A single subject ABAB design was used to determine the efficacy of aided language stimulation to teach the use of AAC techniques to adults with developmental disabilities. Sixteen participants were divided into two equal groups. In each group, half of the participants were able to communicate functionally using spoken language and half had complex communication needs and did not have functional, symbolic communication systems. Each group met twice weekly for 30 min per session. Researchers modeled the use of AAC and followed scripts during music-based interventions. Sessions focused on social greetings, choosing songs to play, learning words and movements for the songs, and discussing the songs. Participants were encouraged to interact with each other and to facilitate each other's communications. Results suggest that responsiveness and use of AAC increased for all participants with complex communication needs.
Surveys were sent to speech-language pathologists and to teachers regarding their perceptions of classroom-based interventions. Respondents were asked to rate, on a 5-point scale, factors that pertained to classroom-based interventions; to cite what they believed were the primary advantages and disadvantages of these types of interventions; and to rank various models of classroom-based interventions for appropriateness and frequency of use. Results indicated many areas of similarity between the responses of speech-language pathologists and those of teachers, with the primary areas of difference being classroom management and ease of data collection.
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