Promotion of Communication Access, Choice, and Agency for Autistic Students

Autor/inn/en	Donaldson, Amy L.; Corbin, Endever; Zisk, Alyssa Hillary; Eddy, Brandon
Titel	Promotion of Communication Access, Choice, and Agency for Autistic Students
Quelle	In: Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 54 (2023) 1, S.140-155 (16 Seiten) PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Zusatzinformation	ORCID (Donaldson, Amy L.)
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0161-1461
Schlagwörter	Students with Disabilities; Autism Spectrum Disorders; Augmentative and Alternative Communication; Interpersonal Communication; Social Bias; Attitudes toward Disabilities; Speech Communication; Allied Health Personnel; Speech Language Pathology; Role; Knowledge Level; Communication Strategies; Vocabulary; Evidence Based Practice; Expertise; Experience; School Role; Decision Making; Interaction + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Student; Students; Disability; Disabilities; Schüler; Schülerin; Studentin; Behinderung; Autism; Autismus; Interpersonale Kommunikation; Rollen; Wissensbasis; Kommunikationsstrategie; Wortschatz; Expert appraisal; Erfahrung; Decision-making; Entscheidungsfindung; Interaktion
Abstract	Purpose: Families and professionals often consider augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) a "last resort" for persons with communication challenges; however, speaking autistic adults have reported that they would have benefited from access to AAC as children. This tutorial discusses the history of this "last resort" practice and its perpetuation within the medical model of disability. The tutorial focuses on communication access, choice, and agency for autistic students. Method: We provide a brief overview of the AAC community and their preferred terminology, review the history of traditional approaches to research on AAC and autism, and then examine the relationship between disability models and ableism to views of spoken language as a priority of intervention. Studies on this topic are rare, and resisting ableism requires acknowledging and honoring disabled people's experiences and expertise. Therefore, we promote autistic expertise within the framework of evidence-based practice and discuss the experiences of autistic people and spoken language. Finally, we consider the role of the speech-language pathologist (SLP) in assessment and offer autistic-based strategies and recommendations for communication support. Conclusions: Speaking autistic students who could benefit from AAC may not have access to AAC due to the prioritization of spoken language and lack of awareness of the benefit of AAC. We recommend that SLPs and school-based professionals support and facilitate access, communicative choice, and agency by implementing multimodal communication strategies to include AAC use for autistic students regardless of their spoken language status. Promoting all types of communication and ensuring opportunities for communication across multiple modalities are paramount to a child's agency and self-determination, as is normalization of AAC. (As Provided).
Anmerkungen	American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. 2200 Research Blvd #250, Rockville, MD 20850. Tel: 301-296-5700; Fax: 301-296-8580; e-mail: lshss@asha.org; Web site: http://lshss.pubs.asha.org
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2024/1/01