Printable program - Rethinking AAC intervention and education: investigating the success of AAC community groups as opposed to traditional speech therapy.

Rethinking AAC intervention and education: investigating the success of AAC community groups as opposed to traditional speech therapy.

Tracks

Adult

Alternative and Augmentative Communication (AAC)

Autism (ASD)

Cerebral Palsy

Complex communication needs (CCN)

NDIS

Private practice

Therapy

Sunday, June 15, 2025

12:35 PM - 12:45 PM

Overview

Ashleigh Glover

Details

⏫ In-practice
⏲️ 12:35pm - 12:55pm
⌛20-minutes
📚 Assumed knowledge of attendees: Foundational (new/casual familiarity with the topic e.g. treated a single case)

Presenter

Miss Ashleigh Glover

Little Sparrows Therapy

Rethinking AAC intervention and education: investigating the success of AAC community groups as opposed to traditional speech therapy.

12:35 PM - 12:55 PM

Presentation summary

This presentation explores the barriers and solutions of collaboration with support workers and carers in AAC intervention for an adult disability population. The presentation will provide a succinct overview of the case study that investigated the success of a group-based support worker lead community group. The primary objective of the group was to empower support workers with the skills and confidence needed to effectively model and integrate AAC into the daily lives of individuals with communication challenges. Through participating in group activities where support workers model AAC in a supported environment with the aim that this skill will translate into daily practice.
The studies findings will encourage you to rethink how AAC intervention is traditionally given in a private practice setting. The conclusions emphasize the effectiveness of group-based AAC interventions in fostering a collaborative learning environment for support workers, that have a direct positive impact on the success of AAC users learning robust communication devices. The findings highlight the potential for enhanced communication outcomes when support workers feel equipped and confident in using AAC strategies. This presentation will be valuable for professionals seeking innovative approaches to AAC implementation, particularly in fostering greater independence and communication access for adults with disabilities. Presented by a neurodiverse speech pathologist this presentation will be collaborative, and engage all audience members through the use of visuals, audience involvement, and the opportunity to reflect on personal experiences and caseload.

Refrences

International Society for Augmentative and Alternative Communication. (2014). Australian Senate Inquiry: Prevalence of different types of speech, language, and communication disorders and speech pathology services in Australia.

Johnson, H., Douglas, J., Bigby, C. & lacono, T. (2009). Maximising community inclusion through mainstream communication services for adults with severe disabilities. International Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 11(3):180-190

Sennott, S. C., Light, J. C., & McNaughton, D. (2016). AAC Modelling Intervention Research Review. Research and Practice for Persons With Severe Disabilities, 41(2), 101–115. https://doi.org/10.1177/1540796916638822

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Ashleigh Glover is a new-graduate speech pathologist with a particular interest in Augmentative-and-Alternative Communication. Ashleigh Glover is passionate about furthering rural healthcare and during her new-graduate year has introduced AAC education workshops, AAC Community groups, and advocated for increased communication accessibility within the community of Warwick and Toowoomba. Ashleigh Glover has completed many professional development courses through her career including: Introductory and Advanced Pragmatic-Organisation-Dynamic-Display (PODD) workshops, Meaningful Speech Gestalt Language Processing, AAC and MND, Roadmap of Communicative Competence (ROCC), and Introduction to AVAZ. In 2024, Ashleigh Glover was fortunate enough to receive the New-Graduate scholarship to attend Speech Pathology Australia’s National Conference in Perth. Ashleigh Glover is extremely passionate about educating the community about AAC and advocating for a community where all forms of communication are not only accepted but respected.

The information contained in this program is current at of the time of publishing but is subject to changes made without notice.

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