Collaborative teaming to support students with augmentative and alternative communication needs in general education classrooms

Teachers’ perceptions of implementation of aided AAC to support expressive communication in South African special schools: a pilot investigation

“…As communication and language interventionists, SLPs typically play a lead role in AAC intervention (Calculator, 2009;Hunt et al, 2002). The absence of SLPs from school staff was mentioned as a barrier: three teachers did not have an SLP on their school staff contingent.…”

“…Family-centered, collaborative practice has been highlighted as a cornerstone of successful AAC intervention (Alant, 2005;Calculator & Black, 2009;Hunt et al, 2002), and a lack of parental involvement can lead to discrepancies in priorities regarding AAC intervention, and a poor fit between the aided AAC and the family's interaction patterns and life style (Goldbart & Marshall, 2004;Naraian, 2010;Pickl, 2011). Of the eight schools included in this study, four offered residential facilities to students.…”

“…We devised the remaining questions based on a review of previous research regarding teachers' perceptions and experiences of AAC implementation (Calculator & Black, 2009;Hunt et al, 2002;Kent-Walsh & Light, 2003;Soto, 1997). These questions pertained to teachers' perceptions about the usefulness of aided AAC, their role and competence in implementation, the challenges they experienced, the support they received during the process, and their training needs.…”

Social Interactions of Students with Disabilities Who Use Augmentative and Alternative Communication in Inclusive Classrooms

“…For example, parent interview findings from the Special Education Elementary Longitudinal Study indicated that 17% of children with ID and 32% of children with autism had never visited with friends during the previous year, and 50% of children with ID and 81% of children with autism never or rarely received telephone calls from friends (Wagner et al, 2002). This social isolation may be particularly apparent in the lives of the subset of students with severe disabilities who experience complex communication challenges requiring the use of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) systems (Beck, 2009;Hunt, Soto, Maier, Muller, & Goetz, 2002;Koppenhaver & Yoder, 1993). AAC refers to systems designed to supplement or substitute a person's speech through the use of a combination of aided (using external resources: e.g., objects, pictures, photographs) or unaided (e.g., signs, gestures, and eye gaze) modes as well as electronic (e.g., voice output communication aides [VOCAs]) or nonelectronic (e.g., communication books) devices (Beukelman & Mirenda, 2005).…”

The Vitality of the Braille in Enabling Inclusion for the Visually Impaired in Regular Secondary Schools in the North West Region of Cameroon

“…Schools leaving the organizations with almost all responsibility that has to do with the braille is a connotation of one-sided support, and collaboration which is conceptualized as a dynamic, interactive, and nonhierarchical process characterized by power sharing and equity among two or more partners who collectively set goals, make decisions, and solve problems through negotiation, cooperation and consensus building [15] is presented as marginal. This does not only undermine the importance of collaboration which is a qualification for a successful inclusive effort [16] but also presents the need for collaboration for an adequate and effective inclusion of the visually impaired in the regular schools in this region of Cameroon.…”