Customer Reviews

Meaningful Exchanges for People with Autism: An Introduction to Augmentative & Alternative Communication (Topics in Autism)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

As the parent of a 17 year old son who relies on AAC, I know first-hand, the importance of communication. Interacting with others is critical to our quality of life. Severe communication challenges are an endlessly tall wall, a barrier to social and academic inclusion and success.

Cafiero breaks down the wall, brick by brick, with
an easy to understand text full of common sense strategies, based on relevant research described through real-life vignettes that include individuals with autism spectrum disorder.

Cafiero transcends the complexities of AAC and presents the myriad facets with a balance often missed in AAC literature.
Her sincere respect and enjoyment of people with ASD is evident throughout the text.

A must-have for parents, educators and everyone who loves or interacts with individuals with autism spectrum disorder.

As a beginner learning about this alternative communication modality, I would have to say this book best explains what I need to understand in order to actually work with an autisic individual. Very helpful and resourceful tool. Thank you M. Collette Brandt

Great Book- easy to read and VERY informative. Highly recommend reading this book on augmentative alternative communication. Helped me write the background sections of my thesis.

This introductory volume covers the basic principles of using AAC with autistic children (and adults, but most of the examples and case studies are about children).

The first few chapters explain why AAC should be used with autistic children and what types of children benefit from it. Especially in this section, I found the writing to be repetitive and redundant at times. However, even with the repetition, the book can be read quickly. The middle section explained different types of AAC, and at the end is a lengthy section on AAC and the law. Although I think the legal information is important to know, it may become outdated as laws are updated and changed, so perhaps it is better to use the Internet to find the most current information about your legal rights regarding AAC.

The photographs and case studies interspersed through the text were fascinating. I only wish the case studies were a bit longer and included some follow-up stories about the later progress of each child. The author's examples helped me understand exactly how different types of AAC can be incorporated in the lives of autistic children, and provided some things to think about when planning an intervention. However, for speech language pathologists, I don't think this introductory volume really provides enough information. The intended audience of the book was stated to be "parents and practitioners", but the book seemed to be written more for parents than for speech language pathologists. As someone who is interested in communication disorders in general and doesn't have any opportunities to work with autistic children yet, I sometimes felt excluded by the frequent mention of "your child". However, this is a minor point.

The author states that no prerequisites are necessary for using AAC. It should be started as soon as possible. However, she does seem to think that the "no prerequisites" idea applies only to no-tech and low-tech AAC, and she seems more guarded in recommending the high-tech VOCA devices unless students have shown success communicating with lower tech options. Having read Schuyler's Monster, in which a non-autistic but non-speaking child was discouraged by her school from using a high-tech VOCA despite her obvious interest in it, I was a bit skeptical about this and wondered whether according to this logic children would be kept using communication boards and one-switch VOCAs after they are intellectually able to handle a far more complex system. How can we judge whether they are ready for a more complex device? I think this issue should be addressed in more depth.

As the "meaningful" in the title suggests, the author recommends a communicative approach to teaching language. I liked her approach, especially her example of using a communication board in a bubble blowing activity. However, I would have appreciated more information about using AAC for more abstract and advanced concepts. All of the examples seemed to be for very basic, concrete vocabulary. I understand children need to learn the basics first, but I was unsure how one would transition to talking about more abstract concepts with children using communication boards, VOCA devices, picture languages, etc. If these tools are to be a substitute for spoken language, they need to be able to cover the abstract and complicated as well as the concrete and simple.

Overall this book is useful and easy to read, and I would recommend it as an introduction to this topic.