transcripts reproduce badly and are difficult to read. If your transcripts do not copy or scan cleanly please mail originals or order a set of originals to be sent from the issuing school.
  • Payment: Associate ET membership is $225.00 per year. For student members applying for Associate ET membership, there is a one-time discount rate of $100.00 for your first year as an Associate ET member. There is also a $35.00 application fee. The application fee is due when you submit your application; dues must be paid upon approval of your application. 

* AET reserves the right to request further information about the applicant’s proficiency in the language in which his or her practice is conducted, should questions arise during the application process.

Once you have collected all of the components of the Associate ET application you may submit them by email to aet_membership@aetonline.org or by regular mail to AET Membership Dept, 7044 S 13th Street, Oak Creek WI 53154. Given the option, it is always preferred that you use online and email methods When snail mailing documents please make sure they are legible, that they are not stapled together, and that all parts of the application are included. Waiting for separate documents to arrive at the office is what most frequently slows the application process.

When all of the documents have arrived in office they will be forwarded to the Membership Committee. These are volunteers who carry a heavy caseload of applications to review in addition to maintaining busy lives with active practices of their own. Please be patient. Updates are released once a month on new and pending applicants, and you will be notified by email from the office as to the status of your application at that time. If more than six weeks have passed since your documents were submitted to committee, please contact us at aet_membership@aetonline.org. Because of the volume of applications being handled, lines of communication occasionally break down.

Academic Requirements

Course Descriptions

The following course descriptions are intended to assist you in determining which classes can be used to fulfill specific requirements.

Curriculum, Methods, and Remediation Techniques Relating to Individuals with Reading and Learning Differences - Three courses, 3 units each

These courses must include program planning, remediation techniques, adaptation of curriculum, and program evaluation. One course must specifically address the identification and remediation of reading disorders and include a multi-sensorial technique or program for remediation. This reading remediation course cannot be counted towards the General Reading requirement. Examples of course titles may include:

  • Diagnosis and Remediation of Reading Disabilities
  • Reading Disabilities
  • Reading for the Special Needs Child
  • Adapting Reading Strategies for the Special Needs Child
  • Remediation of Reading Disabilities
  • Correcting Reading Disabilities
  • Math Instruction for Special Needs Students
  • Strategies for Remediation of Reading Disabilities
  • *Orton-Gillingham
  • *Lindamood-Bell LIPs
  • *Slingerland
  • *Wilson Reading System
  • *Language!
  • Technology Strategies for Special Needs Classes
  • Adaptation of (curriculum area) in Special Education
  • Language Learning – Language Instruction In Special Education

*Activities with asterisks are specific programs that are taught in workshops as opposed to semester-long classroom courses. To fill one of the three Remedial Curriculum requirements, the applicant may combine workshops to add up to 40 hours.

Diagnosis & Assessment of Individuals with Reading & Learning Differences - Two courses, 3 units each

The courses must cover the foundations of formal (standardized) and informal test development, administration, and interpretation. These courses are usually presented sequentially, beginning with a basic course and followed with an advanced and/or practicum course. Examples of course titles may include:

  • Assessment in Special Education
  • Tests and Measurement in Special Education
  • Foundations in Educational Assessment
  • Assessing the Special Needs Child
  • Woodcock-Johnson Test Administration and Interpretation

Human Learning - One course, 3 units

This type of course focuses specifically on the learning process, meaning how do we learn. It can include the psychological and emotional aspects of learning as well as such things as information processing, and social impacts. Piaget's perspective is often covered in a course such as this.  Examples of course titles may include:

  • Human Learning
  • Cognitive and Psychological Development
  • Human Development and Learning
  • Psychology of Learning
  • Educational Psychology (focused on Learning)
  • How Children Learn/Develop

Overview of Special Education - One course, 3 units

This course must cover the characteristics of children categorized as having learning differences such as being gifted, mentally retarded, emotionally disturbed, or neurologically impaired. Sensory and motor disturbances and speech and language impairments are included. The course must also incorporate information regarding federal laws for individuals with special needs. Examples of course titles may include:

  • The Exceptional Child
  • Mainstreaming the Exceptional Child
  • Overview of the Child with Special Needs
  • Introduction to Special Education

Psychoeducational Interventions Combining Educational and Psychological Techniques- One course, 3 units

This requirement in particular does not need to be met with an actual class, but can be experience related

This area is typically fulfilled by an applicant’s practicum experience. Documentation should include counseling techniques for working with the family, school, and student, which help support the student’s learning. Documentation (such as supervisor’s notes, practicum or field work requirements, and/or coursework) should demonstrate that supervised experience was obtained in working with schools, families and allied professionals. Some examples of courses in this area are titled:  

  • Principles of Educational Therapy
  • Working with Parents of Special Needs Children
  • Counseling Techniques in Special Education
  • Special Education Child and Family
  • Behavioral Strategies in Special Education
  • Guidance of the Special Needs Child and Family
  • Advocacy in Special Education

General Reading—One course, 3 units

This course must be related to teaching general reading, not reading remediation, and must include phonological skills. 

Child/Adolescent (Human) Development—One course, 3 units

This course is broader than Human Learning, and typically involves the physical, cognitive, emotional, and psychological stages of development from birth to adulthood. Examples of course titles may included

  • Human Development
  • Child Development
  • Adolescent Development

To read more about membership for AET, please visit our Member Information page or read our Membership Brochure.

Associate ET Application