Given the linguistic and cognitive demands of communication, adult Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) users with acquired communication disorders may have difficulty using AAC systems consistently and effectively in "real-life" situations. The process of recommending AAC systems and strategies is an area of exploration,…

By 2001, Facilitated Communication (FC) had largely been empirically discredited as an effective intervention for previously uncommunicative persons with disabilities, especially those with autism and related disorders. Key empirical findings consistently showed that the facilitator and not the client initiated communication. I analyze the extant…

Providing effective interventions for individuals with severe intellectual disabilities (ID) continues to challenge educators, speech-language pathologists, and other allied health professionals. This article reviews recommended intervention practices that have emerged over the past 30 years and illustrates their use through an evidenced-based…

Many children born with severe and multiple disabilities have complex communication needs and may use no speech or only minimal speech to communicate. Meaningful assessment of their expressive skills to identify communication strengths along a developmental trajectory is an essential first step toward appropriate intervention. This article…

The purpose of this case study was to examine the effects of a time-delay prompting procedure on the acquisition of skills for repairing multiple listener misunderstandings. A prelinguistic student with autism was taught to use picture cards as a strategy to repair listener misunderstandings in a setting where the student had to ask the listener…

An exciting multi-agency project to create a future for children with Down syndrome where they can more effectively express their opinions. This work recognises the need to remove barriers and push boundaries associated with the reduced ability to verbalise and was planned to give every child with Down syndrome in mainstream schooling in…

The purpose of this study was to develop and to evaluate the Preferences for Leisure Attributes (PLA) Assessment, a forced-choice computer software program for students with severe disabilities and communication difficulties. In order to determine content validity of the PLA Assessment, four experts in related fields assigned critical attributes…

Research on graphic symbol learning suggests that symbols with a greater visual resemblance to their referents (greater iconicity) are more easily learned. The iconicity hypothesis has not yet been explored within the intervention protocol of the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS). Within the PECS protocol, participants do not point to a…

This study evaluated the effectiveness of pyramidal training with direct care staff in group homes. Training focused on teaching staff how to provide opportunities for communication to non-speaking children with developmental disabilities to communicate. Staff were taught through a combination of a workshop, and nondirective consultation following…