Letter Board Drift | Rapid Prompting Method | Spelling to Communicate

This educational video is intended to raise awareness of facilitator cuing in a technique called Facilitated Communication (FC). FC is also known as Spelling to Communication (S2C), Rapid Prompting Method (RPM), Supported Typing (ST), among other names.
In this video, we analyze a spelling session from a video called "Rachel Tells it All: Autism 101 Explained by an Autistic Advocate." During this session, a facilitator holds a plastic letter board in the air while Rachel points to it. But, are the letter selections free from facilitator influence and control?
To date, there is no scientifically reliable evidence that proves FC, S2C, RPM or any of their variants are free from facilitator control. In fact, controlled studies show that facilitators, and not those being subjected to FC, are controlling the messages.
Many organization, including the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, have positions against its use, citing facilitator cuing, lack of scientific evidence, prompt dependency, and other harms (such as false allegations of abuse).
FMI about controlled studies, systematic reviews, organizations opposing FC and more, please check out our website at www.facilitatedcommunication.org.

[@dawnplatt9708]

Funny these people move on to using a fixed keyboard without facilitator holding. This is a fine motor issue, & this is training their gross motor.

[@fcisnotscience]

Anecdotally, but these individuals require a facilitator to be within auditory, physical, and verbal range, presumably to receive cues for letter selection. There is no reliably controlled evidence proving facilitator-dependent techniques such as FC/S2C/RPM ultimately result in independent communication (e.g., free from facilitator influence and control). I'd love to see those studies done.

[@nml5802]

Check out VCA Visual Communication Analysis. Evidence based research for teaching independent keyboard typing. Based in San Diego.

[@user-bd5dt9vz3w]

​@fcisnotscience what about just communicating with some of those that type now and claim RPM etc led to this. Some have gone onto college and lived on their own without any facilitator to author their words? Genuinely interested as looking at trying this