Dr Katya Hill, Executive Director, AAC Institute, writes the October column for AAC Parents Corner, 'What More Can I Do?' I intend to quote her in my battle for comprehensive specialist assessment for my son, and to get his educators and therapists to shift their focus from mere functional / animal communication and 'content words' to core language, syntax and grammar.
Abridged quotes:
"Consider the comprehensive evaluation:
The driving principle of recommending AAC interventions for a child is to build language competence by monitoring gains in vocabulary, putting words together, using grammar, and using a variety of social language skills. Children need language to learn, and an AAC system has to provide for language in order for children to learn to reach their potential. T...he focus is language first, technology second!
Consider measurable language-based goals and objectives:
The principle of language first... keeps the focus on identifying language goals and objectives prior to discussing how technology can support meeting those goals and objectives. AAC software is significantly more essential to success then the hardware that houses the software. How the software represents language and allows a child to generate language beyond functional communication is the cornerstone to achieve the desired goals and objectives most parents seek."
Read the full article:
I am deeply grateful to Katya for putting these two points so succinctly in this article and more with Professor Bruce Baker in the feature length documentary 'Only God Could Hear Me', SHOUT has so kindly put the entire movie on YouTube for the whole of October in support of International Augmentative & Alternative Communication (AAC) Month.
Only God Could Hear Me:
No comments:
Post a Comment