De Valenzuela - The Role of Language and Communication as the Basis for Literacy

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CALL NUM: IPATRON: AU: Cope l and, Susan R.TI: EEEective lite racy i n s t r u c t i o n r s tudent s with moderate or seve re d i s a b i l i t i e s /ISBN: 978 15 57668370 (pbk . : a lk . paper)ART TI : Th e Rol e o f Language and Communi ca t i o n a s the Basi s or Li t e r a c yART ATH: J u l i a Sc he rba de Va l enzue l a and Mari lyn Tracey /" / " /7 7DATE: 2007 PAGES: c hap te r 3 / c z; C t: O L OVVERIF: OCLC ~ C - c? ALERT:SHIP TO: I n t e r l i b ra ry Serv i ces / Ohio Sta t e U n i v e r s i t y Lib ra r i e s / 1858 Neil Avenue Ma ll / Co lu mbus OHUS 43210SHIP VIA: Odyssey, OCLC Ar t i c l e Exchange, Email PDF, MyBib eLBILL TO: I n t e r l i bra ry Se rv ices /Ohio St a t e U n i v e r s i t y Lib ra r i e s / 1858 Neil Avenue Ma ll / Co lu mbus OCOPYRIGHT: CCG MAXCOST: IFM - 45.00ODYSSEY: 206.107.43.112 / 0SUEMAIL: o s u i l l @osu.edu AFFILIATION: OhioLINK, CI C, SHARES NOTICE: This ,materialmaybeBORROW NOTES: SHARES MemberLEND CHARGES: protected by copyright lawSHIPD DATE: (Title 17.U.S.Code) .RETURN TO:

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Chapter

The Role of anguageand Communicationas the asis for LiteracyJulia Scherba e Valenzuela and M Marilyn Tracey

The pmpose of this chapter is to define and discuss concepts fundamentalto understanding the development of communication. This is necessary ina book about literacy for all students , as literacy is an important and highlysocially valued form of communication and one that often has been perceived asbeyond the reach of many students with intensive communication needs. As oneof several potential forms of communication, literacy development must be understood within the individual's overall communication skills. The multipleforms of communication that may be present within an individual's repertoiremight include: oral language, signed language, wr itten language, graphic or tactile representation of objects or concepts (i.e., pictme cards or miniatme objects), conventional and unconventional gestmes eye gaze, facial expressions,vocalizations, and body movements and habitual behaviors that others interpretas meaningful.It is important to recognize that all individuals use multiple forms of communication with those around them, even those with the most significant needsfor supports. According to the National Joint Committee for the Communicative

Needs of Persons with Severe Disabilities (NJC), communicat ion is both a basicneed and a basic right of all human beings (NJC, 1992, p. 3). Johnson, Baumgart,Helmstetter, and Curry (1996) reminded us that each individual communicatesin some fashion (p. 5) and that it is the responsibility of professionals to providethe context and supports necessary to learn new and maintain existing communication skills. Johnson and colleagues cautioned against excluding any individual from participating in a communication system, even if the individualresponds inconsistently, is believed to be incapable of using the system independently, or is at a pre-intentional level of communication ability. This arguesstrongly for immersing all individuals in a print-rich environment and engaging inliteracy activities, even if professional evaluation does not predict that they willbecome proficient and/or independent readers or writers.This chapter was deliberately written from a multicultmal and multilingualperspective. The first author, Julia Scherba de Valenzuela, is a Spanish-Englishbilingual special educator and bilingual speech-language pathologist. She is anative English speaker who was born and raised in a multicultmal part of Southern California. She was exposed to several different languages from an early age,

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24 de Valenzuela and Tracey

beginning with Hebrew as part of her Jewish education dwing early childhood.She has lived in several Latin American countries and uses both Spanish and En-glish on a daily basis in both professional and personal contexts. The second au-thor, Marilyn Tracey, is a Navajo-English bilingual educational diagnostician andeducator. She is a member of the Dine people, as Navajos refer to themselves.She has spoken Navajo since birth and was raised within the boundaries of theNavajo Nation. Ms. Tracey has lived and worked in several different Native Amer-ican communitie s in Arizona, New Mexico, and Montana. She has deep and con-tinuing ties with her traditional community and uses her language skills inNavajo and English in personal and professional settings daily. We disclosethis personal information as a way of contextualizing the text that follows. nthis chapter we will include examples from our experiences as practitioners,teacher-educators and members of multicultural and multilingual communitiesas a way of making the information presented more understandable and realis-tic. It is therefore important that readers understand where we come from, geo-graphically, culturally, and linguistically, in order to understand the context ofour examples and perspectives. It is also important that readers understand thatthe suggestions of characteristics/behaviors of Navajo and other Native Ameri-cans are not definitive and will not apply to all Navajo people and Native Ameri-cans as a whole. These may be some characteristics of most or some traditionalindividuals but will vary depending on circumstances such age, acculturation,and geographic region in which they live (Le., on or off the reservation, their com-munity within the reservation). The same holds true for any description of com-mon behaviors , beliefs, and characteristics of any group of people, includingthose with disabilities.

DEFINING FUND MENT L CONCEPTSIt is critical to have a clear understanding of commonly used terms within a par-ticular discipline. Agreement about the meaning of terms enhances the effec-tiveness of communication between professionals and the families of individualsrequiring their support. This is especially important because a number of termsused by education professionals and academics have meanings that are differentwhen used in a professional context from the common usage. This can be espe-cially problematic when it is not clear that two people are using and under-standing a particular term in two different ways. For example, an educator mightask a parent whether his or her child can talk. The professional might really beasking whether the child uses language, a very specific term that is definedbelow. However, the parent might interpret the question to mean "Does yourchild use oral language?" and respond no because the child uses sign not spokenlanguage. Or, the parent might understand the educator's use of t lk to mean anykind of oral production and say Yes, my child talks because the child commu-nicates using a combination of gestures and vocalizations.

Sometimes terms are used in a very generic sense-so generic that they maybecome quite meaningless. For example, nonverb l is a term that is incorrectlyapplied to many students who are able to produce meaningful and understand-able, although limited, speech. n addition, this term sometimes is applied to stu-dents who are deaf, but who also are fluent sign language users. Although it istrue that many individual who use sign language do not speak, they certainly are

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5he ole of Language and Communication

not limited in their language production. They simply use a non-oral mode of language. Therefore, the term nonverb l loses any useful meaning in accurately describing communication abilities when applied to such a wide and varied groupof individuals.When terms are not used accurately or specifically, it is not possible to get aclear picture of an individual's actual communication abilities. There is an extremely wide range of communication abilities that individuals who are descr ibedas nonverbal and having severe disabilities might possess. Without clearly understanding and being able to accurately describe an individual's actual present levelof performance, it is difficult to determine what type of supports would best meethis or her needs. or example, students may be provided with an augmentativeand alternative communication AAC) system that is either well below or wellabove their current communication abilities. We have seen students with functional, although limited, oral speech given a picture card system that restrictsthem to communicating one-word object requests at a level below their currentexpressive abilities. Sometimes this happens because the student comes from ahome where the primary language is not English. The student's multi-word oralspeech may be interpreted as gibberish simply because his or her language abilities have not been assessed bilingually and there was no clear communicationamong the professionals, the student's family members, and any translators ifpresent). This can result in a waste of time, resources, and a great deal of frustration for the individual who has not been provided with access to an appropriate and functional communicat ion system.

ommunicationThe following definition of communication is well accepted within the community of professionals who work with individuals who have intensive communication needs.

Communication is any act by which one person gives to or receives from anotherperson information about that person's needs, desires, perceptions, knowledge, oraffective states. Communication may be intentional or unintentional, may involveconventional or unconventional signals, may take linguistic or nonlinguistic forms,and may occur through spoken or ot her modes. (NJC, 1992, p. 3)

This definition emphasizes the multiple forms that a communicative act maytake. Human beings can communicate in a variety of ways besides words. Theabove defInition also recognizes that communication can take place even whenindividuals are not aware o f their own ability to communicate (communicativeintent), do not use commonly recognized forms of communication (conventionalsignals), and have not yet developed language.The NJC (1992) also produced a Communication Bill of Rights, which westrongly recommend all individuals obtain, including and especial ly family members of individuals with intensive communication needs. In addition to settingforth the 12 basic communication rights, this Bill of Rights states that all persons, regardless of the extent or severity of their disabilities, have a basic right toaffect, through communication, the conditions of their own existence (p. 3).This places responsibility on the partners of individuals who do not have inten


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26 de Valenzuela and raceytional or conventional ways to express themselves to fmd ways to communicatethat are within the means of that individual. Communication partner s must rec-ognize, respond to, and value the expressive communication that the individualalready produces.Communication is an important and integral part of living in a community.People communicate with others in multiple contexts: in homes, in workplaces,in the groups they belong to, and in the community. No matter how well individ-uals think they understand each other, communication is hard. Joe and Miller(1987) stated that culture is often the root of communication challenges. Be-cause all communication is cultural and draws on culturally embedded asSunlp-tions about appropriate ways of communicating, culture influences how peopleengage in communicative interactions with others. An example of this is the wayNavajos in the American Southwest initiate interactions by stating their clan orrole in relation to the other, "my son, my daughter, my brother." In addition, mostNative Americans rarely greet others with a physical touch, especially in public.However, many individuals from Latin American countries will greet friends andeven teachers with a hug and a kiss on the cheek. Differences in cultural patternsof communication can pose problems for individuals with cognitive disabilitieswhen they interact with othe rs from a different cultural group, unless there is anunderstanding that these differences in communication are natural, to be ex-pected, and do not indicate incompetence on the part of either person.

Intentional ommunicationAlthough it is common in Western societies to assume that even very young in-fants have an intent to communicate when they cry, scream, or babble, in actualitythis inlportant cognitive skill develops over tinle. The transition from pre-intentional to intentional communication is thought to emerge in typically devel-oping infants by nine months of age (Wetherby, Warren, Reichle, 1998).Whendiscussing intentional communication, professionals typically refer to whetheran individual has developed the capacity for intentional communication, notwhether a particular instance of communication was intended or not. Sometinlespeople say, "But I didn't mean to say that " or "That's not what I meant," in refer-ence to a specific communicative ac t. However, assessment of intentional com-munication refers to whether an individual has developed the awareness thatcommunication can achieve some effect on a listener and whether they do com-municate purposefully in pursui t of a predetem1ined goal. t is not in reference toanyone specific act of communication.

t can be difficult to deterrrtine whether an individual with intensive com-munication needs has developed intentional communication or not. Wetherbyand Prizan t (1989) suggested that the following behaviors can provide evidenceof communicative intent:

1 alternating eye gaze between goal and listener, 2) persistent signaling until a goalis accomplished or failure is indicated, 3) changing the signal quality until the goalhas been met, 4) ritualizing or conventionalizing communicative forms, 5) awaitinga response from the listener, 6) tenninating the signal when the goal is met, and7) displaying satisfaction when the goal is attained and dissatisfaction when it isnot. p . 78)


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27The Role of Language and Communication

They also suggested that the development of intentional communication is not aclearly demarcated stage, where one could state equivocally that previously anindividual did not have communicative intent but now he or she does. Like mostcognitive or behavioral phenomena, the development of communicative intent isgradual. Wetherby and Prizant (1989) argued that intentionality emerges along acontinuum, from no awareness of a goal (p. 79) to the conscious awareness andability to reflect upon the means of achieving the communicative goal, with themore advanced aspect of intentionality emerging through 18 months of age intypically developing children.Sometimes there may be disagreements between families and professionalsas to whether an individual with severe disabilities has developed intentionalcommunication. However, as recognized in the NJC deflnition of communicationcited above, communication does not have to be intentional for it to occur. Theimportant point is that there needs to be a recipient who is willing to attempt toflgure out the possible meaning of a behavior. Development of intentionality isfostered by consistent responses to an individual's non-intentional communication. Therefore, when in doubt 1 assume that an individual does have somethingmeaningful to communicate, 2) attempt to understand what the meaning of a particular behavior might be, and 3) respond as though communication is intentional.

onventional ommunication Communicative acts are recognizedwhen two or more people agree upon their meaning. For example, a wink, nod,or other gesture might have a special meaning between two siblings, friends, orfamily members. When a communicative act is conventional it is recognizedoutside of a limited social context and is widely unders tood within a larger community or cultural group. Sometimes people assume that conventional communication is universal. However, i f you have ever traveled to other countries orlived within different cultural groups, you know that even common gestures,such as raising two fmgers in the peace sign or making a circle with the thumband index finger while raising the other fmgers to indicate goo are not understood or used in the same way in every country. Among the Dine it is common toindicate agreement or answer yes by raising the eyebrows, usually in combination with nodding the head. Some Latinos in the Southwest say hi with a quickupwards head nod. These communicative conventions have developed, beenadopted, used, and learned within particular historical, social, and cultural contexts. Conventional communicative behaviors are not universal or innate.

As such, individuals with the most signiflcant needs for supports may nothave learned or used conventional means to communicate. f they have had sensitive and responsive partners their unique forms of communication have beenrecognized as meaningful, and consistent attempts have been made to discoverthe meaning of the communication. t is therefore very important not to dismissthe interpretations of family members or caregivers as unrealistic. Just as physicians and other medical personnel have learned to detect and interpret the physical responses of individuals in a coma as communicating meaningful and relevant information about their health and state, caretakers of individuals withintensive communicat ion needs also may have learned to identify which behaviors consistently occur during which contexts and indicate certain states, needs,or wants. For example, a mother may have learned that her daughter relaxes and


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vocalizes in a certain way when her favorite soft sweater is put on her. Throughtrial and error, over time, responsive caregivers learn to accurately identify un-conventional communicative acts. Another example was shared by a teacherwho noticed that a student of hers indicated that he was hungry by walking overto the classroom microwave and opening and slamming the door. The teacherlrnew that she was correct in her interpretation because when she gave himsomething to eat, he took the food and a te it, but when she did not give him food,his behavior escalated. Because the communication of individuals with severedisabilities may be different from that typically expected, it is vital that caregivers and educators of individuals with unconventional communication maintain and share a communication dictionary, so that new people can learn tounderstand and respond to communication appropriately and effectively.

efinition of LanguageThe following deflnition of language has been adopted by the American SpeechLanguage-Hearing Association (ASHA, 1982):

Language is a complex and dynamic system of conventional symbols that is used invarious modes for thought and communication.Contemporary views of hwnan language hold that Language evolves within specific historical, social, and cultural contexts Language, as rule-governed behavior, is described by at least five parameters:phonologic, morphologic, syntactic, semantic, and pragmatic Language learning and use are determined by the interaction of biological,cognitive, psychosocial, and environmental factors Effective use of language for communication requires a broad understanding

ofhwnan interaction including such associated factors as nonverbal cues, motivation, and sociocultural roles. (p. 499)This deflnition helps distinguish communication, which can be accomplished viamultiple means, from language, which is a special and unique form of communication.Language can be spoken, signed, or written. Regardless of the modality, language can be differentiated from other, nonlinguistic forms of communication bythe use and combination of abstract, conventional symbols, in a generative andrule-governed manner. Linguists and many child-language specialists use theterm sym ol in a precise sense, as in the deflnition above, to indicate a particular and important type of relationship between something (i.e., an object, an action, or a concept) and how it is represented. A symbol has an arbitrary, abstractrelationship to its referent. In contrast, an icon is a direct or obvious representation. The key to whether a particular representation is a symbol or an icon is notin the representation itself, but in the relationship to what it represents (its referent . For example, a picture of an apple could be ei ther an icon or a symbol, depending on what it is designed to represent. f the apple picture is used to represent an actual apple, it would be an icon, because the relationship between therepresentation and its referent is direct and obvious. Most people who see anapple and a picture of an apple should be able to link the two, regardless of theircultural background or lrnowledge about apples. However, i f the apple picture is

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De Valenzuela - The Role of Language and Communication as the Basis for Literacy

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