SLP Augmentative and Alternative Communication 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which federal law mandates that AAC devices and services be considered for students with disabilities in their Individualized Education Program (IEP)?
- HIPAA
- IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) (Correct answer)
- ADA Title III
- Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act only
Correct answer: IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act)
IDEA requires IEP teams to consider assistive technology, including AAC devices and services, for every student with a disability if they need it to receive a free appropriate public education.
Question 2: A client's current AAC system is rejected because it is 'not age-appropriate.' The SLP's BEST response is to:
- Immediately replace the system without assessing the client's view
- Discuss age-appropriateness with the client and balance it with communicative effectiveness (Correct answer)
- Discontinue AAC use until a more suitable system is found
- Defer entirely to family preferences about age-appropriateness
Correct answer: Discuss age-appropriateness with the client and balance it with communicative effectiveness
The SLP should address age-appropriateness concerns collaboratively with the client while prioritizing communicative effectiveness and the client's own values.
Question 3: Which of the following BEST describes 'communicative competence' in the AAC context (Light, 1989)?
- Ability to produce intelligible speech at 95% accuracy
- An integration of linguistic, operational, social, and strategic competencies (Correct answer)
- Mastery of at least 500 core vocabulary words on a device
- Independent device programming and troubleshooting skills
Correct answer: An integration of linguistic, operational, social, and strategic competencies
Light's model of communicative competence in AAC encompasses four interrelated areas: linguistic, operational, social, and strategic knowledge and skills.
Question 4: An SLP is training a family to support their child's AAC use. Which strategy should be AVOIDED because it undermines AAC development?
- Expanding the child's utterances using the device
- Waiting expectantly for the child to initiate
- Answering for the child before they have time to respond (Correct answer)
- Modeling new vocabulary on the device during play
Correct answer: Answering for the child before they have time to respond
Answering for the AAC user before they have an opportunity to respond denies practice time and communicative autonomy, and should be avoided.
Question 5: Research on AAC and natural speech development indicates that introducing AAC:
- Consistently suppresses natural speech development in young children
- Does not impede and may facilitate natural speech in children with autism or developmental disabilities (Correct answer)
- Should be withheld until natural speech therapy has failed for at least two years
- Only helps children who already have some intelligible words
Correct answer: Does not impede and may facilitate natural speech in children with autism or developmental disabilities
Multiple studies show that AAC introduction does not suppress natural speech and often supports or enhances speech development in children with autism and developmental disabilities.
Question 6: Which display type allows vocabulary to change dynamically when a category button is activated, revealing subcategory pages?
- Static display
- Dynamic display (Correct answer)
- Fixed overlay
- Remnant board
Correct answer: Dynamic display
A dynamic display changes the visible vocabulary automatically when a page-link or category button is pressed, allowing large vocabularies to be organized across linked pages.
Question 7: A remnant book is MOST appropriate for which type of AAC user?
- A preschooler learning first symbols
- An adult with dementia who benefits from memory cues linked to personal experiences (Correct answer)
- A non-speaking teenager who needs a robust high-tech device
- An individual with ALS who is losing speech rapidly
Correct answer: An adult with dementia who benefits from memory cues linked to personal experiences
Remnant books use mementos and artifacts from personal experiences as communication supports, making them particularly effective for individuals with dementia who retain long-term episodic memories.
SLP Augmentative and Alternative Communication 5
Which federal law mandates that AAC devices and services be considered for students with disabilities in their Individualized Education Program (IEP)?