CPD Opportunities

Online Symposium is back and will be held on 30 September 2022. 

The theme of the OMAA Online Symposium for 2022 is:

Future Proof- addressing future client needs.

Do you have information you would like to share with your peers?

Why not take the plunge and put in a submission to the 2022 Online Symposium? It’s a great way contribute to your profession while earning even more continuing education (CE) points!

OMAA Online Symposium 2022

 

Message from OMAA PDC

It brings us great pleasure to share with OMAA members the opportunities for continuing professional development for the year 2022! This year, we’ve partnered with NextSense to provide you with new and engaging courses taught by leading experts in the field of vision re/habilitation and education:

Additionally, the following CPD 2022 opportunities for O&M Specialists were also approved:

 

Conferences

Please head to our Conferences page for a list of upcoming national and international conferences.

 

CPD earning ACVREP recertification credits

  • Orientation Aids and Tactile Maps: 90 minute webinar recorded by AER. This presentation will showcase multiple aids to familiarize students to their environment, including tools that are freely available from Google and other vendors that will allow an O&M to develop electronic and tactile maps for their students. 1.5 CPD points.
  • VoiceOver 101 for Sighted iPhone Users: 82 minutes webinar recorded by AER. Helping people new to vision loss to use an iPhone with Voice Over is easier than you think. Learn the basics as well as steps for individuals to learn more on their own. 1.25 CPD points.
  • Common Eye Disorders in Childhood: on demand three-part webinar, delivered by NextSense. This webinar is a multi part series investigating the common eye disorders in children and the impact that these have on their development. Offers 2.5 CPD points towards COMS recertification.
  • Blindness and Low Vision Masterclass Series 2021: on demand six-part webinar, delivered by NextSense. This series of 6 webinars will investigate and provide advice about specific eye conditions. Can be viewed as a complete series or separate webinars can be purchased individually. Offers 6 CPD points towards COMS recertification.
  • Leader Dogs for the Blind Seminars: educational seminars for rehabilitation professionals, including certified orientation and mobility specialists wanting to learn more about guide dogs, technology and all that we have to offer at Leader Dog. Some of our learning modules for professionals will earn you continuing education credits through ACVREP.
  • APH Hive (American Printing House for the Blind): offering online short courses on a range of Expanded Core Curriculum subjects, including Orientation & Mobility.
  • HumanWare Live Webinar Series: interesting back-to-school topics that focus on the use of braille devices or smart magnification tools. Their sessions are free of charge and allow you to earn one-hour of continuing education credit for each session. A range of upcoming webinar dates throughout September and October 2020 are available, as well as access to recordings of previous webinars.
  • AER eLearning: a range of topics available, with discounts offered to AER members (Association for Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired) with upcoming dates throughout February 2021.
  • Perkins School for the Blind eLearning: a large range of courses available, with some spanning several weeks and others a self-paced style of one hour.
  • Perkins eLearning professional development opportunities

Non-ACVREP CPD

Here are some other O&M/vision specific online professional development opportunities:

  • From emerging gestures to tactile sign language: Deafblind International Communication Network Webinar 3, Wednesday 20 April 2022 6.30-8.30pm AEST online.
  • Orthoptics and congenital deafblindness: Deafblind Information Australia, Tuesday 4 May 2022 7.30-8.30pm AEST online.
  • DBIA congenital deafblindness workshops: These interactive workshops are being run across the country, and are suitable for education staff, therapy professionals, families and others caring for or providing services to people without full vision and hearing at birth or before acquiring language. Topics include definitions, causes, maximising functional vision and hearing, teaching and learning strategies and deafblind communication. Participants are encouraged to bring questions and case studies for personalised learning.
    • Sunshine Coast workshop: Tuesday 12th July 2022 9:30am – 4:30pm AEST, University of the Sunshine Coast, Moreton Bay
    • Canberra workshop: Friday 15 July 2022 9.30am – 4.30pm AEST, Pavilion on Northbourne, Canberra
  • 2021 Online Tactile Reading Conference, 28-30 April 2021 (Oslo) – recorded presentations available for public viewing on demand.
  • Save Sight Community Information Day, 18 September 2021 – online and in-person, Sydney Australia. An annual event for people living with low vision or blindness and those who care for them. This event is an opportunity for people in the vision impairment community to connect with each other, share experiences and get up-to-date information.
  • NextSense webinars: These are convenient, accessible and can be accessed at anytime. These sessions are presented by NextSense staff and external experts in the field.
  • Perkins eLearning free webinars
  • The Renwick Centre Podcast: The Renwick Centre Podcast is a regular series that discusses hearing and vision education and health- everything from new resources, emerging ideas and hot-button issues!
  • A Step Forward Podcast: a podcast for Orientation & Mobility specialists.
  • RO&Ming with Lil: provides a forum for people to learn more about functional vision, and orientation and mobility practice, from an Australian perspective. It offers professional development for O&M specialists and guide dog mobility instructors worldwide.
  • Challenge Solutions: a podcast made by a group of blind students for other blind students and teachers of the visually impaired. Their mission is to provide audio lessons on various forms of assistive technology and create a conversation about the challenges faced by blind students and their teachers.
  • Be My Eyes Podcast: interviews with the world’s most interesting, passionate people from the blind and low vision community – about living blind in a sighted world.
  • Sydney Eye Podcast: this podcast explores topics related to eye health and answers common questions about eye conditions from Sydney, Australia.

 

Communities of Practice Meetings

These meetings are a means of staying in touch with other O&M specialists around Australasia to share resources, knowledge and experience outside of our organisations. The Membership Engagement Committee will be running these meetings quarterly with different topics to be covered in each session. To find out about upcoming meetings, or to view recordings of previous meetings, check out the CoP Meetings page.

 

Other PD

There is also a range of Australian focused disability related learning opportunities. These are not vision specific, but may have relevance to your professional practice.

  • NDS Training and Development; range of topics, prices, durations and delivery methods. Many free online options available. Provided by NDS (National Disability Services).
  • Team DSC Training; range of topics, prices, durations and delivery methods. Provided by Disability Services Consulting.