TY - JOUR
T1 - "When I first got it, I wanted to throw it off a cliff"
T2 - The challenges and benefits of learning AAC technologies as described by adults who use AAC
AU - Rackensperger, Tracy
AU - Krezman, Carole
AU - McNaughton, David
AU - Williams, Michael B.
AU - D'Silva, Karen
N1 - Funding Information:
This research is part of the Communication Enhancement Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center (AAC-RERC), which is funded by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research of the U.S. Department of Education under grant number H133E980026. The opinions contained in this publication are those of the grantee and do not necessarily reflect those of the Department of Education. Additional information on the AAC-RERC is available at http://www.aac-rerc.org/. The authors would like to offer their sincere thanks to the participants who contributed their time and ideas to this project. Pseudonyms have been used throughout the text in order to protect the confidentiality of the participants. Because the web-based discussion did not easily support proofreading and editing functions for the participants as they posted their comments, we have made minor corrections of spelling and grammatical errors.
Funding Information:
This study represents a unique contribution to the field since it was designed, implemented, and evaluated by a team of individuals who use AAC, in collaboration with family members and researchers from Penn State University, as part of the Communication Enhancement Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center (AAC-RERC), which is funded by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research of the U.S. Department of Education. This study represents the successful realization of the principle, ‘‘Nothing about us without us’’ (Charlton, 1998) and, in keeping with this principle, the research team included the perspectives of individuals who used AAC (TR and MW), as well as a family member of an individual who used AAC (CK), a university researcher (DM), and a graduate student in communication sciences and disorders (KD).
PY - 2005/9
Y1 - 2005/9
N2 - Seven individuals (aged 21-41 years) with cerebral palsy and who used speech generating augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) devices participated in a focus group discussion on the benefits and challenges of learning AAC technologies. The focus group was conducted on the Internet over a 9-week period. Five major themes emerged from the discussion: (a) selection of an AAC device; (b) knowledge and skills needed to use AAC technologies; (c) instruction and practice activities; (d) assessment of skill acquisition: and (e) advice to others. Participants reported that a consumer-driven assessment approach, which included the opportunity to discuss options with other individuals who used AAC, was key to the selection of an appropriate device. Participants identified a wide variety of important supports to learning how to make effective use of AAC technologies, including text and technological supports, individual exploration, learning from professionals, drill and practice, learning from peers, and opportunities for functional use in the community. For the participants, successful use of AAC technology was best assessed by functional use in the community.
AB - Seven individuals (aged 21-41 years) with cerebral palsy and who used speech generating augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) devices participated in a focus group discussion on the benefits and challenges of learning AAC technologies. The focus group was conducted on the Internet over a 9-week period. Five major themes emerged from the discussion: (a) selection of an AAC device; (b) knowledge and skills needed to use AAC technologies; (c) instruction and practice activities; (d) assessment of skill acquisition: and (e) advice to others. Participants reported that a consumer-driven assessment approach, which included the opportunity to discuss options with other individuals who used AAC, was key to the selection of an appropriate device. Participants identified a wide variety of important supports to learning how to make effective use of AAC technologies, including text and technological supports, individual exploration, learning from professionals, drill and practice, learning from peers, and opportunities for functional use in the community. For the participants, successful use of AAC technology was best assessed by functional use in the community.
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U2 - 10.1080/07434610500140360
DO - 10.1080/07434610500140360
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:27744572537
VL - 21
SP - 165
EP - 186
JO - AAC: Augmentative and Alternative Communication
JF - AAC: Augmentative and Alternative Communication
SN - 0743-4618
IS - 3
ER -