There are numerous opportunities to learn more about augmentative and alternative communication in the Department of Communication Disorders at Penn State University. The educational activities at Penn State range from activities to promote greater public awareness of AAC to a Masters program to train speech language pathologists in AAC to a doctoral program designed to train researchers and future leaders in the AAC field. At the undergraduate level, the goal is to promote greater awareness of persons with severe communication disorders who may benefit from augmentative and alternative communication. This course introduces augmentative and alternative communication systems and techniques useful for persons with severe communication disorders. Students have the opportunity to learn through hands-on lab experiences and a class project involving designing a personal communication board.
Students work on research teams under the supervision of a faculty member.
They assist with reviewing the literature, collecting data, and analyzing results. For further information about AAC research projects at Penn State, click here. Courses are taught by qualified instructors with significant expertise in sign language and the deaf community. In addition to these courses, Penn State's Department of Communication Disorders also offers courses in child language acquisition and disorders, phonology, principles of clinical management, and others. For further information about these courses and other undergraduate courses offered in the Department of Communication Disorders, click here .