Using a computer intervention to support phonological awareness development of nonspeaking adults

Abstract

The present study investigates the effectiveness of a computer-based intervention to support adults with severe speech and physical impairments (SSPI) in developing their phonological awareness, an essential contributory factor to literacy acquisition. Three participants with SSPI undertook seven intervention sessions during which they were asked to play a training game on an iPad. The game was designed to enable learners to practice their phonological awareness skills independently with minimal instruction from human instructors. Preliminary results of post-intervention assessments demonstrate general positive effects of the intervention upon the phonological awareness and literacy skills of the participants. These results support the use of mainstream technologies to aid learning for individuals with disabilities.