The Use of AAC Performance Data to Support Evidence-Based Practice With a Preschooler
By Hill, Katya, PhD, CCC-SLP; RESNA 26th International Annual Conference 2003,Publication Date: 2003
Paper presents the steps of applying the principles of evidence-based practice during language intervention with a preschool student with complex communication needs who used an augmentative and alternative communication system called the Vanguard Unity, designed by Prentke Romich Company. The Vanguard Unity is a synthesized-speech output AAC system that supports the presentation of single-meaning pictures, alphabet-based methods, and semantic compaction. In the intervention, emphasis was placed on teaching the use of single words to generate spontaneous novel utterances. Language samples collected during 45 minutes of play therapy and from the natural environment were analyzed using the Systematic Analysis of Language Transcripts, which is a language activity monitoring (LAM) system. The authors contend that LAM data should be used in conjunction with other qualitative and quantitative data to report the communication performance of preschool students who use AAC. The data presented in the paper indicates implications for the feasibility of using LAM data to make clinical decisions, measure outcomes, and document language skills of preschool students with unique communication needs. Implications for further research are discussed.
Assistive Products Discussed: VANGUARD
SALT (SYSTEMATIC ANALYSIS OF LANGUAGE TRANSCRIPTS)
Published by: Rehabilitation Engineering & Assistive Technology Society of North America (RESNA) (Website:http://www.resna.org)
