An Honest Conversation About High-tech AAC and Autistic Communication (the guide I wish I'd had)
A note before the apps : This guide is for families, educators, clinicians, and autistic people themselves. Anyone navigating communication when speech is exhausting, unreliable, or not the easiest path. It's important to be clear, in this blog we assume the position that communication is not the same as speech, that speech is one channel, a common one, but not the only valid one ; and gestures, facial expressions, body language, sign language, echolalia, written words, pictograms, and Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) systems are all real, complete forms of communication, and they belong on equal footing. AAC, in particular, deserves a clear word: it is a right, not a last resort . Research shows that AAC does not delay speech development, and in many cases, it actually supports it. More importantly, AAC gives people a reliable way to express what they think, feel, and need, in moments when speech is exhausting, unavailable, or simply not the easiest path. Eve...