Using AC Systems in the Home and Community

It is important to support and promote the use of AC systems in the home and community because it reinforces the communication skills acquired in school, and assists in generalizing these skills across other settings and environments.


Having a working relationship with open lines of communication between school and home is crucial for the success of augmentative communication. Families should be trained in the use of AC systems, and cultural diversity should be considered in the preliminary stages and throughout the implementation process.


Using AC systems can be more difficult in the community setting due to unfamiliar people who are not aware of the AC user and may be less open to accepting a different approach to communication. Teachers can facilitate positive interactions with new communication partners through assemblies or planned outings in the community. The device can be programmed to ask specific questions, and guests can be guided toward the AC user to respond to a question.


I have personally seen how much more progress a student has made when their AC system is used across multiple environments instead of just school. I had one student who could finally request food items via his AC system but his parents refused to use it in the home. This appeared to hinder the student's motivation to use the AC system in school due to inconsistencies between environments.

Reference Below
Dell, A., Newtown, D., & Petroff, J. (2012). Assistive Technology in the Classroom.
Upper Saddle River, NJ. Pearson Education Inc.

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