A Preliminary Investigation into Teaching Adolescents with Autism to Use Apps to Solve Problems.

Three girls with Rett syndrome learned to jump between pages on an AAC app. Parents gave the lessons at home while a BCBA coached them on Zoom.

The team used forward chaining. Kids first touched one button, then two, until they could open a new page and pick a wanted item.

All three girls hit the mastery goal in 6–10 sessions. They kept the skill one month later and used it on both an iPad and a paper book.

Parents scored 90 % or higher on a fidelity checklist after only two coaching calls.

Howard et al. (2023) showed parents the same telehealth way to teach simple requests. The new study extends that work by adding the harder step of page-linking.

McGonigle et al. (2014) taught adults with Rett to press one voice switch. de Jonge et al. (2025) builds on that by using many buttons and parent coaches instead of clinic staff.

Ganz et al. (2009) used parents to teach PECS picture exchange. Both studies used a multiple-baseline design, but the 2025 paper moves from static pictures to dynamic screens.

You can train parents in one Zoom meeting to teach complex AAC moves. No need to drive to the home or clinic. Start with one button press, add steps each night, and check fidelity with a simple list. This opens doors for kids who can’t speak but can touch a screen.