WATA Bulletin: Summer 2001

Contents:

Understanding Features of Communication Devices for AAC Recommendations and Funding
Legal Update: Casey Martin Can Use a Cart
Calendar of Events

Understanding Features of Communication Devices for AAC Recommendations and Funding

Patricia Dowden, Ph,D., CCC-Sp
Speech & Hearing Sciences, and Center for Technology & Disability Studies, University of Washington

When an individual has difficulty communicating, daily activities of any kind can be diminished because communication is so much a part of our lives. It is possible to improve communication through Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) strategies, but the field of AAC can be daunting for several reasons. First, there are many options, from low-tech communication books to extremely complex (and expensive) voice output devices (and hundreds of options in between). It is difficult to compare and consider them all for any individual. Second, there is no single source of information on devices, whether you are looking for a complex high tech system or something simpler and less expensive. The Internet is a great resource, but only if you are looking for the most common devices and you know enough about AAC to look critically at information from manufacturers.

How can families and clinicians (and AAC users themselves) become educated about all of these AAC options? One way is to learn about the features, or characteristics, of AAC devices and strategies in general. If you think about features instead of specific devices, you can focus attention on options that come closest to meeting an individual's communication needs. Because they are independent of any specific device, focusing on features is a great way to compare devices or options available on the market. In the process you will learn a critical skill that will help you next time you consider a communication device or strategy.

At the University of Washington, there is a new website, UW Augcomm, with information about AAC device features (and other tutorials on AAC topics). This site, at http://depts.washington.edu/augcomm/ is NOT intended to give an overview of all devices on the market. Instead, it teaches the reader about some of the relevant features of devices and strategies, covering the following:

Selection Sets: Examples of devices/strategies with different types of displays, including:
- Alphabet for spelling
- Words/phrases
- Line drawings or photographs

Output Options: Information about the ways that a message is communicated to the listener or communication partner, namely:
- Text-to-speech
- Digitized speech
- Visual displays

Vocabulary Features: Information on the ways that vocabulary can affect the AAC user, including:
- Vocabulary size
- Vocabulary types
- Accessibility of the vocabulary to the user
- Pre-selected vocabulary sets

Access Methods: An overview of the ways that AAC users can control a communication device or strategy, namely:
- Direct selection
- Indirect selection, including all types of scanning

Physical Features: Some of the external characteristics of devices, including:
- Size and portability
- Clarity of display
- Laptops vs. dedicated devices

While this website does not address every relevant characteristic of AAC options, it gives the dedicated reader an overview of the features approach. You will see the benefit in using this approach as you do the following:
- Compare AAC options, including new devices on the market
- Identify information missing from advertisements; formulating questions for the manufacturer/vendor
- Rule out sets of devices from consideration as you search for appropriate technology
- Identify a low tech strategy that would be a good start or an interim solution for an individual
- Discuss the pros and cons of different devices/strategies as a team
- Justify a particular device to a third-party payer

The "UW Augcomm" site is designed to teach you about features; it does not provide general information about AAC. If alternative communication is new to you, you might first visit the WATA website (http://wata.org/) for general information about AAC. Click on "Resources" and then select "Augmentative & Alternative Communication" for a wealth of general information.

Legal Update: Casey Martin Can Use a Cart

Sherrie Brown, J.D., Ed.D., Policy Specialist, UW Center for Technology and Disability Studies

During its recently completed term, the United States Supreme Court decided whether Casey Martin, a professional golfer with a disability, had the right under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to compete on the PGA Tour using a golf cart. In May, the Supreme Court issued its decision, holding that Title III of the ADA does require the PGA to allow Mr. Martin to ride during competition. The facts in this case, PGA Tour, Inc. v. Martin, were described in the Winter 2001 WATA Bulletin. The highlights of the opinion are described below.

The Supreme Court answered two questions: First, was the PGA Tour even covered under the ADA? Only public accommodations-places or events open to the public-are required to follow Title III. Even though the PGA Tour is open to public spectators, only a few athletes are allowed to compete in the Tour. The Court felt that both the purpose of the ADA-to allow "equal access" to a wide variety of establishments available to others-and the comprehensive definition of public accommodations in the law supported inclusion of PGA Tour golfers as well as spectators. Therefore, the PGA must follow Title III mandates.

Second, was Martin's request to use a cart a reasonable modification to the walking rule? Title III does not require places of public accommodation to modify a rule if it fundamentally alters the nature of the service. The PGA argued that walking is essential to the competition and riding a cart instead would "fundamentally alter the nature of the game" because the element of fatigue was essential to the competition. If Martin rode, the PGA argued, he would have an advantage over those who walked because he would be less fatigued. However, the Court held that the walking rule was not "an indispensable feature" of the Tour. Riding a cart was a waiver of a peripheral rule that did not impair its purpose-the fatigue element-because Martin "easily endures greater fatigue even with a cart" than other golfers do. Concerning fatigue, the Court heard testimony that approximately 500 calories were expended in walking a course, spread out over a number of hours of play. The court concluded that any fatigue resulting from the game was "primarily a psychological phenomenon in which stress and motivation" were the key elements. On the other hand, the Court gave an example of what might be a fundamental alteration in the game of golf; i.e., changing the diameter of the hole from three to six inches.

Two aspects of the Martin decision are important for individuals with disabilities who are requesting accommodations in employment, public services or public accommodations. The Court reiterated the importance of individual inquiry in determining whether an accommodation was a reasonable modification. In other words, blanket rules about what is a reasonable modification will not be acceptable. In addition, it is important to note that the Court did not simply accept the decision of the PGA that walking was fundamental to the competition. It evaluated this assertion independently to decide otherwise.

Calendar of Events

Second International Conference for Parents with Disabilities and Their Families
October 11-14, Oakland, Calif.
Hosted by Through the Looking Glass - the National Resource Center for Parents with Disabilities. For more information, contact Through the Looking Glass, 2198 Sixth St., Suite 100, Berkeley, CA, 95710-2204, phone 510-848-1112 ext. 110; fax 510-848-4445; email conference@lookingglass.org; www.lookingglass.org.

Closing The Gap: Computer Technology in Special Education and Rehabilitation
October 16-20, Minneapolis
For information, contact Closing The Gap, P.O. Box 68, Henderson, MN 56044; phone 507-248-3294; fax 507-248-3810; email info@closingthegap.com; www.closingthegap.com/conf/index.html.

ASHA Annual Convention
November 15-18, New Orleans
For information, contact the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, 10801 Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD 20852; phone 800-498-2071; fax 877-541-5035; email convention@asha.org; www.professional.asha.org/convention/index.htm.

ATIA 2002 Conference and Exhibition
January 16-19, Orlando
For information, contact the Assistive Technology Industry Association, 526 Davis St., Ste. 217, Evanston, IL 60201; phone 877-687-2842; fax: 847-869-5689; email atia@northshore.net; www.ATIA.org.

For calendar updates, visit the Web at
http://wata.org/calendar.htm
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The WATA Bulletin is supported by grant H224A3006 from the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research, U.S. Department of Education, to the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, Olympia, WA.