Synopses & Reviews
When K-12 students use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), what can SLPs and educators do to ensure the best academic and social outcomes? They'll find out in this accessible guidebook—every professional's key to helping students develop the language and literacy skills that lead to higher academic achievement and positive peer relationships.
A must-have guide for educators and SLPs who provide communication support, this book answers pressing questions about working with students who use AAC and helps teachers skillfully meet student needs while satisfying the demands of their curriculum. Pre-service and in-service educators and the SLPs who work with them will learn to
- collaborate effectively to improve outcomes for students who use AAC
- determine student needs through effective, ongoing reading, writing, and language assessments
- develop IEPs based on each child's language, communication, and literacy goals
- help students move beyond emergent literacy and develop the skills research identifies as the keys to reading success
- meet IDEA requirements by adapting the general curriculum so all students participate and achieve
- support students' successful use of various AAC technologies, such as communication boards, word prediction software, and speech generating devices
- supplement classroom instruction with visual and oral scaffolding supports for students with AAC needs
- promote positive social relationships and friendships between students who use AAC and their peers
To provide students who use AAC with the best support, readers will get clear descriptions of instructional techniques, guidelines for curriculum adaptations, and practical tools and visual aids such as model intervention plans, task analysis forms, and charts of sample accommodations.
Balancing practical strategies with up-to-date research, this book unlocks language and literacy skills for children who use AAC and lays the groundwork for long-term school and social success.
Practically Speaking is part of the Augmentative and Alternative Communication Series.
Review
"A wealth of evidence-based, yet highly practical strategies for promoting the social inclusion and academic achievement of students who require AAC. A better professional resource could not be found." Jeff SIgafoos, Ph.D.
Review
"Well organized, highly researched, and focused on accessing curriculum ... a good source for college students and seasoned professionals."
Synopsis
This accessible guidebook is every professional's key to helping students develop the language and literacy skills that lead to higher academic achievement and positive peer relationships. Balancing practical strategies with up-to-date research, this book unlocks language and literacy skills for children who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) and lays the groundwork for long-term school and social success. Educators and Speech Language Pathologists, (SLP's) who provide communication support will learn to collaborate effectively to improve outcomes for students who use AAC; determine student needs through effective, ongoing reading, writing, and language assessments; develop IEPs based on each child's language, communication, and literacy goals; help students move beyond emergent literacy and develop the skills research identifies as the keys to reading success; & meet IDEA requirements by adapting the general curriculum so all students participate and achieve.
Synopsis
Accessible addition to the AAC series that offers practical, targeted tools for advancing the communicative competence of children who use AAC.
About the Author
Lynn Ahlgrim-Delzell, Ph.D., Dr. Ahlgrim-Delzell's research interests include literacy instruction and assessment and research methods for low-incidence populations. She has over 30 years of experience working with individuals with severe disability in various capacities.
David R. Beukelman, Ph.D is the Barkley Professor of Communication Disorders at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Director of Research and Education of the Communication Disorders Division, Munroe/Meyer Institute of Genetics and Rehabilitation at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, A research partner in the Rehabilitation Engineering and Research Center in Augmentative and Alternative Communication, and a senior researcher in the Institute for Rehabilitation Science and Engineering at the Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital. With Pat Mirenda, he co-authored the textbook, Augmentative and Alternative Communication: Management of Severe Communication Disorders in Children and Adults. He served as editor of the Augmentative and Alternative Communication Journal for four years.
Cathy Binger, M.S., CCC-SLP, is a speech-language pathologist and creative writer. She earned her undergraduate degree from The Pennsylvania State University and earned her master's degree from the University of Wyoming. Since graduating, she has worked in hospital, university, and preschool settings, providing services to individuals with communication disabilities, including those who require AAC. In 1994, she returned to The Pennsylvania State University and accepted a job as a research assistant, working with Janice C. Light on a grant to investigate exemplary practices to develop the communicative competence of individuals who use AAC. Cathy Binger currently lives in Laramie, Wyoming, and is writing her first novel.
June E. Downing, Ph.D., prepares teachers to meet the needs of students with moderate to severe and multiple disabilities. In this capacity, she teaches courses, advises students, and supervises teachers in their practicum experiences. Dr. Downing has provided in-service training to teachers, administrators, parents, and support staff around the country. She has been interested in the education of students with severe and multiple disabilities (especially those with sensory impairments) since 1974 and has served as a paraprofessional, teacher, work experience coordinator, consultant, researcher, and teacher trainer. Areas of research include investigating related topics such as educating all students together, enhancing the social-communicative skills of students with severe disabilities, adapting for the unique needs of individual students, developing paraprofessional skills, and preparing teachers for inclusive education.
Janice Light, Ph.D., is a Professor in the Department of Communication Disorders at the Pennsylvania State University. She is actively involved in research, personnel preparation, and service delivery in the area of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). Her primary interest has been furthering understanding of the development of communicative competence and self-determination by individuals who require AAC.
Dr. Light is the principal investigator on several federally-funded research grants to improve outcomes for individuals who have significant communication disabilities through the use of augmentative and alternative communication. She is one of the project directors in the Augmentative and Alternative Communication Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center (AAC-RERC), a virtual research consortium funded by the National Institute for Disability and Rehabilitation Research.
In 1996, Dr. Light was recognized as the Don Johnston Distinguished Lecturer by the International Society of Augmentative and Alternative Communication for her leadership in the AAC field. In 1999, she received the Dorothy Jones Barnes Outstanding Teachin
Table of Contents
Series Preface
Series Editors and Editorial Advisory Board
Volume Preface
About the Editors
Contributors
Acknowledgments
I. Assessment
1. Educational Assessment Issues
Lynn Ahlgrim-Delzell
2. Assessment of Early Communication Skills
June E. Downing
3. Language Assessment for Students Who Use AAC
Lisa A. Proctor & Carole Zangari
4. Diagnostic Reading Asssessment for Students with AAC Needs
David A. Koppenhaver, Beth E. Foley, & Amy R. Williams
5. Writing Assessment for Students with AAC Needs
Beth E. Foley, David A. Koppenhaver, & Amy R. Williams
II. Instruction and Intervention
6. Academic Adaptations for Students with AAC Needs
Gloria Soto
7. Addressing the Communication Demands of the Classroom for Beginning Communicators and Early Language Users
Jennifer Kent-Walsh & Cathy Binger
8. Supporting More Advanced Linguistic Communicators in the Classsroom
Carole Zangari & Gail Van Tatenhove
9. Addressing the Literacy Demands of the Curriculum for Beginning Readers and Writers
Karen A. Erickson & Sally A. Clendon
10. Addressing the Literacy Demands of the Curriculum for Conventional and More Advanced Readers and Writers Who Require AAC
Janice C. Light & David McNaughton
11. Strategies to Support the Development of Positive Social Relationships and Friendships for Students Who Use AAC
Pam Hunt, Kathy Doering, Julie Maier, & Emily Mintz
12. Integrating Assistive Technology with Augmentative Communication
Yvonne Gillete
III. Supports
13. Supporting Collaborative Teams and Families in AAC
Nancy B. Robinson & Patti L. Solomon-Rice
14. Consideration of Cognitive, Attentional, and Motivational Demands in the Construction and Use of Aided AAC Systems
Krista M. Wilkinson & Shannon Hennig
Index