The current study compared the use of serial and concurrent methods to train multiple exemplars when teaching receptive language skills, providing a systematic replication of Wunderlich, Vollmer, Donaldson, and Phillips (2014). Five preschoolers diagnosed with developmental delays or autism spectrum disorders were taught to receptively identify…

Accuracy of imitation of nonsense words was examined in first and second grade children as a function of prior reception training. (MP)

Tracking as a technique for training and evaluating speechreaders' reception of connected discourse is redefined, and some of its modifications are presented. Also noted are issues in the use of tracking, such as verbatim response, talker learning, and material selection, and recommendations for preparing speechreaders for the tracking task. (JDD)

The effectiveness of verbal, sign, and simultaneous systems for the acquisition of receptive language by an autistic boy was investigated. Results suggest nonsignificant differences among the three methods. (Author/SEW)

Five children with severe educational retardation, aged 5-12, were involved in sign training in which the spoken words corresponding to signs were receptively known to participants. Whether signs were taught concurrently or in a serial fashion, signs taught by total communication were acquired faster than those taught by sign-alone training.…

This review of research examines investigations that have focused on the effect of reinforcer specificity on the acquisition of both language comprehension and production skills by learners with severe handicaps. Issues regarding the use of intervention strategies that employ reinforcer specificity are discussed. (Author/JW)

A preference procedure which makes possible a wide range of fine grammatical contrasts is proposed as an alternative to the traditional comprehension testing procedure. (GW)

Total communication procedures were used with three severely mentally retarded children (mental ages 2 to 4) to examine the effects of receptive speech on the acquisition and maintenance of manual signing. Signs corresponding to known words were generally acquired faster and retained better than signs corresponding to unknown words. (Author/JW)

This paper identifies characteristics of poor speechreaders, defines developmental dyspraxia in profoundly hearing-impaired children, and outlines the speechreading process. An active training method is described in which expressive and receptive skills are integrated, by having hearing-impaired people speechread their own speech via videotape…

Three retarded children 3- to 11-years-old were trained, using prompting and reinforcement procedures, to respond correctly to three categories of prepositional requests (next to, under, and on top of). (Author)

Techniques have been developed for teaching severely/profoundly retarded children to comprehend the names of everyday objects. (PHR)

A tracking procedure (lipreading of word groups that are repeated by a hearing-impaired listener), emphasizing practical coping strategies and practice in responding to cues in connected speech, was utilized with one deaf adult subject. Tracking scores before and after training illustrate the value of the procedure for evaluation and training.…

This workbook for developing communication in learners with severe disabilities is from the Mississippi Early Education Program for Children with Multiple Disabilities, a program designed to train Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Part H service coordinators and service providers to use family centered strategies. The objective of the…

This curriculum provides a sequence of activities designed to help develop cognitive and communication skills in severely and profoundly multi-handicapped individuals who are functioning between 0 and 24 months. Based on the principles that communication begins at birth and that educational programming must begin at the point where the handicapped…

Research findings and descriptive articles pertaining to media, materials, and technology (MMT) which provide access to education of deaf and hard of hearing children from early childhood through eighth grade are reviewed and summarized. An introduction discusses the purpose and goal of the study; the target population; characteristics of deaf and…