The first success story I read was about a boy named Benjamin Wohl. Benjamin is five years old and was born with Arnold-Chirari malformation. They operated on Benjamin to fix this when he was a toddler, however the surgery still left Benjamin with autistic characteristics. Benjamin can not vocalize much at all. In fact, he cannot feed himself. He also has poor motor skills and low muscle tone. Before obtaining his AAC device, Benjamin had no hope of being in the mainstream classroom. Benjamin was given his PRC Vantage plus device in 2008 to test out. He recently switched to a 84 vocabulary sequenced system. This article says that before receiving his device, Benjamin “had a few signs and used facial expressions, smiling, and some vocalizations.” With the Vantage device, Benjamin has been producing more vocalizations and has been able to communicate better with those around him. During the day, he uses his device to communicate needs such as needing a snack during feeding time. He is also able to work his device independently more than before when he had to have hand on hand to operate the device. This story really shows how AAC devices can open up doors for people with severe disabilities. Benjamin is able to communicate his needs and to have more control over his environment in a way he could not without the use of his device.
Link to Benjamin’s Story: http://www.prentrom.com/success/benjamin-wohl
The use of AAC technology has also opened up opportunities for Maddie Chan, a fifteen year old girl with cerebral palsy. Maddie goes to school in Chandler, Arizona and is in a self-contained special education classroom. She is described as outgoing and affectionate. Maddie is unable to speak and struggles with fine motor skill and a moderate cognitive disability. She also has physical limitations, which prevent her from being independent.
Maddie uses the Spring Board Lite for her AAC device. Before the device, she communicated with gestures and screamed when she felt overwhelmed by noise. Now, she uses the device to say “I don’t like it.” She now uses some single word phrases, two word phrases, and occasionally three word phrases with her device. She also uses her device to talk about herself and to communicate her needs. Maddie likes to interact with people and this device has helped increase her ability to interact. Like Benjamin’s AAC device, her device has dramatically improved her quality of life.
Link to Maddie’s story: http://www.prentrom.com/success/maddie-chan
Makayla Stormer
This success story gave less detail on Makayla’s story. The article talks about how Makayla used the PRC 40 for 40 program. The one thing that jumped out at me about this story was the fact that Makayla no longer needs to use her device. It says she is now using her voice and her own words. The story talks about how this would not be possible without receiving this device. This is a common theme from all of the success stories I read. AAC devices truly make things that seemed impossible before possible for the student.
Link for Makayla’s story: http://www.prentrom.com/success/makayla-stormer
The last success story I read was about a 12 year old named Destani, who has Muscular Dystrophy. Destani uses an AAC device and is non-ambulatory. She is in 7th grade and has a “can do spirit.” According to her speech therapist, Destani is motivated and has personal goals for herself. Even though Destani still struggles to communicate, her device gives her more of a voice and a greater ability to communicate. AAC devices give people a voice, who otherwise would not have much of a voice.
Link to Destani’s Story: http://www.prentrom.com/success/meet-destani
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