We have all heard of SMART goals to help us to write straightforward, specific, and meaningful goals. Certain therapy targets fit perfectly into this framework, and it makes data collection a breeze. Take articulation for example, you can hear errors and calculate percentage accuracy- boom, you’re done. 

But, writing goals to include augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) can feel different. AAC adds complexity to what we need to measure. Let’s break down some tips to make this feel more manageable!   

Reframing Our Thinking🔗

AAC is still language therapy. It is just being delivered through a different modality. Our goal is to enhance communication, not performance on the device. Instead of tracking how many buttons an individual can press, we can consider what really matters: the communication function, context, partner, and the level of support.  

Strong AAC goals break down communication into observable components: 

• Who (the user)    
• Doing What    
• During What Conditions   
• With What Level of Support   
• At What Criteria   

Let’s break down these components a little more!  

Components of a Measurable AAC Goal🔗

Who🔗

That’s easy: Who will be completing the goal? Most often, this is a student, client, patient, or other AAC user. Consider them as an individual: what they’re interested in, what they dislike, etc.

Doing What🔗

Observable communication behaviors can include a variety of communicative functions such as requesting, labeling, commenting, asking, protesting, rejecting, or initiating.

This is where we can also denote the modalities (e.g. speech, gestures, AAC, etc.) that may be used. We do not need to specify one mode of communication, rather we can use the term “multimodal communication.”

For example, instead of specifying that the user will speak and use AAC, we could say: “Using multimodal communication (e.g. speech, AAC, gestures, etc.), the student will comment/protest/initiate.”

During What Conditions🔗

This is the “Where” and “With Whom” of your goal. Conditions should be clearly defined and planned for generalization. We can do this by building goals that demonstrate a skill across settings or communication partners.

For example:

• “During classroom routines…”
• “During unstructured play, with (un)familiar partner…”
• “When device is available and positioned…”
• “Across three different communication partners…”
• “Across two school environments…”
• “Across three consecutive sessions…”

With What Level of Support🔗

Defining the level of support is important to ensure teams are using the same teaching strategies. Modeling is the go-to teaching strategy and is important to include in goals! Providing teams with a hierarchy of support strategies to move through can be helpful.

Tip: It is best to avoid physical prompting, such as hand-over-hand assistance. You can find out more by reading Honoring Autonomy: Cueing Strategies to Use.

Here are some examples of what these strategies can look like in a goal. Keep in mind that you can add multiple supports in a goal depending on the user’s needs.

• “Given wait time… ”   
• “When provided aided language stimulation or modeling…”   
• “Given indirect gestural support (e.g. pointing to the device or shifting body towards device)…” 
• “Independently during classroom routines…” 

At What Criteria🔗

Data collection should also feel easy and realistic, especially in school settings when educators are busy! The specific criteria is what makes the goal objectively measurable. Consider the following parameters:

• Percentage of opportunities (e.g., user will respond to 75% of conversations initiated by peers).
• Probe data versus daily data (e.g. user did/did not use [core word] during class time).
• Frequency within a time period (e.g., initiate 3x during unstructured peer play).   
• Event-based data (e.g., repairs communication during observed breakdowns). 

Other Considerations🔗

• Baseline Data: Be sure to collect and consider baseline data when writing goals. This helps to write goals for realistic and meaningful progress.
• Consider Opportunities and Supports: AAC users need ample opportunities to practice and demonstrate a skill. You can write the needed number of opportunities and supports into the goal.
  • For example, “When provided at least 5 communication opportunities during a classroom routine, the user will…” or “When provided with 5 or more seconds of wait time, user will…”.
• Operational Competencies: As AAC users progress with language skills, we want to also be targeting the skills needed to keep an AAC device functioning. This includes skills such as adjusting the volume, charging, etc.

Meaningful Goals for Meaningful Communication🔗

Writing measurable AAC goals does not have to feel overwhelming. When we shift our focus from device performance to meaningful communication, goal writing becomes much more straightforward.

Struggling with goal ideas? Check out AbleNet AAC IEP Goal Bank!