How would you communicate with the world if you couldn't speak? If a progressive disease like ALS left you without speech, what could you use to express yourself?
In this Fireside Chat, we’ll explore alternatives to human speech through devices, such as tablets with Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC).
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Kelsey Hall
● Masters in Speech-Language
Pathology
● Teacher of the Deaf
● Dyslexia Practitioner
● Assistive Technology &
Accessibility Consultant
● Currently at McDonalds
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HETT
evaluation
framework
Assessing
the end user
holistically
Human
Tasks
Tools
Environment
Performance
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How do you assess an adult’s communication needs?
● Do they plan to return to work?
● How much physical mobility do they
have?
● What’s their cognitive status?
● Can they take care of themselves?
● Is support required?
● Can they program their own device?
● YES: they’re a badass
● NO: who will be managing the
device?
● Are they literate?
● Do they have other disabilities?
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What about an AAC assessment for a child?
● are they of school age?
● do they have family support?
● do they have an external caretaker?
● are they independent in self-care or
device use?
● physical mobility status
● cognitive status
● where will the device be located?
● are they literate or pre-literate?
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What’s the state of the art when it
comes to research?
What sort of feedback do you get from
end users?
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Research rarely includes…
● first-hand accounts from users
particularly K-12 students with
multiple disabilities
● UX/UI user-research on the symbol
systems (design/implementation)
● cultural implications
● self-esteem, self-worth, etc.
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What are some of the ableist
assumptions that providers often make?
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Ableism &
Providers
They don’t have
the intellectual
ability to use
high-tech.
I think I’ll just
hide most of the
words and leave
the ones we’ve
learned.
They’ll probably
just break the
device, so I’ll just
have their
caretaker hold
onto it
Let’s focus on self-
care skills instead of
communication
because they
probably won’t want
them back at work
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What are some situations when you
have to switch to a low-tech version?
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Requirements
● Frictionless data
entry
● Uses established UI
metaphors
● Responsive layout
● Uses mainstream
technology stack
● Data and settings
must be portable
● Interoperable with
other devices
● Expandable icon and
symbol library
● Support languages
and i18n
(internat’lization)
● Different regional or
cultural sets
● Rugged hardware
● Works on
mainstream devices
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Resources
Try out AAC Software:
● PASS Software
● Chat Editor
Voice Banking:
● Google’s Project Euphonia
● ALS Message Banking @ Boston
Children’s
Common Symbol Libraries:
● PCS Boardmaker
● Minspeak
● SymbolStix
Research:
● Key Principles for AAC Research &
Design
● Exploring the Design Space of AAC
Awareness Displays
Editor's Notes
Intro with doctors appointment and diagnosis
Would you just give up, or try to be the same badass you are now?
Can be present at birth or can be acquired through a life event
Intro with doctors appointment and diagnosis
Intersectionality: fixing one problem doesn’t fix all of them
Intersectionality: fixing one problem doesn’t fix all of them
A vocabulary of core words, which are frequently-used
5,00 core symbols, 37,000+ with add-ons
Cyanide and Happiness without the humor
Fitzgerald coloring
No longer 1:1, but more complex semantics
Association base
Intro with doctors appointment and diagnosis
Intersectionality: fixing one problem doesn’t fix all of them
Perfect setup for ableist assumptions
3:19 experimenting with different voiceshttps://youtu.be/PFHCnwwkSyw?t=199
Intro with doctors appointment and diagnosis
Frankenstein device situations
Intro with doctors appointment and diagnosis
0:00 to 0:44 The Bahomas
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=oembed&v=rjGaNwrnP5c
Explains flips in book
https://youtu.be/5NlQgUlsNzU?t=209
0:48 – 1:32
https://youtu.be/RIkeubo6nl8?t=48
discuss
Open source
Pleasing design
Intersectionality: fixing one problem doesn’t fix all of them
Intersectionality: fixing one problem doesn’t fix all of them
Study author Gopala Anumanchipalli, PhD, holds an example array of intracranial electrodes of the type used to record brain activity in the current study. Credit: UCSF
Proof of concept experiment
Use time and location to factor into predictions
Intersectionality: fixing one problem doesn’t fix all of them