Go to previous
article
Go to next article
Return to 2000 Table of Contents
Dana Bertrand
Assistive Technology, Inc.
7 Wells Ave.
Newton, MA 02945
Voice/Message: (617) 6419000
Fax: (617) 6419191
Email: dbertrand@assistivetech.com
EvaluWare™ is a software tool that allows educators,
SLPs and AT professionals to assess the best computer access
methods and alternative and augmentative communication (AAC)
setup preferences for their clients. The software program
contains 350 interactive screens which lead the clinician
through a series of diagnostic activities to assess listening,
looking, motor and related skills needed for successful
communication and computer access. As a comprehensive
evaluation tool, EvaluWare™ is designed to support the
following access methods through an extensive set of preference
options: standard and alternative keyboard, mouse, joystick,
trackball, touchscreen (additional hardware may be necessary),
switch (additional hardware may be necessary) and alternative
pointer (additional hardware may be necessary).
The ready-to-use computer screens are intended for informal
rather than formal testing. As such, EvaluWare™ provides
the clinician with flexible materials and valuable ideas for
conducting evaluations that allow for trial and experimentation
in the assessment areas.
The inherent flexibility of the software allows for the
development of the clinician's own creative strategies and
alternative uses for the materials.
The screening tool is the brainchild of leading AAC clinician
Dr. Howard Shane, Director of the Communication Enhancement
Center at Children's Hospital ~ Boston. In his years of
experience with both recent graduates and seasoned
professionals, Dr. Shane found a need for a comprehensive
framework to make the evaluation process easier on both the
clinician and client. To this end, Dr. Shane collaborated with
Assistive Technology, Inc. to create the EvaluWare™
product using Companion™ software.
EvaluWare™ is the first software title in the Companion
Solutions Series, a growing line of software programs designed
Assistive Technology, Inc. in collaboration with leading
clinicians and educators in the field. The software series is
designed to help clinicians, educators and parents meet the
changing needs of people with a variety of disabilities through
interactive and easy to use diagnostic and screening tools for
AAC and computer access.
Upon launching the EvaluWare™ program, clinicians will
encounter five brightly colored buttons corresponding to the
five major sections of the software: Explore Your Looking
Skills; Explore Your Listening Skills; Explore Your Motor
Skills; Explore
Related Skills and Build a Screen. The number of screens in
each section cover a wide range of content and may be selected
in any order depending on the needs of the clinician or client.
Due to the comprehensive nature of the program and the
significant number of screens, it may be more appropriate to
use EvaluWare™ over multiple sessions with some
clients.
It is important to note that the materials contained within
Evaluware™ should not be viewed as diagnostic tests of
the individual's visual or auditory acuity or as a complete
diagnostic inventory of a user's motor skills. Therefore, these
materials should never be used as a substitute for an in-depth
evaluation by a certified ophthalmologist, neurologist,
audiologist or occupation or physical therapist. However, they
do provide excellent opportunities to screen skills and expose
users to a range of materials.
Exploring Looking Skills offers materials that assess vision
and visual perception skills for setting up displays of AAC
devices. The materials and interactive screens are designed to
examine a variety of standard features of AAC and computer
systems, including optimal size of symbols or text, optimal
number of symbols or words displayed on a screen and the
ability to recognize photographs, realistic drawings, line
drawing or text. Additionally, Evaluware™ targets more
detailed observations such as the amount of contrast between
background and targets, the difference in performance or
preference between grid-like arrangement of symbols versus
targets in context with a realistic screen and the ability to
follow a moving target on the screen.
The evaluation screens are designed to be flexible to
accommodate the needs of users with various physical abilities.
For example, in presenting a screen with four 1" targets to
determine if a user can differentiate among individual targets,
the observer might ask one of the following questions depending
upon the degree of physical ability of the user:
'Can you touch the ball?'
'Can you look at the ball?'
'Is there a ball on the screen?'
'Is this the ball?'
'Blink if this is the ball.'
Use the "Back" button on your browser to return to the
previous page. This degree of flexibility is maintained
throughout the entire software program and related materials.
If a clinician is uncertain of which questions are appropriate
to ask for a given screen or it they are new to the evaluation
process, onscreen help boxes will guide them.
Exploring Motor Skills offers a set of materials to explore an
individual's motor access abilities as they relate the use of
computer-based AAC systems. This section of the evaluation
assumes that the appropriate access method for the client has
been determined, that the client has been fitted with the
appropriate device and that it is available for use during the
evaluation. The activities in this section are arranged by
access method and include only skills that are appropriate to
the selected access method. While it is preferable that the
appropriate access method be determined before using
EvaluWare™ the activities can also be used as an initial
screening to determine an appropriate access method for a
client. For example, an activity in the 'touch' screens is used
to determine whether a given target should produce actions when
the user first touches down on the target or when the touch is
released. This is an important component of successful use of
an AAC device as some users may need to drag a finger or hand
to the desired target before activating it. The section
concludes with a Fun & Games area which allows users to go
on a treasure hunt, play sounds, music and movies or direct the
clinician to perform fun actions such as jogging around the
room or neighing like a horse.
Exploring Listening Skills presents materials that target an
individual's preferences for voice and auditory feedback. The
section contains a variety of activities to determine optimal
volume setting; sound feedback (auditory feedback when a target
is selected) and voice preferences (computer or human
voice/male, female, child). A fun and interactive Listening
Comprehension Game allows the clinician to observe whether a
user can understand and follow one-step directions at the
optimal volume setting and with the desired voice settings.
Because the evaluation process can be tedious for clinician and
client, several sections include functional activities which
are entertaining for the client. The games may include fun
sounds, colorful graphics or engaging animation. With a clear
understanding of a user's looking, listening and motor skills,
the clinician may choose to examine related skills such as
receptive language and language comprehension. In the Exploring
Related Skills section, clinicians can assess a user's
readiness for an onscreen keyboard or word completion software
by trying one of the sample activities. A Visual Questions set
of activities explores visual memory and cognitive-linguistic
processing skills typical in the use of AAC and computer
devices.
Perhaps one of the most significant challenges faced by
clinicians, special educators, administrators and parents is
the ability to make standardized tests more accessible to those
with physical disabilities. Although tests that are given using
alternative methods may not be considered valid as they are not
standardized, the results may still be reliable and beneficial
for school personnel. For example, modified tests provide
opportunities to observe student skills in order to provide
anecdotal observations. To this end, EvaluWare™ includes
two important sections labeled Test Modification Strategies and
Sample Interactive Screens for Modified Tests. The Test
Modification Strategies section includes ideas for modifying
the materials, visual representation, medium of representation
and response indicator for a variety of standardized tests.
Clinicians can use the sample screens in conjunction with the
strategies to administer modified tests.
As the purpose of EvaluWare™ is to investigate the best
computer access method and ideal AAC setups for people with
special needs, the software program contains a section that
allows the clinician to build a custom grid based on features
and settings determined to be most suitable for the user. While
an authoring tool would allow the clinician to create
communication screens which would contain all of the user's
preferences, it would not be realistic to assume that he/she
could do so within a single evaluation session. Therefore, the
Build a Screen section contains features and settings which are
generally most relevant to successful use of an AAC system,
including input method, level of representation, target size,
number of targets and text font and size (if
appropriate).
Included with the EvaluWare™ package is a comprehensive
report form to record information about an individual during or
after the evaluation session. The form covers each area of the
EvaluWare™ package and it presented in both onscreen and
paper formats. The same form is also provided on the
EvaluWare™ CD as a PDF (Portable Document File)
file.
All materials contained in the EvaluWare™ package, from
the comprehensive manual to the flexible report form, serve the
intended purpose of the software. Tree to its original design,
EvaluWare™ serves as a tool to help both beginning and
seasoned clinicians conduct the most effective evaluation
possible to gain the greatest potential from AAC and computer
users.
Go to previous
article
Go to next article
Return to 2000 Table of Contents
Return to Table of
Proceedings