Major
Communicative Disorders
Minor(s)
Psychology
Advisor
Harwood, Vanessa
Advisor Department
Communicative Disorders
Date
5-2024
Keywords
Augmentative; Alternative; AAC; Communication; School- Aged Children; Accessibility
Abstract
Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) devices are used by individuals of all developmental ages who have difficulties with speech. Those who qualify to use an AAC device are able to practice independence, communicate their needs, and are able to engage in more opportunities where conversation with spoken communication is necessary. This comprehensive review of AAC within the school-aged population provides a detailed look at their overall use within the public school setting, and the funding mechanisms available to users and their families for these expensive devices. Interviews with a Speech and Language Pathologist, and a parent of a child with Autism who uses an AAC device, provides further information about the overall impact of these devices on the lives of school-aged children. Extensive research has provided perspectives, studies, and guidelines regarding access and use of AAC devices within the public school districts. During this project, I was able to 1) learn the key differences between “low-tech” and “high-tech” AAC devices, 2) how the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) enforces laws and regulations to support families and students obtaining these devices, 3) how Medicaid and the US Federal Government has begun to assist public schools with budgeting, 4) efforts required by a Speech Language Pathologist and their interdisciplinary team to advocate for their student’s access, and finally 5), the overarching needs for more extensive education for caregivers as their child engages in the diagnostic and therapeutic process that coincides with the use of AAC.
Included in
Accessibility Commons, Speech and Hearing Science Commons, Speech Pathology and Audiology Commons