Formal Communication Systems Use by Students with a Moderate or Severe Intellectual Disability: A New South Wales Perspective

Abstract

This paper describes teacher reports about the formal systems of communication used by students with moderate or severe intellectual disability in New South Wales, Australia, and considers variations in terms of student classification, educational setting, and perceived school preferences for the adoption of augmentative and/or alternative communication systems.The data reported in this paper were gathered as part of a larger study which examined student skills and teacher needs in the area of communication intervention. A questionnaire was distributed to all teachers working with students with moderate or severe intellectual disability in public schools in New South Wales.Analysis of the reports made about formal system use suggests that for students with moderate disability, speech is a primary communication form, whilst students with severe disability appear to use a range of other systems, such as manual signs and pictorial representations. The use of particular forms appears to be significantly influ...