Communication Disorders

Communication Disorders

• Communication Disorders involve a wide variety of problems in speech, language, and hearing.

• The term communication disorders refers to difficulties with the transfer of knowledge, ideas, opinions and feelings.

• Communication disorders range in severity from mild to profound.

Prevalence of Communication Disorders

• Approximately 20% of all children with disabilities receive SPED and related services for speech or language disorders.

• Of that 20%, over 88% of these students are included in general education classrooms. – Bottom line:• Most students with communication disorders will be in

general education classrooms.

Communication Disorders (continued)

• May be developmental or acquired through injuries or diseases that affect the brain.

• Are divided into three broad categories– Speech Disorders– Language Disorders– Hearing DisordersSpeech disorders are the most common

communication disorder among students.

Typical Speech Disorder found in Students with Communication

Disorders • Individuals have speech disorders when their

communication is intelligible, unpleasant, or interferes with communication.

• The most common speech disorders are articulation disorders (47%).

• Even if sounds are not fully developed, children’s speech should be at least 90% intelligible by the time they enter kindergarten.

Types of Communication Disorders

• Speech Disorder– Students with speech disorders have difficulty

with the verbal means of communication.

• The major components of speech are: (i) Articulation- the production of speech

sounds.(ii) Fluency-flow and rhythm of language(ii) Voice-focuses on the quality of the speech

including resonance, pitch, and intensity.

Common Errors in Speaking• Types of Errors in Speech(i) Substitutions- one sound is replaced with

another. For example, /w/ for /r/ (wabbit for rabbit).

(ii) Distortions(iii) Additions(iv) Omissions- when a sound is not included in a

word. For example, a student says boo when he means to say blue and pity instead of pretty.

Common Errors in Speaking (continued)

• Additions- an extra sound or sounds are added to the intended word. (Class share examples)

• Distortions: Sounds are changed slightly so that the intended sound may be recognized but sound "wrong,".

Vocal Production of Language

• One of the components of vocal production of language is fluency.– Stuttering is an interruption of the forward flow of

speech and it the most common fluency disorder.

• Another component of vocal production of language is semantics.– Semantics refers to the ideas or concepts one is

communicating and the relationships among those concepts.

More about Articulation

• Articulation is affected by development, regional dialects, and cultural uses.

• Variations of language are products of historical, cultural, geographic, social, economic, ethnic, and political factors.– These variations in speech or language are not

communication disorders, rather these variations are dialects.

Metalinguistics

• The concept that language is a code for representing sounds, words, and ideas is called metalinguistics.

• By the age of 13, students can switch their communication style depending on the person with whom they are talking. Communication style is referred to as register.

Metalinguistics (continued)

• Code switching refers to alternating between one or more languages or dialects.

• Whenever, we use different forms of expression depending on the person we are speaking to and where we are speaking to that person, we are code switching.

• Would you say that the idea of code-switching exists in your first language? If so, would you consider yourself to be a "code switcher?

Pragmatics vs. Metalinguistics

The area of most important linguistic growth during the school age years is language use or pragmatics.

• Pragmatics refers to the purposes or functions of communication, or how we use language in a social context.

• Metalinguistics- refers to how students can use language to thing about, analyze, and reflect on language as an object.

Instructional Techniques / Interventions for students with LD

Due to the diversity in students with LD, no one technique is appropriate for all students with LD. However, if a student has an LD related to the following a teacher might try one of the following interventions:

Listening- Provide flowcharts, pictures, or other visual displays. Pre-reading questions/terms at end of a chapter. Keyword note-taking systems expand/jog memory.

Interventions (continued)

Problem= Distractibility• Minimize visual distractors in the

environment; don’t have interesting activities going on in one corner of the room while expecting the student to do his/her seatwork. Provide a “quiet corner” for anyone who wishes a distraction-free place to work.

Identifying, Assessing, and Teaching Students with

Communication Disorders

Overview

• Communication disorders are divided into two categories, speech and language disorders.

• Under each category are specific disorders.• For example, an articulation disorder is placed

under of Speech Disorders.• Articulation disorders occur when students

are unable to produce various sound and sound combinations.

Speech Disorders

• Refer to difficulties producing speech sounds or problems with voice quality.

• Characterized by an interruption in the flow or rhythm of speech, such as stuttering (fluency disorder). Problems with the way sounds are formed, called articulation or phonological disorders, or students may have difficulties with the pitch or quality of the voice (voice disorder).

Language Disorders

• A language disorder is an impairment in the ability to understand and/or use words in context.

• Characteristics of language disorders include improper use of words and their meanings, inability to express ideas, inappropriate grammatical patterns, reduced vocabulary, and inability to follow directions.

Types of Language• Receptive- ability to understand what is being

communicated.• Expressive- ability to convey the intended

message.• Language disorders divided into three

categories:(i) Content- semantics (meaning of words)(ii) Form- phonology, morphology, and syntax(iii) Use- pragmatics (the various purposes of

communicating)

Identification

• Most communication disorders are identified in preschool or elementary school.

• Hearing screening are used to detect communication disorders.

• Chronic ear infections can cause hearing, speech, and language problems.

• There are two main types of hearing infections.

Ear Infections

• Otitis media is an ear infection. • The first type is called acute otitis media

(AOM). • This means that parts of the ear are infected

and swollen. It also means that fluid and mucus are trapped inside the ear.

• AOM can be painful.

Ear Infections (continued)

• The second type is called otitis media with effusion (fluid), or OME.

• This means fluid and mucus stay trapped in the ear after the infection is over.

• OME makes it harder for the ear to fight new infections.

How does otitis media happen?

• Otitis media usually happens when viruses and/or bacteria get inside the ear and cause an infection. It often happens as a result of another illness, such as a cold.

• It is harder for children to fight otitis media than for adults, so children develop ear infections more often. Some researchers believe that other factors, such as being around cigarette smoke, can contribute to ear infections.

How Otitis Media Affects Hearing

• Sounds around us are collected by the outer ear. Then sound travels to the middle ear, which has three tiny bones (eustachian tubes) and is filled with air.

After that, sound moves on to the inner ear. The inner ear is where sounds are turned into electrical signals and sent to the brain.

How otitis… (continued)

• An ear infection affects the whole ear, but especially the middle and inner ear.

• Hearing is affected because sound cannot get through an ear that is filled with fluid.

Other Causes of Communication/Speech Disorders• Stroke, brain injury or deterioration,

developmental delays or disorders, learning disabilities, cerebral palsy, cleft palate, voice pathology, mental retardation, or hearing loss.

• Problems can be congenital (existing at birth), developmental (event causing change), or acquired (developed).

The Teacher’s Role in Indentifying Language Disorders

• Observer and listener for students who have significant difficulty communicating.

• Language is divided into three areas: form, content, and use.

• Language Form– Does the student mispronounce words or sound?– Does the student understand and produce

sentences similar to other student in class?

Language Content

Language Content• Does the student comprehend others’ ideas

and express his ideas as effectively as others in the class?

• Does the student comprehend and produce vocabulary as rich and varied as the other student in the class?

Language Use

• Does the student use language for different purposes such as sharing information, expressing feelings, and persuading?

• Does the student stay on topic during a conversation?

• Does the student recognize when the listener is not understanding and act to clarify communication for the listener?

Evaluating Students for Language Delays or Disorders

• If a student fails a hearing or speech screening, a Speech and Language Pathologist will collect a language sample from that student.

• Sampling involves taping students as they interact, and the analyzing the student suspected of the speech problem utterances for mean length, types of utterances, vocabulary, topic maintenance and turn taking.

Speech-language Pathologist

• Speech-language pathologists, sometimes called speech therapists assess, diagnose, treat, and help to prevent disorders related to speech.

• Ex. Speech rhythm and fluency such as stuttering, voice disorders, such as inappropriate pitch or harsh voice, and those with problems understanding and producing language.

Speech Therapist (continued)

• Develop an individualized plan of care tailored to each patient’s needs

• Select augmentative or alternative communication methods

• Teach students how to make sounds, improve their voices, or increase their oral or written language skills to communicate more effectively.