Speech pathology

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Speech pathology, also termed speech-language pathology and speech & language therapy (SLT, mainly in the UK) is the study of disorders that affect a person's speech, language, cognition, voice disorders and swallowing disorders. Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) or Speech and Language Therapists (SLTs) address people's speech production, vocal production, swallowing difficulties and language needs through speech therapy in a variety of different contexts including schools, hospitals, and through private practice.

[edit] Education

In the UK, SLTs undertake a three to four year degree which qualifies them to work in any of the three main clinical areas. The course, which varies according to university, is a mixture of Linguistics, Psychology and Medical science amongst other disciplines. Students also undertake clinical placements in which their ability to practise is assessed. Upon qualifying they enter as a newly-qualified practitioner. The recommended career course is that they then achieve a number of competencies, which qualify them to work entirely autonomously, although in practice this is not tightly regulated.

In the United States, Speech Language Pathology practice is regulated by the laws of the individual states. However, by 2006, minimal requirement to be a certified SLP member of the American Speech-Language Hearing Association [1] were: a graduate degree in Speech-Language Pathology, which typically entails 2 years of post graduate work; a completed clinical fellowship year, which is generally employment for a year while supervised by a practicing SLP who is also ASHA certified; and passing the Praxis Series examination. The graduate degree work to acquire a Master's in Speech-Language Pathology is rigorous and demanding, requiring many hours of supervised clinical practica, and intensive didactic coursework in medical sciences, phonetics, linguistics, phonology, scientific methodology, and other subjects.

Certification by ASHA is noted as carrying one's "C"s. It is noted after an SLP's name as: CCC-SLP.

[edit] Main Branches of Speech & Language Therapy (UK)

In the UK SLTs choose one or a mixture of three main clinical areas to work in, these are with adults, children or adults with learning disabilities. Adult work mainly involves rehabilitation after a traumatic event, such as a stroke, which may leave the person with a disorder such as aphasia, dysarthria or dyspraxia. Work with children mainly involves attempting to bring the child's speech or language skills up to the level of their peers. Working with adults with learning disabilities mainly involves educating their direct staff in communicating with the person so that they can reach their communicative potential. Jobs often fall outside the remit of these categories including special education, working with physical disabilities and working with people with autism.

If a person is planning on becoming a speech-language pathologist, it is wise to enroll in a graduate program. Graduate level schooling spands over the course of two Summer terms, two Fall semesters, and a Spring semester, so it is almost two additional years of education. Some of the classes required in the graduate sequence are Speech Science, Motor Speech Disorders, Orofacial Anomalies, and numerous terms of Clinical Externships. Any student that graduates college with a degree in Communication Disorders will be strongly advised to seek further education and receive his or her Master's Degree.

[edit] Methods of assessment

Children who are identified in school as having a speech disorder or difficulty learning language are often referred to an SLP. Standardized tests are administered to assess the patient's receptive and expressive vocabulary, linguistic concepts, sentence structure, etc.

Common tests used for children:

  • Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals-Preschool (CELF-Preschool) (Wiig, Secord and Semel, 1992)
  • Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-Third Edition (PPVT-III) (Dunn, Dunn, & Williams, 1997)

[edit] See also

[edit] References

Wiig, E. H., Secord, W., & Semel, E. (1992). Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals-Preschool. USA: The Psychological Corporation, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich

Dunn, L. M., Dunn, Leota, M., Dunn, & Williams, K. T. (1997). Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-Third Edition. Circle Pines, MN: AGS Publishing.

[edit] External links

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