A Systematic Review of Research on Augmentative and Alternative Communication Interventions for Children Aged 6-10 in the Last Decade

Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) interventions that promote commenting: a systematic review

Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) can be used effectively by persons with speech or speech-related disabilities to accomplish a variety of communicative functions. However, the majority of AAC interventions reported in the literature focused on requesting. While it is important to initially teach requesting skills, commenting should not be neglected. As AAC emerges, commenting is essential for social engagement, social closeness and information transfer. The purpose of this systematic review (INPLASY protocol 3160) was to describe and critically appraise the existing research on AAC interventions for commenting. A systematic search and application of inclusion criteria yielded 14 single case design studies that examined the effect of an AAC intervention on commenting of children with communication disabilities. A quality appraisal indicated that the rigor of most studies was acceptable. However, there are areas in which research can be improved, especially around the number of points per phase, blinding of personnel, and clear reporting of procedures. Interventions fell into three types of teaching procedures, including prompt hierarchies, aided modeling and direct prompting. Likewise, three teaching contexts (i.e., book reading, play/toys/preferred activities, intensive teaching) and four types of commenting behaviors (i.e., one-symbol utterances, two-symbol utterances, sentences frames and grammatically correct utterances) were identified. Findings suggest the strongest evidence exists to support the use of least-to-most prompt hierarchies that include aided modeling in the context of book reading. However, there are too few studies to recommend their use with certainty.

The prevalence of relational basic concepts on core vocabulary lists for AAC: is frequency enough?

The selection of appropriate vocabulary is a crucial and challenging aspect of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) intervention. Core vocabulary lists are frequently used to support vocabulary selection for children who require AAC. A vocabulary domain that has garnered limited attention within the AAC literature is relational basic concepts (RBCs). RBCs describe relationships between objects, persons, or situations, and play a pivotal role in language development, communication, and academic success. For the present study, we created a list of 156 RBCs, drawing primarily from assessments that measure basic concept knowledge in preschool and early elementary school students. We examined the overlap of these words on nine core vocabulary lists. We found that most concepts were not represented on any core lists. Additionally, there was relatively little overlap of RBCs between the core lists. These findings suggest that vocabulary selection resources created using exclusively a core vocabulary approach may have limited utility for identifying many concepts that preschool and early elementary students are expected to know and use. Implications for AAC research and practice are discussed with emphasis on the need for further consideration of RBCs within vocabulary selection practice and the field of AAC at large.

Impact of Assistive Technologies to Inclusive Education and Independent Life of Down Syndrome Persons: A Systematic Literature Review and Research Agenda

Since the beginning of the 21st century, the lifespan of people born with Down syndrome (DS) has increased. They now outlive their parents and rely on their relatives who usually sacrifice their own families to care for their disabled siblings. To reduce the pressure on families and the wider community, it is crucial to prepare DS people for independent life from early childhood. Emerging technologies can significantly support the process of acquiring the skills that are necessary for solving real-life problems at home and work. To assess their impact and estimate how much they are implemented in inclusive education, a review of 564 papers published after 2015 was done using the PRISMA review model. After gradual exclusion, 24 papers were used for the final review. Thematic analysis resulted in four themes with one common concept: variety. The results of examining the four research questions defined in the paper’s background confirm that the synergy of emerging assistive technologies and inclusive education has the potential of becoming a very effective strategy for creating an independent life for DS individuals. Many questions remain open, mainly related to a DS persons’ specific needs and capabilities. The acceptance of the proposed synergy will depend on them.