Acquisition and generalization of key word signing by three children with autism (original) (raw)
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Journal of RCI Vol 7, No 1 & 2, 2011
Augmentative and Alternative Communication AAC) programs were developed for those with difficulty in communicating through the verbal mode. Much of the impetus for AAC systems originally stemmed from the communication needs of individuals with cerebral palsy with a mismatch between the innate communication capabilities and actual expression because of the motor difficulties. AAC systems are now used for clinical populations other than CP. While training children with ASD, adequate attention is not paid to the developmental milestones and the communication intent of the growing child. The AAC program described here is based on the communicative needs with reference to communicative intent rather than modality of young children with a diagnosis of ASD enabling the child to express communicative intents that are expressed by his typically growing peers. A range of alternate modalities are tapped in the process, depending on the developmental profile of the child across several domains - motor, verbal, cognitive. This paper presents the same through illustrations of three children, who had a confirmed diagnosis of being within he Autism spectrum, and who began AAC intervention when they were largely non-verbal.