Using the SETT Framework to

Create
Opportunities to Communicate
STOP
Passive
Participation

THINK
Team
Collaboration

ACT
On A
Plan

Then You’re SETT to Go!!!

Student, Environment, Tasks, Tools

Presented By:
Raynell Clark, M.A., CCC-SLP
Kim A. Ceasar, M.A., CF-SLP
June 23, 2009
MITS Summer Institute
Traverse City, Michigan
 STOP, THINK, ACT!!
USING THE SETT FRAMEWORK TO CREATE
OPPORTUNITIES TO COMMUNICATE
Learner Outcomes
 Participants will identify the four components of the SETT Framework
 Participants will identify the special education mandates related to AT/AAC
 Participants will develop an understanding of the benefits of the SETT Framework
 Participants will discover how the SETT Framework is necessary for engineering the
environment
 Participants will extend their skill set in At/AAC selection for students with disabilities

SETT Overview
Dr. Joy Zabala, a special educator, designed the collaborative planning and decision making tool
called the SETT Framework. SETT is an acronym for Students, Environment, Tasks & Tools.
Out of her passion for students with disabilities, Dr. Zabala created this framework because of
issues related to device abandonment & underutilization. SETT looks at students with complex
communication needs. Although devices are selected by professionals and educators to warrant
communication, unfortunately, the kinds of changes expected are not attained in participation &
productivity.
Special Education Mandates
Legal requirements tell us WHAT we need to do, but not HOW…Joy Zabala
The IDEA Act ’97 mandates the provision of assistive technology (AT) and offers clear definitions
of assistive technology devices and services. Assistive Technology Devices are any item, piece of
equipment, or product system-whether acquired commercially off the shelf, modified, or
customized-that is used to increase, maintain, or improve the functional capabilities of children
with disabilities. Assistive Technology Services are any services that directly assists an individual
with a disability in the selection, acquisition, or use of an assistive technology device. Services
include the following:
 Evaluating
 Providing Devices
 Selecting, Designing, Customizing
 Maintaining, Repairing
 Coordinating
 Training/Technical Assistance-student, family, and school service providers

IDEA Facts
 Schools are required to provide assistive technology at no cost to the student/parents if it
is needed for a student to receive a free appropriate public education (FAPE).
 The individualized education program (IEP) team is responsible for determining whether a
student requires assistive technology to achieve goals and objectives. This is documented
on the IEP.
 IDEA ’97 requires IEP teams to consider the assistive technology needs of all students
during the development of an IEP.

The following is a 5 Step Model for considering a student’s AT needs.

 1. Review present levels of performance and evaluation data
2. Develop goals and objectives
3. Identify tasks necessary to accomplish goals
4. Determine which tasks are difficult or impossible for the student at this time
5. Identify appropriate supports and services, including AT

Be sure to consider the following questions as well when following the 5 step model.
 If the student is currently using AT, is the AT adequate to address the goals and objectives?
 Does the student need AT to participate in daily instructional activities?
 Could AT help the student increase communication and social interaction?

The results of these considerations will establish whether or not AT is required and whether more
information is needed to make a decision. Once all things have been considered, it time to SETT a
“DATE”. A Dynamic Assistive Technology Evaluation, DATE, allows collaboration regarding
issues of communication & AT in an evaluative process. This evaluation enables staff to:
 Identify and define areas of concern
 Gather Information
 Analyze information
 Generate and prioritize potential solutions
 Develop an Action Plan
 Identify Outcomes

This is “HOW” you do it!!!

The SETT Framework (Zabala)

The SETT Framework is a tool that helps teams gather and organize
information that can be used to guide collaborative decisions about services
that foster the educational success of students with disabilities. SETT is an
acronym for Student, Environment, Tasks, and Tools.

The SETT framework is based on the premise that in order to develop an

appropriate system of Tools (support-devices, services, strategies,
accommodations, etc) Teams must first develop a shared understanding of the
student, the customary environments in which the student spends time, and
the tasks that are required for the student to be able to do, or learn to do, in
order to be an active participant in the teaching/learning process that will lead
to educational success. When the needs, abilities, and interest of the Student;
the details of the Environment; and the specific Tasks required of students to
perform in these environments are fully explored, teams are able to consider
what needs to be included in a system of tools that is Student -centered,
Environmentally-useful, and Task –focused.

STUDENT

 What does the individual need to be able to do?

 What are the individual’s special needs as related to the task?
 What are the individual’s current abilities?
 What are the functional areas of concern?

ENVIRONMENT

 What are the structural and physical arrangements of the environment?

 What supports are available to both student and staff?
 What materials and equipment are currently available?
 What are the physical, instructional, and technological access issues?
 What are the attitudes and expectations of the staff and family?

TASKS

 What specific tasks occur in the individual’s environment that enables

progress toward mastery of IEP goals?
 What specific tasks are required for active involvement in the identified
environments – such as communication and participation?

TOOLS

 Is it expected that the student will not be able to make reasonable

progress toward educational goals without assistive technology devices
and services?
 If yes, describe what a useful system of supports, devices, and services
for the student would be like if there were such a system of TOOLS.
  Brainstorm specific Tools that could be included in a system that
addresses student needs
 Select the most promising Tools for trials in natural environments
 Plan the specifics of the trial (expected changes, when/how tools will be
used, cues, etc.)

SETT AS A PLANNING TOOL

3. “Quiet Table” at far Tasks that address
end IEP objectives:
STUDENT of the room 1. Greet peers
2. Select leisure
Needs to do: activity
3. Matching symbols
1. Participate with 4. Turn Taking
peers in leisure activity 5.
Requesting/Commentin
g
2. Improve turn taking during an activity
skills Resources:
ENVIRONMENT
Speech Therapist Critical elements of
Special Needs: Classroom with School Social Worker task:
mixed group of 1. Interacting with
peers: peers
1. Limited Speech 2. Pre-empting
2. Aggressive behavior Available material and meltdown by asking for
during transitions equipment quiet table
3. Making choices
Physical 4. Turn taking
Current Abilities: arrangement of
room: Modify Game Time:
1. Can make requests/ 1. Providing interactive
protests Four circular tables vocabulary on VOCA
2. Some Speech, 2. Teaching to pair
“No want” speech with visuals
“Good girl” 3. Match game pictures
3. Identifies some Special Concerns: TASKS
pictures 1. Noise in room Technology Supports
4. Point to yes/no 2. Aggressive What Takes place in 1. Visual activity
5. Can follow 1-step behaviors the environment: schedule for each
directions component of the
1. Peers greet each game (greeting,
other selecting game,
Instructional 2. Peers arranged in playing game,
Functional Areas arrangement: random groups interacting within
of concerns: 3.Peers select leisure peers, completing
Three circular tables activity game, putting game
1. Aggressive during with 10 peers 4. Distribute game away).
leisure activities pieces
5.Peers play game 2. VOCA for interaction
2. Needs frequent Existing Supports: (turn taking,
cues to use VOCA 1. One Teacher commenting, 3. VOCA for requesting
2. One Teacher requesting) break
Assistant
 3. Activity schedule
and pictures

4. Game Choice Boards

TOOLS with pictures

No-Tech tools:
1. Photos of peers with Low-Tech-Tools:
“Hi” 1. Nine message: Go
symbol- for personally Talk-VOCA ( my turn,
greeting each peer your turn, no cheating,
do you have___? let’s
2. Pencil and paper for play again, I won, I’m
keeping score finished, Uh-oh)

STOP, THINK, ACT!!!

AUGMENTATIVE/ALTERNATIVE COMMUNICATION
(AAC) STRATEGIES
 AAC is useless without a supportive environment
 Relate all activities to the student’s experience, knowledge base and relevance
 Create participation opportunities within activities
 Keep devices/boards accessible and within easy reach

Consider the following Communication Functions (Burkhart)

Language is not learned by straight imitation. It is learned through broad experiences that provide
multiple repetitions of concepts, vocabulary and conventions. Students cannot be expected to
know how to use something until they are given an opportunity to learn how to use it in natural
contexts. Language stimulation-information needs to go in before it comes back out. A wide
variety of communicative functions need to be represented during instructional activities for
example:
 Initiate or call attention
 Greet
 Accept
 Reject
 Protest
 Request objects
 Share and show objects
 Request information
 Name
 Acknowledge
 Answer
 Comment on action/object
 Express feelings
 Assert independence
 Ask questions
 Share information
  Relate events
 Call attention to how things are related-similar and different
 Talk about past and future
 Negotiate and bargain
 State options
 Make up stories
 Express manners and consideration for others

STOP, THINK, ACT!!

When planning for the use of AAC in the classroom, it is helpful to think of the daily routine as a
framework. Each part of your routine should include specific activities, expectations and
language. To begin, look at a part of the daily routine in which you plan to incorporate the use of
AAC. Then determine what kinds of language tasks and expectations to plan for the AAC
devices and messages you will need to provide for all students to participate. Here are some
suggestions:

READING ACTIVITIES
 Recite a repeated line in a story/play/poem
 Name the characters in a story
 Sequence events in a story
 Recall facts
 Ask questions {who, what where, etc.}
 Follow the steps in multi-step directions {recipe}
 State the logical order {first, next, last}
 Retell familiar events/stories
 Name vocabulary words
 Define terms
 Yes/no questions to determine comprehension
 Make comments {That’s scary, That’s funny, etc.}

CIRLCE TIME ACTIVITIES

 Answer questions during calendar/schedule time
 Recite the pledge of allegiance
 Tell others about an event that happened (at home/community/another class)
 Ask questions of others about their evening/weekend/special event
 Ask survey questions of others {Who wants to watch a movie, listen to music, etc.}
 Repeat auditory sequences {letters, words, numbers, rhythmic patterns}
 Identify people to participate in a group project/play a game/determine “who’s next?}
 Sing the chorus of a song music/video
 Recite a poem
 Sequence events of the day
 Recite names of students
  Greeting activities

WRITING ACTIVITIES
 Sequence items to go into a story
 List adjectives/adverbs to go into a story
 Provide vocabulary to be included in a story
 Give details about different parts of a class story

STOP, THINK, ACT!!

MATH ACTIVITIES
 Count forward
 Count backward
 Count the days of the week/month/year
 Count sets of items
 State money amounts
 Recite addition/subtraction/multiplication facts

SOCIAL STUDIES
 List key individuals (Mayor, Governor, President)
 List regions (City, State, Country)
 List major products of a State
 List key current events
 Sequence events of a recent trip

GAMES
 Bingo games related to curricular themes
 Simon Says
 UNO: turn claiming (MY TURN); requesting (I WANT IT); commenting (OH NO,
RATS, YIKES), UNO language SKIP/REVERSE, etc.
 Use key phrases (It’s my turn, you are next, you cheated, your turn, etc.)

ARTS & CRAFTS

 Decorate pots using paint, stickers, etc.
 Make fun to wear buttons
Sample Language: requests, colors, describing, numbers, etc.

SNACK TIME
Description: AAC users give nominations for snacks from a group of pictures.
Sample Language:
 Listing items (cookie, juice, pop, chips, popcorn, cracker, etc.)
 Commenting on food items (yummy, good, yuck, awful, etc.)
 Discussing possibilities {telling who has to food items-I HAVE___, JASON HAS___, etc.
 STOP, THINK, ACT!!

REFERENCES
Bransford, J Brown, A., & Cocking, R. (Eds) (1999) How People Learn: Brain, Mind Experience,
and School. Washington, DC: National Academy Press

Beukelman, D. & Mirenda, P. (1998) Augmentative and Alternative Communication:

Management of Severe Communication Disorders in children and Adults (2nd Edition). Baltimore,
MD Paul H. Brooks Publishing

Burkhart, Linda. Key Concepts for Using Augmentative Communication with Children Who
Have Complex Communication Needs. Retrieved from http://www.Lburkhart.com

Cafiero, Joanne, (2005). Meningful Exchanges for People with Autism. Woodbine House

Downey, D. Daughtery, P. Helt., & Saugherty, D. (2004, Sept 21). Integrating AAC Into the
Classroom: Low Tech Strategies. The ASHA Leader, pp 6-7 & 36.

Downing, June (2006) Teaching Communication Skills to Students with Sever Disabilities (2nd
Edition), Baltimore, MS, Paul H. Brooks Publishing

Hoge, Debra & Newsome, Cheryl (2002). The Source for Augmentative Alternative
Communication LinguiSystems, Inc.

Koegel, L. (1995). Communication and Language Intervention In Teaching Children with Autism.
Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brooks Publishing

Zabala, Joy. The SETT Framework. Retrieved from http://www.joyzabala.com