AAC Practices in Special Education - Part 1

This information is summarized from a presentation given by Gail M. Van Tatenhove, PA, MS, CCC-SLP, on January 15, 2009.



A common goal for all AAC users is PARTICIPATION - or to "Talk in Class".


Challenges to AAC classroom practices:

• Communication Opportunities are Activity-based. There is limited talking outside of specific activities. It’s common to plan AAC into an activity or daily routine, yet just as important (or more so) for communication to occur throughout the school day in every situation.

• AAC users develop “learned passivity”. Students with severe communication problems are much less likely to initiate communication on their own. They often assume the role of 'responder'. The opportunities for communication then tend to be limited to responding to questions, often with yes/no answers.
  

• AAC users become prompt dependent. Some prompting is important to the teaching process, but prompts should be used sparingly since children can become dependent on them. Allow time for an AAC user to use their system when opportunities arise.

• AAC Systems are often classroom based; yet need to be flexible enough to meet communication needs in a variety of settings (community, doctors office, home).

• Technology is often emphasized over language. Consider the developmental sequence for social interaction & conversation, communication beyond making requests and having basic needs met. Such as; "mine", "my turn", "go"...
  

The majority of vocabulary should be - permanently available, appropriate high-frequency, reusable words that work in any situation. More on vocabulary selection in part 2.

-Sheri

Tech Tip Survey Results

The feedback I received about technology preferences, from last week’s survey, was helpful. What I learned from the 12 (out of 75) people who responded to the survey is...

• 91.7% Save weekly Tech Tips for reference
• 81.8% Use the Tech Tips
• 40% Would like to receive Tips every other week
• 30% Would like to receive Tips monthly
• 83.3% Like getting tips and want to continue
• 100% Prefer to receive tips by Email w/ attachments

Teacher preferences for receiving training / tech information are ranked 1= most preferred, 6 = least preferred:
1 - Classroom Collaboration with Tech Coordinator
2 - Training during grade level meetings
3 - U97 Class - after school
4 - Receive Tech Tips through email
5 - Training during day - release time
6 - Remote online - independent learning


Please contact me if you would like to: plan a classroom collaboration, or schedule training during a grade level meeting or other time.
-Sheri

Happy 2009 - AT Tip Survey

This week I'd like to find out how I'm doing - and what I can improve - through a quick survey. Please let me know how the Tips I send are working for you. The survey has just 5 questions. If you have topic ideas or comments write them into the "comment" or "other" boxes on the survey.

Click here to go to the survey.


Thanks, Sheri