Case Study

Trudy Bore and Caroline Weighton Sept 2012

IntroductionTreloar College is a National Specialist FE College for young people between 16 and 25 with physical disabilities.

30% of our students use AAC (Augmentative and Alternative Communication).

Outreach Services

Aims of session

• Overview of a young person’s journey from no AAC to acceptance of low and high tech communication methods.

• How consistency and similarity between low and high tech AAC facilitated use of both systems.

• The benefit of the above in facilitating acceptance and increased use of AAC.

Case StudyCeris came to Treloar College in 2009, having been a student at Treloar School previously. She has CP and is non-verbal. Studying at Entry Level 2/3:

• When she arrived, she had no wordbook and had no high tech AAC device.

• Family had reinforced to her that she could be understood non-verbally.

• She came into college with an established group of friends who reinforced that she could communicate her thoughts and wishes non-verbally and they could interpret for her. Friends were all verbal communicators.

• She had used a Pathfinder, learning LLL at school, but was lacking in motivation to continue with this and she was struggling.

• Access to alternative communication methods was complex and de-motivating.

Therapy plan

• To introduce an AAC method

• To review access methods through multidisciplinary working

• To find something that would motivate her to communicate

What is the Treloar Vocabulary?

• Identified a need for an adult vocabulary

• The need for focus on social interaction identified by students

• Created vocabulary that merged student priorities with other good aspects of existing programmes

Therapy process

• Initial sessions – unfamiliar people, talking about things out of context using only non-verbal methods.

• Introduction of Treloar Vocabulary wordbook – with extensive personalisation.

• Encouragement to use!

• Simultaneous review of access methods – to inform overall assessment process for AAC. Ceris also compliant and willing to look at this.

Treloar Vocabulary - purpose

• Symbol based program for students with limited or emerging literacy

• Students with recognised learning difficulties

• Students with recognised language difficulties

• Need for functional communication

• Focus on social interaction

• Vocabulary content beyond school into the adult world

• Corresponding low and high tech formats

• Combination of individual words, sentence starter phrases and pre-stored sentences. PCS symbol based.

• Organised by categories accessed from a contents page.

• Clear layout using simple colour coding.

• Consistent placement of function symbols on each page (ie page links)

• Vocabulary including nouns, verbs, adjectives plus words used to express individual thoughts and opinions. Based around how language is used more than what it contains or how it is constructed.

• Quick links to other relevant pages from each page.

Treloar Vocabulary Wordbook

• Specific chat phrases and questions pages – quick access for fast chat situations.

• Vocabulary to construct individual questions as well.

• Teenage/adult vocab for insults, chat up and compliments.

• Pages for specific situations: Doctors appointments, hairdressers, shopping, café, cinema, booking a taxi and pub.

• Specific pages and vocab for expressing opinions and thoughts.

• Designed to be a starting point and then individualised with vocabulary depending on person’s needs.

Treloar Vocabulary Wordbook

Wordbook

Access methods trialled

1. Joystick

2. Head pointing

3. Eye Gaze

4. Switch

I want to talk!

• Discussing personal topics – growing realisation by Ceris that she wanted to take more control of this.

• Ceris’s established group of friends and boyfriend left college – who could interpret now?

• 1st day back in 3rd Year – “I want a talker!”

High Tech AAC Introduced

• Treloar Vocabulary on assessment Tellus• Switch access• Proposed staged introduction – limited time each day• Reality - Ceris wouldn’t leave SLT without it! “I want

it!”• Supported by AAC technician every afternoon in

class• Time spent personalising the high tech vocabulary to

mirror Ceris’s wordbook – on going simultaneous updates

Progress • Rapid functional use of high tech AAC

• Still used in combination with the wordbook – Ceris decides when and where

• Use of high tech AAC in the community – developing independence

• More independent communication within class and with familiar people

• Increased motivation to communicate in different situations – phone calls.

• Increased involvement in planning, decision making and controlling her environment.

Outcomes

• Ceris leaving college with her own communication system – low and high tech AAC.

• Similar findings with other students

• Growth in ability to communicate independently

• Updating both high tech and low tech vocabularies is key for continuity, full use and continued motivation

• Treloar Vocabulary (low and high tech) continues to evolve from student use

• Implications for funding

Ceris – what I think about it all.

Questions

Contact Details

Trudy Bore

Speech & Language Therapist

Treloar College

Holybourne

Hampshire GU34 4EN

email: trudy.bore@treloar.org.uk

Tel: 01420 547400 Ext: 6452

Treloar Trust, Upper Froyle, Alton, Hampshire GU34 4JXTel 01420 526526 Fax 01420 23957 Email info@treloar.org.uk www.treloar.org.uk