In the fall of 2010, a group of stakeholders established the Georgia Pathway to Language and Literacy to advance the literacy proficiency of Georgia’s children who are deaf or hard of hearing (D/HH). This innovative project has undertaken the development of an on-line community of practice (CoP)to support the achievement of grade-level reading proficiency by the end of third grade for all Georgia students with hearing loss, regardless of their communication modality. The commitment to achieving such outcomes for children with hearing loss supports the vision statement of the Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Students, i.e., “By 2020, Georgia will be a national leader ensuring that every child is ready to succeed in kindergarten and on a path to read to learn by third grade.” In addition, the implementation of a CoP for D/HH educators and professionals is consistent with the overall Vision for Public Education in Georgia as outlined by the Georgia School Board Association and Georgia School Superintendents’ Association, Recommendation 4.1 – Create collaborative learning communities and implement expert coaching in all schools.
3) Systematic mentoring that promotes knowledge and skill development of professionals working with D/HH students.