Go! Go! Go!

I passed another test this week! This time it was a Literary Test at 80wpm!

I am only taking Literary and Jury Charge this Summer. I did not get any financial aid this summer, so I had to drop Q&A. This gives me more time to work at the hospital(bitter sweet) and more of a summer vacation (just sweet!).

In order to pass my summer classes I have to pass three tests in Literary at 80wpm and three tests in Jury Charge at 100wpm. I just finished week 5 of 10 and I only have one test left to pass in Jury Charge and Literary. Can I do it? I think so!

I CAN do HARD things

Today I passed a Jury Charge Test at 100 wpm!

Court Reporting School is so different than any other program. It is so hard to measure progress, especially when passing a test can be few and far between. So when I do, it is cause for celebration!

Welcome to my Court Reporting Program:

Semesters: Fall, Spring, Summer
-Fall & Spring: M-F 8:00-12:00
-Summer: M-Th 7:30-11:30
Classes:
Monday - Literary
Tuesday - Jury Charge
Wednesday, Thursday, Friday - Question & Answer

Testing: Two test are given everyday during the last hour of class
Steps to Pass a Test:
1. Teacher dicates at a particular speed for five minutes
2. Student has 75 minutes to transcribe steno notes into English (Can be done any time within a week of the test)
3. Student listens to the test on tape and grades it
4. Student must recieve a 97% or better to turn in to be graded by the teacher
5. Teacher grades it for grammer errors and looks for any other mistakes
6. 97% or better = Pass, otherwise try again tomorrow

Tests: Must pass three tests at each speed with 97% accuracy:
Literary: 40, 50, 70, 80, 100, 120, 140, 160, 180
Jury Charge: 60, 80, 90, 100, 120, 180, 200
Q&A: 60, 80, 100, 120, 140, 160, 180, 200, 200, 225
Blue = Pass! Red = Working On Black = Someday

As of today I have passed 30 out of 78 tests! Yikes! I still have a ways to go!

Simply Steno

If you are a court reporting student that is quite the oxymoron, but for those that are not, I want to explain court reporting in the simplest way possible.

Stenographer: Trained professional that uses a form of short-hand to accurately transcribes verbal communication into a written form

Stenography Jobs:

1. Judicial Court Reporter - transcribe verbal speech into written text for judicial processes such as trials, hearings, motions, sentencings and depositions

2. Broadcast Closed Captioner - using specialized computer software to provide instant translation of what is said on TV. Employment is found within TV/broadcasting stations and captioning companies

3. CART(Communication Access Real-time Technology) Provider - reporters that specialize in real-time writing, working for the deaf community in schools, conferences and other environments. Job opportunities are found in school districts, churches and convention centers.

Education: No specific degree is required to become a court reporter, however, I am working on getting my Associatiate Degree in Judicial Reporting at Gateway Community College. It takes the average student 3 years to complete the court reporting program.

RPR (Registered Professional Reporter) - Requirement to work in the State of Arizona
To earn your RPR, you have to first pass the WKT (Written Knowledge Test) a 105 question, multiple-choice test that focuses on four areas:

reporting (48%)
transcript production (44%)
operating practices (4%)
professional issues and continuing education (4%).
You get 90 minutes to complete this section of the exam. You must pass with a scaled score of 70 or better.

Then pass all three sections of a skills test in these three areas:

Literary at 180 wpm
Jury Charge at 200 wpm
Testimony/Q&A at 225 wpm

After a five minute dictation of each, you have 75 minutes to transcribe your notes from each section. You must have 95% accuracy on each leg to pass

So Where Am I???
I have been in school for TWO years now and I am somewhere between 80wpm to 120wpm. I had a rough start in Theory Class, but one day back in November of 2010 it just clicked and I have been doing a lot better ever since.

Life Is Now In Session

I decided to create a new blog for two reasons:

1. I am no longer "future nurse Emily"

2. A fresh start -- "You may have a FRESH START at any moment you choose, for this thing we call 'failure' is not the falling down, but the staying down." -Mary Pickford

There was a time that I felt like my life had not truly began because I wasn't married yet OR I hadn't figured out what I wanted to do 'when I grow up' OR I wasn't done with school yet, but I am starting to realize that although things haven't worked out like I thought they would, life is happening, and its up to me to find JOY IN THE JOURNEY.

“Whatever hour God has blessed you with, take it with grateful hand, nor postpone your joys from year to year, so that in whatever place you have been, you may say that you have lived happily.” -Horace