Elizabeth Biggs

• Ph.D. Special Education
• Professor (Assistant) at Vanderbilt University

Educators need effective ways to build the communication skills of students learning to use aided augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) and support their interactions with peers. This study used a multiple-probe-across-participants design to evaluate the effectiveness of a paraprofessional-facilitated peer network intervention to (a) inc...

Friendships are central to children’s development and well-being, but children with intellectual and developmental disabilities who have complex communication needs are at risk of social isolation. This qualitative study used methods informed by grounded theory to investigate the nature of how elementary-age children without disabilities described...

Although substantial evidence demonstrates the effectiveness of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) intervention for students with severe disabilities who have complex communication needs, increasing importance is being placed on understanding how to move research into practice. This descriptive qualitative study focused on understandi...

Purpose The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has led to sudden, widespread use of telepractice, including providing services to children who use aided augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). This exploratory study examined speech-language pathologists' (SLPs) experiences using telepractice to provide services to children and youth ag...

Purpose The global COVID-19 pandemic brought about widespread use of telepractice to provide services to children with communication disorders, including students who use aided augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) such as speech-generating devices. This descriptive quantitative study utilized network analysis to investigate the nature o...

Purpose Elementary-aged peers often need support for them to have positive interactions with classmates with autism who are minimally speaking (i.e., fewer than 30 functional spoken words). This study examined whether peers could learn to use responsive interaction strategies to support inclusive play and communication within a peer network interve...

Paraeducators often work with special education teachers and school teams to support students with disabilities who have complex communication needs (CCN), including students who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) such as speech-generating devices. This study involved surveying 258 paraeducators working with students with disabili...

Parental stress increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. Families with children with an intellectual or developmental disability (IDD) and extensive support needs—such as complex communication needs—experienced additional challenges, including service loss and difficulties accessing virtual learning. The purpose of this study was to understand the e...

Interagency collaboration (IAC) is mandated by federal legislation and is a well-established best practice in the transition literature. At the same time, there is limited research that examines the predictors of greater IAC, and the breadth of partners that secondary special educators collaborate with across school systems, service systems, and co...

Purpose Family–professional partnerships are important for youth learning to use aided augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). This study examined the family-oriented beliefs and practices of speech-language pathologists (SLPs) working with preschool and school-aged children learning to use aided AAC (aged 3–21 years), specifically during...

Interdisciplinary collaboration is critical to address the multiple and varied needs of students with social/emotional and behavioral (SEB) challenges. Yet little is known about the nature of collaboration between two specialist groups who commonly support them: behavior analysts and mental health specialists. Considering expectations for collabora...

Many children who require hospitalization in the pediatric intensive care unit (ICU) are unable to or have difficulty communicating through speech, whether because of preexisting or acute conditions. Children who are unable to be heard and understood using only speech benefit from aided augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), including in...

Purpose Understanding students' home literacy environments can help speech-language pathologists, teachers, and other educators partner with families to promote language and literacy learning. This study focused on gaining insight into the views of parents of elementary-age students with intellectual and developmental disabilities who had complex c...

Purpose The COVID-19 pandemic caused significant changes for family–professional interactions. Many services shifted to telepractice, with new opportunities for parents and speech-language pathologists (SLPs) to partner for service delivery. Parent-coached models of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) intervention provide positive outc...

Despite evidence for the usefulness of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) for young children with complex communication needs (CCN), several barriers prevent children from accessing AAC intervention. This qualitative study is focused on understanding the lived experiences of parents accessing and learning how to use speech-generating...

The COVID-19 pandemic profoundly impacted daily life, including the educational experiences of school-age children with and without disabilities and their families who supported them. This descriptive qualitative study examined the experiences of families with children with extensive support needs and complex communication needs during the COVID-19...

Purpose The aim of this scoping review was to map the research literature published in English and in peer-reviewed journals related to the home literacy environment of children and youth aged 3–21 years with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) who have significant support needs, including children with complex communication needs. M...

Telepractice has become increasingly utilized in disability services, particularly with recent and ongoing measures to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). In this study, 361 speech-language pathologists (SLPs) responded to a national, web-based survey about their views on utilizing telepractice with children aged 3 to 21 who used a...

The closure of schools and healthcare facilities across the United States due to COVID-19 has dramatically changed the way that services are provided to children with disabilities. Little is known about how children who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), their families and their service providers have been impacted by these chang...

Supporting students with complex communication needs requires collaboration within and beyond the school system. Through a state-wide survey, this quantitative descriptive study used social network analysis to examine the professional networks and collaboration patterns of 325 special education teachers and 189 speech-language pathologists who work...

Family-centered capacity-building practices have been shown to benefit children and families. However, limited research explores these practices for children who use augmentative and alternative communication. This study explored an intervention to teach family members to implement an Aided Language Modeling (ALM) strategy across natural activities...

Many students with autism have complex communication needs and benefit from the use of aided augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), which can include picture symbols, communication boards or books, or speech-generating devices. However, many of the challenges to high-quality AAC intervention are amplified by inadequate collaboration. Eff...

A systematic literature review was conducted to examine the evidence for peer network interventions for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). Fifteen studies were identified and evaluated for methodological rigor using the quality indicators published by the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) and by examining the risk...

Purpose Providing telepractice services to young children with autism who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) can present many challenges for speech-language pathologists (SLPs). At the same time, telepractice can be a valuable service delivery option with unique benefits, such as improving partnerships with families, integrating A...

For the last 40 years, special education and applied behavior analysis researchers have discussed the notion of social validity, particularly those researchers who conduct single-case research. A substantial part of this discussion has involved critiquing the rigor of methods used to assess social validity. We conducted a scoping literature review...

Purpose Family members are an integral support for children with complex communication needs (CCN). However, there is limited research exploring “whole family” intervention to support children with CCN, including evidence-based approaches such as aided language modeling and innovative delivery options such as telepractice. The purpose of this study...

Single-case research is a prevalent and useful method for evaluating the effects of interventions in special education research. A single-case graph “should make available all of the data that permit evaluation of the criteria for visual inspection, at the very least,” while not misleading inspectors (Kazdin, 2011, p. 335). Although this is widely...

Many factors impact intervention implementation in everyday practice, including the social validity of these interventions. As a way of addressing social validity, this study aimed to understand the perspectives of multiple stakeholders of school-aged children and adolescents who use aided and unaided augmentative and alternative communication (AAC...

Purpose The purpose of this study was to inform practice and research by identifying and synthesizing research on interventions in which natural communication partners implemented aided augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) modeling strategies. Method A scoping review yielded 29 studies. Data were charted related to participant characte...

Building the communicative competence of individuals who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) requires intervention and support. This systematic review examined experimental studies involving aided AAC modeling to promote the expressive communication of children and youth (i.e., birth to age 21) with complex communication needs. A s...

The prominence of paraprofessionals in the education of students with severe disabilities highlights the importance of ensuring special education teachers provide effective supervision and support. The authors conducted in-depth individual interviews with members of nine educational teams—a total of 22 teachers and paraprofessionals—to identify (a)...

Young children with intellectual and developmental disabilities who have complex communication needs need access to effective, evidence-based interventions that support their individual communication needs and optimize their developmental outcomes. Given the critical roles that parents, educators, peers, and siblings play in the lives of children,...

Effective vocational instruction is an essential aspect of preparing students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) for the world of work. We systematically reviewed research on instructional methods used to teach employment skills to secondary students with IDD. We identified 56 studies involving 766 participants with IDD. Four in...

This randomized controlled trial examined the efficacy of peer network interventions to improve the social connections of 47 high school students with severe disabilities. School staff invited, trained, and supported 192 peers without disabilities to participate in individualized social groups that met throughout one semester. Compared to adolescen...

Supporting interaction in inclusive settings between students with complex communication needs (CCN) and their peers requires careful planning and support. We used a multipleprobe-across-participants design to investigate the efficacy of collaborative planning and peer support arrangements to increase peer interaction in inclusive classrooms. Parti...

Fostering and maintaining strong collaborative relationships are critically important for paraprofessionals and special education teachers working together to provide a high-quality education for students with severe disabilities. Through in-depth interviews with 22 teachers and paraprofessionals comprising nine educational teams, we examined educa...

Faith communities aspire to be places of healing, hope, and healthy relationships that bring life to every member. For individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and their families, finding a place of belonging within such a community can have great importance. In this qualitative study, we explored the experiences of belong...

Social relationships are an important aspect of flourishing. For children and youth with intellectual disabilities, positive connections with peers without disabilities are especially salient. When young people with and without disabilities encounter, interact, and connect with one another in satisfying ways, social stigma may be reduced. Absent in...

Enhancing the social and learning experiences of students with severe disabilities in inclusive classrooms has been a long-standing focus of research, legislative, and advocacy efforts. The authors used a randomized controlled experimental design to examine the efficacy of peer support arrangements to improve academic and social outcomes for 51 stu...

We examined the subjective health and well-being of 389 transition-age youth with autism or intellectual disability using the parent proxy version of the KIDSCREEN-27. Parents reported well-being of youth with autism and youth with intellectual disability lower than a normative sample in the domains of Physical Well-being, Psychological Well-being,...

Although research suggests peer support arrangements can be an effective practice for improving social outcomes for students with severe disabilities, additional efforts are needed to refine training and implementation approaches to increase the replicability and sustainability of this intervention. We tested a promising teacher-delivered training...

Can young people with intellectual and developmental disabilities be known for their strengths? This mixed-method study explored the strengths of 427 youth and young adults with intellectual disability and/or autism (ages 13-21) from the vantage point of their parents. Using the Assessment Scale for Positive Character Traits–Developmental Disabilit...