The effects of speech output technology in the learning of graphic symbols.

Researchers compared two ways adults with severe intellectual disability learned to point to lexigrams. One group got a voice output communication aid that spoke the word when they touched the symbol. The other group used the same pictures but heard nothing.

The team switched the conditions back and forth for each learner. They counted how many errors the adults made and how long it took to master each set of symbols.

Speech output cut errors and sped up learning. Adults mastered new lexigrams faster when the device immediately said the word.

Once the symbols were learned, both groups kept the skill equally well. The extra sound helped only during acquisition, not later maintenance.

Northup et al. (1991) showed that teaching adults to start conversations with AAC is just as vital as teaching them to press symbols. W et al. now add that the same device should also talk back while the symbol is being learned.

Connell et al. (2004) took the talking-device idea further. They used a laptop to reward any vocalization with synthetic speech, doubling utterances in adults with multiple disabilities. Both studies keep the 'machine gives sound feedback' principle but apply it to different responses.

Wallace et al. (2010) found that simple good/bad labels helped adults with ID make better choices on a gambling task. The same 'extra cue helps thinking' pattern appears here: the spoken word acts like a label that locks the symbol-meaning link faster.

Turn on the speech. If you use an AAC app, tablet, or dedicated device, enable the voice output during teaching trials. The immediate word gives the learner an extra auditory cue, cutting errors and saving precious session time. Once the symbol is firm, you can mute the voice to save battery without losing the skill.