Choice-making as a natural context forteaching early communication board use to a ten year old boy with no spoken language and severe intellectual disability

Abstract

Graphic symbols displayed on communication boards are a communication option for learners with severe intellectual disability, but require symbol discrimination skills and the learning of object/symbol associations for effective use. In this study a student with severe intellectual disability, no spoken language, poor language comprehension and who had failed to learn basic symbol discrimination in extended table-top teaching, learnt to use nine object symbols when these were taught directly in a functional choice-making context. The research design followed the logic of a multiple baseline design across settings, but with the target behaviour more loosely defined than is traditional for this design. Difficulties with research methodology for this type of intervention are briefly addressed.