Domain deep dive · 3
Domain 3: Communication Supports
The specially designed instruction and supports a student needs to understand, express, and exchange information across settings — communication access, not academic performance or behavior. Boundaries first — built for when you have a student in front of you, rating this one domain.
What this domain covers
The specially designed instruction (SDI) and supports a student needs to understand, express, and exchange information across settings — communication access, not academic performance or behavior. It includes speech and language therapy, AAC (augmentative and alternative communication — the devices or systems a student uses to communicate), assistive listening, interpreters, and communication-partner support.
The decision boundaries
Each of the four factors is rated 0–3, and the rating climbs as the student needs more communication support: 0 means none is required for FAPE, and 3 means the support is pervasive enough to structure how the student communicates all day. For Communication, how independently a student uses AAC is what moves Factor A toward its top levels.
| Factor | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A — How much instruction | No direct communication SDI required for FAPE | Targeted, discrete; less than 60 minutes per week; at least one communication goal | Regular service relied on across settings; if AAC, used mostly independently | Pervasive; structures how the student responds and initiates all day; if AAC, needs ongoing staff support |
| B — Who delivers it | No specialized qualifications required for FAPE | Typically-qualified staff with routine training | SLPA (speech-language pathology assistant) supervised by, or a licensed, SLP | AAC specialist, sign-language interpreter, deaf-blind intervener, or AT specialist, in addition to the SLP |
| C — Ratio | No reduced ratio required for FAPE | Intermittent partner support | Planned partner facilitation at key times — group work, transitions | Effectively 1:1 communication partner across the day |
| D — Equipment | No equipment required for FAPE | Picture supports, occasional communication board | AAC used regularly with emerging independence | High-tech AAC as the primary means of communication, foundational to all expression |
AAC independence (Factor A)
The presence of an AAC system doesn't set the level — how much staff support its use requires does:
- Level 2 — the student uses AAC mostly independently, alongside regular service relied on across settings.
- Level 3 — the student needs ongoing or pervasive staff support to communicate through AAC, and communication structures participation across the day.
Reading this domain for specific cases
The general age and post-graduation principles are on the what is a domain page. What's specific to Communication:
- Ages 3–5 (not in kindergarten): some communication delay is expected at this age. Rate only the foundational supports genuinely required for FAPE.
- Students continuing after meeting graduation requirements: the focus shifts toward self-advocacy, workplace communication, and adult literacy supports.
Differentiating between domains
Two boundaries come up often with Communication:
- A behavior driven by communication breakdown belongs in Communication when communication is the primary driver, and in Behavior (Domain 2) when the behavior intervention is the primary support.
- A communication support delivered during instruction stays in Communication — even in an academic block — as long as it's about accessing communication rather than the academic content, which would put it in Curriculum (Domain 1).
What is a domain covers the full set of boundaries across all five, and how scores become a tier covers how the five domain scores are combined.