ABSTRACT
On February 2 2023, one of the guiding lights in the field of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) for more than four decades, David E. Yoder, passed away at the age of 90. A voracious reader and gifted storyteller, David was particularly fond of a quote from George Bernard Shaw's Back to Methuselah, "You see things; and you say 'Why?' but I dream things that never were; and I say 'Why not?'" That vision led him to take on multiple leadership roles and influence the field of AAC in multiple ways. He played a pivotal role in establishing both the International Society for Augmentative and Alternative Communication (ISAAC) and the United States Society for Augmentative and Alternative Communication (USSAAC). Additionally, he chaired the panel for the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR)'s inaugural Consensus Validation Conference on AAC, advocated for the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association to recognize AAC within the profession's scope of practice, and served as the first editor for the Augmentative and Alternative Communication journal. In this tribute, we describe David's diverse and unique contributions to improving the lives of people with communication challenges with a focus on some of his central insights and actions.
Subject(s)
Communication Aids for Disabled , Communication Aids for Disabled/history , Humans , History, 21st Century , History, 20th Century , United States , Communication Disorders/rehabilitation , Communication Disorders/historyABSTRACT
This study compared first graders' attitudes toward a peer who used an iPad(®)-based speech-generating device (SGD) versus a non-electronic AAC system, as well as preferences regarding the systems. In all, 115 first graders were randomly assigned to view a video of a peer using either the SGD or the non-electronic system. Participants then completed the Assessment of Attitudes Toward Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AATAAC) and answered preference questions about the systems. Results showed that attitudes toward the peer did not vary significantly as a function of the type of AAC system the peer used. Girls tended to have more positive attitudes than boys toward the peer who used AAC. A majority of participants preferred the SGD for their peer's and for their own use.
