Abstract
Purpose This scoping study sought to establish a baseline for how well the needs of children with cortical visual impairment (CVI) who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) are currently aligned with the services available to them. CVI is the most common cause of visual impairment in children today, and AAC methods rely heavily on vision. Yet, the prevalence of CVI in children who use AAC methods is not yet known, and there is virtually no research concerning use of AAC with children with CVI. Our overarching goals were to identify barriers and suggest priorities for improving outcomes for these children. Method Surveys were distributed anonymously online to professionals from multiple disciplines in different school-based settings and to parents of children with CVI who use AAC. Results School-based professionals identified many barriers, including a lack of knowledge and skills about CVI and about AAC, limited access to training and experts, and concerns about services being delivered in isolated silos with limited time allotted for interprofessional collaboration and planning. Parent reported that their children (M age = 11 years) continued to rely predominantly on body-based forms of communication and lacked access to symbolic language, which, in AAC, is primarily visually based. Conclusions The barriers to services identified by school-based professionals indicate a need to develop and disseminate reliable information about CVI and AAC, both at a preservice and in-service level and, while doing so, to respect the diversity of stakeholders who need this information, including parents. Future research on what types of AAC approaches support the development of language and communication skills for children with CVI is essential.
Highlights
This scoping study sought to establish a baseline for how well the needs of children with cortical visual impairment (CVI) who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) are currently aligned with the services available to them
Lack of knowledge about CVI was ranked as a significant barrier by 35%, and lack of knowledge about AAC was ranked as a significant barrier by 30% of respondents
AAC Methods Several survey questions asked parents about AAC. Approaches their children currently use. They were asked to answer “What body-based, non-electronic and electronic methods of communication does your child use and how often does your child use these AAC methods?” Figure 2 illustrates that the majority of parents reported that their children depended primarily on body-based methods to communicate, with between 64% selecting the use of body postures and 96% selecting use of vocalizations often or sometimes
Summary
This scoping study sought to establish a baseline for how well the needs of children with cortical visual impairment (CVI) who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) are currently aligned with the services available to them. AAC, limited access to training and experts, and concerns about services being delivered in isolated silos with limited time allotted for interprofessional collaboration and planning Parent reported that their children (Mage = 11 years) continued to rely predominantly on body-based forms of communication and lacked access to symbolic language, which, in AAC, is primarily visually based. Children with complex communication needs who are unable to produce intelligible speech frequently rely on augmentative and alternative communication (AAC: see Beukelman & Light, 2020, for thorough considerations of AAC technologies and interventions) to express their needs, wants, and preferences; ask questions; establish friendships; and participate in their families, classrooms, neighborhoods and communities These children are a heterogeneous group whose disabilities range from mild to severe and are caused by a myriad of medical diagnoses, both congenital. Children with CVI often have other associated neurological conditions (Huo et al, 1999), including cerebral palsy
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
