Purpose: Providing telepractice services to young children with autism who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) can present many challenges for speech-language pathologists (SLPs). At the same time, telepractice can be a valuable service delivery option with unique benefits, such as improving partnerships with families, integrating…

Purpose: Literacy instruction at home and in school, in addition to child speech and language ability, plays an essential role in reading development. The relationship between these factors in children with developmental disabilities during preschool is important to identify and describe in order to develop and test interventions that target…

Children with intellectual disabilities experience well-documented challenges in the development of problem-solving, particularly related to mathematical word-problem solving. Such challenges are related to both linguistic and conceptual skills. While interventions to assist children in developing conceptual skills are well reported, linguistic…

Stay-Play-Talk (SPT) is a peer-mediated intervention used to increase social interactions between preschoolers with developmental disabilities and typically developing (TD) peers. This intervention has been found to be successful in increasing play and reciprocal conversation amongst children with and without disabilities. The following describes…

Key word signing, an unaided augmentative, and alternative communication (AAC) system is commonly used by children with Down syndrome who attend mainstream primary schools. To ensure the successful use of key word signing within a mainstream environment, a meaningful, contextually appropriate sign vocabulary must be available to all communication…

Purpose: This study aimed to explore the feasibility of a telepractice communication partner intervention for children who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) and their parents. Method: Five children (aged 3;4-12;9 [years;months]) with severe expressive communication impairments who use AAC and their parents enrolled in a…

The problem of this basic qualitative study explored whether there is an underrepresentation of information surrounding strategies, systems, and programs special education teachers use to support students using augmentative alternative communication (AAC) and the impact said information has on student behaviors. The purpose of this basic…

Educators are bound to encounter students with a broad range of speech-language and communication needs in their respective classrooms. According to federal mandates, current and future teachers are required to implement inclusive practices, which involves providing access to communication for all students. This practitioner-focused article shares…

Enabling functional communication is critical for accessibility in school and society for all pupils. This systematic review analyzed the results of educational studies on developing communication skills for learners ([less than or equal to]21 years) with autism spectrum disorder and comorbid intellectual disability. Systematic database searches…

This article presents a phenomenological investigation into speech-generating device (SGD) use in the school context. Derived from a larger study on the experience of speaking through a SGD, this article focuses particularly on the experience of time and timing of speaking for one who must use a SGD to give audible voice to their words. Themes…

Treatment intensity is an aspect of communication intervention that has received limited empirical attention. In this article, we discuss key parameters of treatment intensity related to individuals with complex communication needs who use augmentative and alternative communication. We advocate for an examination of treatment intensity along with…

This study compared a picture exchange (PE) system and an iPad®-based speech generating device (SGD) when teaching requesting skills to preschoolers with developmental disabilities and limited functional speech. A multiple baseline design with counterbalancing the order of two instruction conditions across participants was applied to compare the…

Purpose: This study is aimed to identify the high-frequency vocabulary (HFV), otherwise termed "core vocabulary" for adults with complex communication needs. Method: Three major characteristics of the HFV--a relatively small number of different words (NDW), a relatively high word frequency, and a high word commonality across…

Special education teachers are often responsible for training their staff how to support children with autism spectrum disorder in their classrooms. In addition to academic and behavioral interventions, paraeducators also need to be prepared to support students with complex communication needs. This study was designed to investigate the effects of…

Background & aims: The study assessed the efficacy of a novel, child-friendly, socio-culturally sensitive, icon-based Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) system called Jellow Communicator, in teaching requesting skills to young children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in a special school in Mumbai, India. Jellow is a…