Transcript Considerations in AAC Assessment: Teams

AAC Assessment
Sherri Tennant,. M.S.,
CCC/SLP
Maureen Melonis, M.N.S.,
CCC/SLP
Assistive Technology Partners,
University of Colorado Health
Sciences Center
Learning Objectives/Goals for
this training
Participants will understand the
components of an effective assessment
(Phase 1,2,&3)
Participants will have skills to critique
other assessments and identify missing
information
Participants will be able to locate resources
and additional training
Goal #1: Components of and
Effective Assessment
 Phase One Assessment
– Involvement of Team
 Phase Two Assessment
– Consideration of Features
– Understanding of Needs/Barriers
 Phase Three Assessment
– Ongoing evaluation in context
Phase One Assessment
 An information sharing process focusing
on gathering information, assigning roles
and responsibilities and developing a
timeline for action
 Includes all relevant team members,
especially the child and their family
What does your team look like?
 Who is on your team?
 How do you gather information?
 What information do you gather?/miss?
 What works/what doesn’t?
 What are some barriers to successful
teaming and assessment?
How important is teaming
Technology Abandonment
 Non-use or abandonment…can
be as high as 75%
 On the average, one-third of
assistive technology devices are
abandoned, most within the first
three months
(Adapted from Phillips & Zhao, 1993;
and Scherer and Galvin, 1994)
Components of Phase One of
the Assessment
 Introductions & why they are here
 Review meeting process
 Review background info & reason for
referral
 Discuss the Roles of the individuals
 Discuss the Activities he or she
engages in
At the Assessment
 Discuss the barriers to those activities
 Discuss times it was successful and why
 Discuss the environment/setting where
barriers occur
 Discuss Prior technology History
More Components of Phase One
Assessment
 Develop a Plan of Action for Phase II
 Capture “must” statements
Phase Two
 Definition: Phase Two is carrying out the
plan of action developed in phase one.
 The members of the team focus on data
collection and the exploration of specific
features an individual requires
Components of Phase Two
Assessment
 Reconvene appropriate team members
 Conduct physical, cognitive, educational,
sensory, communication, etc assessments
as needed
 Match the TECHNOLOGY to the Person
 Set-up a trial Loan of the Equipment for
phase 3
Areas to Address in Phase Two
 Communication Skills
 Cognitive/Educational Skills
 Motor Skills
 Visual Skills
 Auditory Skills
Where Do I Begin?
Many professionals in fields such as … speech
pathology have been trained to use norm-referenced
tests designed to compare an individual’s abilities to
those of same-age peers. These professionals may
be frustrated when they attempt to evaluate persons
who require AAC systems, because they cannot
administer the norm-referenced tests in a
standardized manner”.
Beukelman & Mirenda
AAC: Management ...
Communication Assessment
1. Determine Current Functional
Communication Levels
Communication Assessment
2 Predict Future Levels of Communication
Effectiveness
Communication Assessment
3 Identify Functional Communication Goals
and Treatment Options
Communication Assessment
4 Select AAC Treatment Techniques
Communication Assessment
5. Select Specific AAC Device and
Accessories
Communication Assessment
6 Determine Procurement, Training, Practice,
And Follow Up Needs
~Golinker & Ourand 12/99 Archived:
Kornreich Technology Center
http://www.kornreich.org/events/pastevents.htm
Cognitive Skills









I.Q.
Problem-solving skills
Ability to follow directions
Cause/effect
Long term memory
Short term memory
Object permanence
Attention span
Motivation
Literacy Skills
 Identifies letters/words/etc
 Creates simple sentences
 Selects a desired word from a list
 Reads words/sentences/stories for meaning
 Spelling skills
Gross Motor Skills








Ambulatory status
Technology needs
Flexion/abduction/extension issues & ranges
Upper and lower extremities
Strength/Endurance/Fatigue
Positioning (across time and environment)
Tone
Reflexes
Fine Motor Skills
 Range of Motion
 Access Options
 Handedness
 Grasp pattern
 Strength/Endurance/Force
 Graphomotor skills
 Switch access
Sensory Skills
 Tactile Discrimination/sensitivities
 Vestibular issues
 Proprioceptive
 Reflex integration
Visual Skills
 Visual tracking
 Visual scanning
 Visual field
 Visual accommodation
 Visual acuity
 Visual perception
Auditory Skills




Localization to sound
Hearing acuity
Response to auditory stimuli
Response & understanding to sound, music,
speech output
 Auditory distractions
 Consider comm. Partner
 Volume
Phase Three
 Evaluation of the effectiveness of the
proposed plan and technology
recommendations.
 Trial and error experiences influence the
revision of the Plan of Action prior to
purchase
 Develop details for ongoing management
of the AAC system/recommendations
Phase III
 Procure Equipment
 Procure Training/Implementation Services
as Needed
 Re-evaluate
– Assistive Technology assessment is Ongoing
and Deliberate….
• Or in other words-it never ends!!!
Phase III
 Develop treatment plan
 Develop training strategies and details
 Develop functional goals
Goal #2
Participants will have skills to critique
other assessments and identify
missing information
What to look for in a report
 Make recommendations about features
 Identify specific devices for trial
 Describe equipment and procedures for
practice
 Describe plan of implementation (who’s
responsible for programming/repair)
 Use appropriate language for funding
source
Critique what you see…
 Assessing more then one thing at a time
 The child not understanding the task
 The location of the assessment
 Don’t over assess
 Access Barriers
Goal # 3
Participants will be able to locate
resources and additional training
AAC Assessment Resources
Assessment Models Assessment Protocals
– Stages
– MPT Model
– Evaluware
– HATT Model
– Other
– SETT
standardized tests
– LAP
(Non-Speech,
PPVT-R, PALS)
– ETP
– WATI
Resources
 http://aac.unl.edu/
 www.ttac.odu.edu/ Articles/Gamel.html
 http://www.aacproducts.org/
 http://www.trace.wisc.edu/
 http://www.wati.org/
 www.donjohnston.com/catalog/nonspe
echd.htm (nonspeech test)
Resources (contd.)
 Stages http://www.assistivetech.com/
 Evaluware http://www.assistivetech.com/
 Feature Match Assessments
 Assistive Technology Partners
www.uchsc.edu/atp
Learning Objectives/Goals for
this training
 Participants will understand the role that
assessment plays in technology abandonment.
 Participants will be able to identify necessary
components for a successful augmentative
communication assessment.
 Participants will demonstrate increased
knowledge of the benefits of matching the
technology to the person rather than matching the
person to the technology.