scholarly journals Tutorial: Speech Assessment for Multilingual Children Who Do Not Speak the Same Language(s) as the Speech-Language Pathologist

2017 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 691-708 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sharynne McLeod ◽  
Sarah Verdon ◽  
Elise Baker ◽  
Martin J. Ball ◽  
Elaine Ballard ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Speech Sound ◽  
Culturally Competent ◽  
Speech Sound Disorders ◽  
Comprehensive Overview ◽  
Speech Language Pathologist ◽  
Key Points ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Children's Speech ◽  
Speech Assessment

Purpose The aim of this tutorial is to support speech-language pathologists (SLPs) undertaking assessments of multilingual children with suspected speech sound disorders, particularly children who speak languages that are not shared with their SLP. Method The tutorial was written by the International Expert Panel on Multilingual Children's Speech, which comprises 46 researchers (SLPs, linguists, phoneticians, and speech scientists) who have worked in 43 countries and used 27 languages in professional practice. Seventeen panel members met for a 1-day workshop to identify key points for inclusion in the tutorial, 26 panel members contributed to writing this tutorial, and 34 members contributed to revising this tutorial online (some members contributed to more than 1 task). Results This tutorial draws on international research evidence and professional expertise to provide a comprehensive overview of working with multilingual children with suspected speech sound disorders. This overview addresses referral, case history, assessment, analysis, diagnosis, and goal setting and the SLP's cultural competence and preparation for working with interpreters and multicultural support workers and dealing with organizational and government barriers to and facilitators of culturally competent practice. Conclusion The issues raised in this tutorial are applied in a hypothetical case study of an English-speaking SLP's assessment of a multilingual Cantonese- and English-speaking 4-year-old boy. Resources are listed throughout the tutorial.

scholarly journals The case for morphophonological intervention: Evidence from a Greek-speaking child with speech difficulties

2018 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eleftheria Geronikou ◽  
Maggie Vance ◽  
Bill Wells ◽  
Jenny Thomson
Keyword(s):  
Speech Sound ◽  
Single Subject ◽  
Inflectional Morphology ◽  
Speech Sound Disorders ◽  
Post Intervention ◽  
Assessment Scores ◽  
Single Subject Research ◽  
Language Difficulties ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
And Control

Intervention with children with speech and language difficulties has been proven beneficial compared with no treatment yet, knowing what type of intervention to provide remains a challenge. Studies of English-speaking children indicate that intervention targeting the production of morphological targets may have a positive effect on phonological aspects and vice versa. However, studies have not reported on generalization effects to untreated morphemes and little is yet known about morphological intervention in the context of a highly inflected language. The purpose of the current intervention case study was to investigate the effect of intervention in relation to phonological and morphological targets in Greek, a language characterized by complex inflectional morphology. A single subject research design was used with pre- and post-intervention assessment carried out. The participant was a four-year-old Greek-speaking boy with speech difficulties. The production of /s/, a phoneme used in multiple phonological and morphological contexts was targeted with alternating focus of intervention between phonological and morphological targets. Assessment took place at two levels: macro-assessment to monitor broad changes in speech; micro-assessment to measure therapy-specific changes in the production of treated targets and generalization to untreated targets and control items. There were four phases of intervention with a total of 24 hours of therapy. Significant improvement in performance accuracy was found between assessment scores immediately pre- and post-intervention. Intervention targeting the production of a phoneme in the word stem was not sufficient to accomplish the accurate production of morphemes requiring the same phoneme; intervention directly targeting morphemes was successful. Within-domain generalization was observed in both domains. Improved naming accuracy was observed post-intervention that was maintained at follow-up. The present study supports the case for morphophonological intervention. Morphological elements should be addressed in a comprehensive intervention for speech sound disorders.

Entropy as a measure of mixedupness of realizations in child speech

2016 ◽  
Vol 52 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Elena Babatsouli ◽  
David Ingram ◽  
Dimitrios A. Sotiropoulos
Keyword(s):  
Linear Dependence ◽  
Speech Sound ◽  
The Other ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Speech Sound Disorders ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Child Speech ◽  
Mean Length Of Utterance ◽  
Children's Speech

AbstractTypical morpho-phonological measures of children’s speech realizations used in the literature depend linearly on their components. Examples are the proportion of consonants correct, the mean length of utterance and the phonological mean length of utterance. Because of their linear dependence on their components, these measures change in proportion to their component changes between speech realizations. However, there are instances in which variable speech realizations need to be differentiated better. Therefore, a measure which is more sensitive to its components than linear measures is needed. Here, entropy is proposed as such a measure. The sensitivity of entropy is compared analytically to that of linear measures, deriving ranges in component values inside which entropy is guaranteed to be more sensitive than the linear measures. The analysis is complemented by computing the entropy in two children’s English speech for different categories of word complexity and comparing its sensitivity to that of linear measures. One of the children is a bilingual typically developing child at age 3;0 and the other child is a monolingual child with speech sound disorders at age 5;11. The analysis and applications demonstrate the usefulness of the measure for evaluating speech realizations and its relative advantages over linear measures.

Phonological Measures for Bilingual Spanish-English–Speaking Preschoolers: The Language Combination Effect

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-27
Author(s):  
Leah Fabiano-Smith ◽  
Chelsea Privette ◽  
Lingling An
Keyword(s):  
Diagnostic Accuracy ◽  
Speech Sound ◽  
Bilingual Children ◽  
Support Vector ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Speech Sound Disorders ◽  
Receiver Operating Characteristic Curves ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Spanish Phonology ◽  
The Individual

Purpose The purpose of this study was to examine the diagnostic accuracy of traditional measures of phonological ability developed for monolingual English-speaking children with their bilingual peers in both English and Spanish. We predicted that a composite measure, derived from a combination of English and Spanish phonological measures, would result in higher diagnostic accuracy than examining the individual phonological measures of bilingual children separately by language. Method Sixty-six children, ages 3;3–6;3 (years;months), participated in this study: 29 typically developing bilingual Spanish-English–speaking children ( x = 5;3), five bilingual Spanish-English–speaking children with speech sound disorders ( x = 4;6), 26 typically developing monolingual English-speaking children ( x = 4;8), and six monolingual English-speaking children with speech sound disorders ( x = 4;9). Children were recorded producing single words using the Assessments of English and Spanish Phonology, and productions were phonetically transcribed and analyzed using the Logical International Phonetics Program. Overall consonants correct–revised; accuracy of early-, middle-, and late-developing sounds; and percent occurrence of phonological error patterns in both English and Spanish were calculated. Receiver operating characteristic curves and support vector machine models were applied to observe diagnostic accuracy, separately and combined, for each speaker group and each language. Results Findings indicated the combination of measures improved diagnostic accuracy within both the English and Spanish of bilingual children and significantly increased accuracy when measures from both languages of bilingual children were combined. Combining measures for the productions of monolingual English-speaking children did not increase diagnostic accuracy. Conclusion To prevent misdiagnosis of speech sound disorders in bilingual preschoolers, the composite phonological abilities of bilingual children need to be assessed across both gross and discrete measures of phonological ability. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.16632604

Speech Acquisition in Monolingual Children Acquiring isiZulu in Rural KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle Pascoe ◽  
Zenia Jeggo
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Speech Sound ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Speech Sound Disorders ◽  
Language Therapy ◽  
Speech Acquisition ◽  
Phonological Processes ◽  
Bantu Languages ◽  
Kwazulu Natal ◽  
Children's Speech

In South Africa, isiZulu is the most widely spoken home language. However, research on children’s speech acquisition in isiZulu is minimal and there are no published speech assessments that speech-language therapists can use to identify children with speech sound disorders acquiring this language. In our research we aimed to document speech sound acquisition of 32 isiZulu-speaking children aged two years, six months to six years, five months in rural KwaZulu- Natal, South Africa. An isiZulu speech assessment was developed and used to assess the children’s speech in terms of phonetic acquisition, word shape and phonological processes. In the study, the implosive, plosives, nasals, affricates and vowels were mastered by the youngest children. The click /!ɡ/, approximant /l/ and fricative /ɦ/ may be among the last consonants to develop: they had not been mastered by the oldest group. Two-syllable structures were mastered early while structures of four/five syllables were still developing at 6;5. Participants in the older age groups could produce target words more accurately and used fewer phonological processes. The findings are discussed in relation to normative data from other Bantu languages. Knowledge of isiZulu speech sound development will assist clinicians working with isiZulu-speaking children in assessing and managing their speech difficulties: an important step towards ensuring that speech-language therapy services are relevant to all children in South Africa.

scholarly journals Comparing Traditional and Tablet-Based Intervention for Children With Speech Sound Disorders: A Randomized Controlled Trial

2019 ◽  
Vol 62 (11) ◽  
pp. 4045-4061 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luis M. T. Jesus ◽  
Joana Martinez ◽  
Joaquim Santos ◽  
Andreia Hall ◽  
Victoria Joffe
Keyword(s):  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Speech Sound ◽  
Speech Sound Disorders ◽  
Post Intervention ◽  
Intervention Effect ◽  
Time Points ◽  
Randomized Controlled ◽  
Speech Language Pathologist ◽  
Group Change ◽  
New Evidence

Purpose This article reports on the effectiveness of a novel tablet-based approach to phonological intervention and compares it to a traditional tabletop approach, targeting children with phonologically based speech sound disorders (SSD). Method Twenty-two Portuguese children with phonologically based SSD were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 interventions, tabletop or tablet (11 children in each group), and received intervention based on the same activities, with the only difference being the delivery. All children were treated by the same speech-language pathologist over 2 blocks of 6 weekly sessions, for 12 sessions of intervention. Participants were assessed at 3 time points: baseline; pre-intervention, after a 3-month waiting period; and post-intervention. Outcome measures included percentage of consonants correct, percentage of vowels correct, and percentage of phonemes correct. A generalization of target sounds was also explored. Results Both tabletop and tablet-based interventions were effective in improving percentage of consonants correct and percentage of phonemes correct scores, with an intervention effect only evident for percentage of vowels correct in the tablet group. Change scores across both interventions were significantly greater after the intervention, compared to baseline, indicating that the change was due to the intervention. High levels of generalization (60% and above for the majority of participants) were obtained across both tabletop and tablet groups. Conclusions The software proved to be as effective as a traditional tabletop approach in treating children with phonologically based SSD. These findings provide new evidence regarding the use of digital materials in improving speech in children with SSD. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.9989816

Phonological Development in a Bilingual Arabic–English-Speaking Child With Bilateral Cochlear Implants: A Longitudinal Case Study

2018 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 1506-1522
Author(s):  
Manal Sabri ◽  
Leah Fabiano-Smith
Keyword(s):  
Cochlear Implants ◽  
Gradual Increase ◽  
Speech Sound ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Phonological Development ◽  
Longitudinal Case Study ◽  
Phonological Acquisition ◽  
Bilateral Cochlear Implants ◽  
English Speaking

Purpose This longitudinal study examined the phonological development of a bilingual Arabic–English-speaking child with bilateral cochlear implants (CIs). The focus of the study was to observe the interaction between her two languages and to observe the effect of CIs on the acquisition of two speech sound systems. Method This study followed a 3;6-year-old (2;5 hearing age) bilingual Arabic–English-speaking child with bilateral CIs to age 4;4 (3;2 hearing age). Single-word samples were collected bimonthly in both languages. Phon software (Rose et al., 2006) was used to transcribe and analyze speech samples. Measures derived included Percent Consonants Correct–Revised (Shriberg & Kwiatkowski, 1994), percent vowels correct, phonetic inventory complexity, and common phonological patterns for both English and Arabic. Results Our findings supported previous research on phonological development exhibited by children with CIs, with the gradual suppression of typical and atypical error patterns and gradual increase in segmental accuracy with maturation. In addition, language interaction and separation between English and Arabic were found, supporting previous cross-linguistic work on bilingual phonological acquisition (e.g., Fabiano-Smith & Goldstein, 2010b). Conclusion Bilingual children with CIs have the capability to learn both of their languages and perform similarly to, and even surpass in accuracy, monolingual children with CIs; however, it is also possible to exhibit a slower rate of acquisition of segmental accuracy as compared to their typically developing, hearing peers. Clinical implications of bilingual early intervention are discussed.

Intervention dose frequency: Phonological generalization is similar regardless of schedule

2020 ◽  
pp. 026565902096076
Author(s):  
Alycia Cummings ◽  
Kristen Giesbrecht ◽  
Janet Hallgrimson
Keyword(s):  
Speech Sound ◽  
Multiple Baseline ◽  
Phonological Information ◽  
Phonological Acquisition ◽  
Speech Sound Disorders ◽  
Dose Frequency ◽  
Speech Intervention ◽  
Participant Group ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Group D

This study examined how intervention dose frequency affects phonological acquisition and generalization in preschool children with speech sound disorders (SSD). Using a multiple-baseline, single-participants experimental design, eight English-speaking children with SSD (4;0 to 5;6) were split into two dose frequency conditions (4 children/condition) targeting word-initial complex singleton phonemes: /ɹ l ʧ/. All children received twenty 50-minute sessions that were either provided twice a week (2×/week) for ten weeks or four times a week (4×/week) for five weeks. Tau- U effect sizes for two generalization measures, treated phoneme and percent consonants correct (PCC), were calculated for each participant. Group d-scores were calculated to measure generalization of the treated phoneme in untreated words for each condition. All eight children demonstrated gains in their phonological measures. Two children in 2×/week condition demonstrated significant changes in generalization of treated phonemes in untreated words. One child in each condition demonstrated significant changes in PCC scores. Group d-scores were similar suggesting children in both conditions generalized their treated phoneme in untreated words to a similar level. Regardless of whether speech intervention occurred 2×/week or 4×/week, children demonstrated similar phonological gains. This suggests that both dose frequencies are viable intervention schedules for preschoolers with SSD. Children in the 4×/week condition made their phonological gains in approximately half the time of children in the 2×/week condition. Thus, more frequent weekly speech intervention sessions could be more efficient in teaching phonological information than less frequent sessions.

Clinical Implications for Working With Nonmainstream Dialect Speakers: A Focus on Two Filipino Kindergartners

2018 ◽  
Vol 49 (3) ◽  
pp. 497-508 ◽  
Author(s):  
Megan-Brette Hamilton ◽  
Henry Angulo-Jiménez ◽  
Christine Taylo ◽  
Laura S. DeThorne
Keyword(s):  
English Learners ◽  
The United States ◽  
Study Data ◽  
Clinical Implications ◽  
Culturally Competent ◽  
Descriptive Case Study ◽  
Phonological Features ◽  
Mainstream American English ◽  
Children's Speech

Purpose The purpose of this clinical focus piece is to increase familiarity with Philippine English (PE) and highlight clinical implications for working with nonmainstream dialect speakers. Method The clinical focus draws on descriptive case study data from 2 Filipino kindergarten boys who live in the United States. Multiple ethnographic data sources were subjected to contrastive analyses regarding nonmainstream features in the children's speech that might be consistent with PE. Results The 2 boys demonstrated grammatical and phonological features consistent with their home dialect, PE, and individualized variation relative to one another. We utilize these findings to illustrate 2 key implications for providing culturally competent clinical services when working with nonmainstream dialect speakers: (a) validate and support all Mainstream American English Learners in the classroom and (b) recognize that variance within a dialect is not always indicative of disorder. Explicit recommendations for clinical practice are provided. Conclusion Understanding and validating the diversity of nonmainstream dialect speakers within the U.S. schools are critical to providing culturally competent speech-language services.

scholarly journals Perception of Correctly and Incorrectly Produced Words in Children With and Without Phonological Speech Sound Disorders

2020 ◽  
Vol 63 (12) ◽  
pp. 3961-3973
Author(s):  
Françoise Brosseau-Lapré ◽  
Jennifer Schumaker
Keyword(s):  
Language Skills ◽  
Speech Sound ◽  
Typical Development ◽  
Speech And Language ◽  
Speech Sound Disorders ◽  
Speech Sound Disorder ◽  
Language Tests ◽  
Language Difficulties ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Study Participants

Purpose The purpose of this study was to examine the perception of correctly and incorrectly produced words in children with and without phonological speech sound disorder (SSD) with similar vocabulary and language skills. Method Thirty-six monolingual English-speaking children aged 4 and 5 years, half with SSD and half with typical speech and language skills, participated in this study. Participants completed standardized speech and language tests as well as a mispronunciation detection task targeting omissions and substitutions of the phonemes /k, s, ɹ/ in five word positions/shapes. Results The children with SSD obtained significantly lower perceptual accuracy than the children with typical development. There was no statistically significant effect for phoneme. Omissions were more likely to be detected by both groups of participants compared with substitutions, and children with SSD had greater difficulty identifying substitutions as incorrectly produced words. Conclusions Speech perception difficulties may be a distinguishing feature of children with phonological SSD and without concomitant language difficulties. Further research is needed to investigate specific speech contexts in which perception predicts accurate production in children with SSD.

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