Activity: Talk or presentation types › Invited talk
Description
Invited seminar for NRT Program
Abstract Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) attempts to augment natural speech, or to provide alternative ways to communicate for people with limited or no functional speech. Technology provides access to voice output and plays an important role in AAC. At the simplest level, people with complex communication needs (CCN) can cause a prestored message to be spoken by activating a single switch. At the most sophisticated level, literate users can generate novel text. Although some individuals with CCN become effective communicators, most do not – they tend to be passive communicators, responding mainly to questions or prompts at a one- or two-word level. Conversational skills such as initiation, elaboration and storytelling are seldom observed. Instead of placing all the processing load on the user, AAC devices can be designed to support the cognitive and language needs of individuals with CCN, taking into account the need to scaffold communication as children develop into adulthood. A range of research projects, including systems to support personal narrative and language play, will be used to illustrate the application of Human Computer Interaction (HCI) and Natural Language Generation (NLG) in the design and implementation of digital AAC.
