JRH 9

          State of Vermont
       House of Representatives
                         Montpelier, Vermont
                   Joint House Resolution
                                   J.R.H. 9
   Offered by Representatives Burtt of Cabot, Higley of Lowell, Howland of
Rutland Town, Labor of Morgan, Lipsky of Stowe, Masland of Thetford,
Micklus of Milton, Morrissey of Bennington, Nelson of Derby, North of
Ferrisburgh, O’Brien of Tunbridge, Page of Newport City, Pinsonault of
Dorset, Pritchard of Pawlet, Tagliavia of Corinth, and Wood of Waterbury
   Joint resolution urging the American Speech-Language-Hearing
Association (ASHA) to reconsider its opposition to the Rapid Prompting
Method (RPM) of communication instruction for students with apraxia of
speech (AOS) or autism
   Whereas, Vermont State law requires school districts to develop and
maintain “a comprehensive system of education [that] includes a full range of
services and accommodations that are needed by students in the district,” but
this statute does not mandate the provision of a service that is not generally
available for students, and
   Whereas, apraxia is a neurological disorder resulting from damage to the
brain that impedes “motor planning to perform tasks or movements”; it can
occur with different degrees of severity, may often but not necessarily be
concurrent with autism, and exists in several different variants, and
   Whereas, one type of the disorder is known as apraxia of speech; this
version of the disorder may result in a person experiencing challenges
“planning and coordinating the movements necessary for speech,” and related
problems may arise with respect to “verbal comprehension, reading
comprehension, writing, articulation, or prosody” (following the rhythms of
poetry), and
   Whereas, teaching communication skills to children with AOS, or certain
instances of autism, which can cause similar learning impediments, has proven
difficult, and
   Whereas, a pedagogic approach for instructing these children, known as
RPM, encompasses “‘teach-ask’ trials of graduated difficulty, starting with the
student being given or choosing a correct answer from two written options and
progressing through to composing responses by pointing to printed letters on a
card, stencil, or keyboard,” and
   Whereas, a leading proponent of RPM is Soma Mukhopadhyay, who,
through the organization Helping Autism Through Learning and Outreach, has
strongly advocated for this teaching methodology, which was featured
positively on the 60 Minutes television program, and
   Whereas, state education agencies and departments and local school
districts across the country have not recognized the pedagogic value of or
authorized financial support for RPM and similar instructional programs
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because the ASHA, the national professional association of audiologists,
speech-language pathologists, special educators, and other related
professionals strongly reject the scientific legitimacy of RPM, and
   Whereas, despite that stance, RPM has received enthusiastic support from
parents, who have stated that their children benefit from this instructional
method, and
   Whereas, it is incumbent upon the ASHA to reexamine its opposition to
RPM instruction and consider this teaching methodology’s benefits for the
future academic and life success of many students, now therefore be it
  Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives:
    That the General Assembly urges the ASHA to reconsider its opposition to
the RPM communication instruction for students with AOS or autism, and be
it further
   Resolved: That the Secretary of State be directed to send a copy of this
resolution to the ASHA.
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