One in every 732 newborns is born with a genetic disorder called Down syndrome (DS). It is the most common cause of intellectual impairments due to the presence of an extra chromosome in the 21st pair (Cleland, et al. 2010). The severity rates vary in every individual affected, however, 85% of people with DS present with mild to moderate intellectual disorder, and a minority of individuals with DS present with severe impairment (Barnes, et al. 2009). Research shows that children with DS appear to have more deficits in expressive speech and language compared to typical developing children. Speech intelligibility, the ability of a speaker to produce an understandable message to a listener, is particularly impaired (Kumin, 1994). At the age of four, most typically developing children are fully intelligible. Conversely, the speech of children with DS tends to be unintelligible throughout their lives (Stoel-Gammon, 2001). Long-standing difficulties with intelligibility can most likely be attributed to phonological patterns associated with DS. Therefore, intervention for children with DS is vital to the ultimate goal of them being able to grow up, live independently, and work in the community (Stoel-Gammon, 2001).
Profiles associated with children who have Down syndrome
Although there is not one specific profile associated with children with Down syndrome, there are particular traits seen in the majority of this population. There are several physical characteristics that are seen in the profile of a child with Down syndrome. Congenital heart disease, anomalies of the facial features, and hypotonia are just a few of the traits commonly associated with Down syndrome (Roberts, Price & Malkin, 2007). Children with Down syndrome fr...
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...displays the timing and location of the contact between an individual’s tongue and hard palate during speech (Wood, et al. 2009). The EPG also uses visual feedback to compare typical articulation patterns to the actual produced articulation patterns (Wood, et al. 2009). It has been shown to improve children with Down syndrome’s speech production difficulties as well as their intelligibility.
A case study of a ten year old girl with DS was given EPG therapy in order to resolve a phonological process of velar fronting. The study showed changes in the accuracy of the contact between the tongue and artificial palate over 14 weeks. Training with the visual feedback allowed the child to alter her tongue placement and generalize it to conversational speech (Wood, et al. 2009). As a result, she had fewer articulation errors and her intelligibility significant improved.
Such an approach is preferred if the child reveals secondary behaviours or when the child is aware of his/her. This decision of choosing direct therapy will depend on the amount of stuttering that is been observed as well as the impact the stuttering has on the child’s attitude and psychology towards communication. Direct therapy focuses specifically on the child's stuttering. Within all cases parents should encourage their children and most importantly expect any disfluency issue a child might have. Direct therapy, targets speech disfluencies by speech and language therapists and parents, if the parents have been directed by a professional speech and language therapist. Specifically, in contrast with indirect approach, direct approach focuses on the disfluency of the child by correcting and working on the stutters with the SLT or the parents if they have been directed by an SLT. Direct therapy mostly focuses on breathing techniques, managing reduced speaking rate, encouraging pauses when taking turns in conversations and motivating the child by letting him/her finish speaking without any interruption. Two approaches in direct therapy are the fluency shaping and the
The purpose of Application of a Motor Learning Treatment for Speech Sound Disorders in Small Groups was to evaluate the effectiveness of motor-learning based therapy, also called Concurrent Treatment, within groups of up to four elementary public school students with disordered articulation, normal language, and normal hearing. The authors of this paper recognized that while many studies have been done to determine the efficacy of students in individualized therapy settings, few studies had been done to look at therapy within small groups. Therefore, the researchers tested twenty-eight 6-9 year old children within a small group using Concurrent Treatment. The children were able to acquire their targeted speech sounds within 40 30-minute sessions (20 hours over 20 weeks).
The “deaf and dumb” stigma as well as the delayed language and cognitive development of some Deaf children concerns this topic. “Ninety percent of deaf children have hearing parents, and usually there’s a significant communication gap” (Drolsbaugh 48). Therefore, it is not that being born deaf or hard of hearing that makes children unintelligent. It is the lack of access to language in the critical early years, as hearing parents often do not know sign language, that causes later issues in education. This can be seen from the fact that the brain’s plasticity, or its ability to acquire new information and establish neural pathways, is the greatest at birth and wanes throughout development. Therefore, if a child does not have sufficient access to language before five, significant language, and thus cognitive impairment, can result (100). Additionally, children learn about the world around them and develop critical thinking skills through asking questions. However, hearing parents often “wave off” such questions as unimportant due to difficulty explaining them (48). Therefore, early exposure to an accessible language such as ASL is crucial in developing language and cognitive abilities. When hearing families are fully aware and understanding of this, it can greatly facilitate improvements in education for Deaf
Over seven million people just in the US have some sort of speech disorder. Just think about how many it is around the world! There are many different types of speech disorders, such as: stuttering, lisping and, mumbling, to name a few. Many of these disorders become noticeable during early childhood, however, this is not the only time a speech disorder may occur. Many people that suffer from strokes or other traumatic accidents encounter struggles with speech through their recovery. Those who struggle with speaking after an accident, though, have more access to treatments than children that are born with speech impediments. The treatments that are most known for children include: phonology, semantics, syntax, and pragmatics. There are speech
Her phonetic inventory is well developed. She has no troubles creating the age-appropriate speech sounds. The child is just above normal because she can produce more adult-like sounds than her peers. She has control over her articulators and she knows how to manipulate her oral cavity to produce the correct sounds.
It is well known that children have Down syndrome within physical features. They are not different than a person who does not have Down syndrome, but their physical features are quite different such as, facial appearance in the face, which is flatter. They also have a slant within their eyes, smaller ears and protruding tongue which is slightly bigger and suspends out a part from the mouth. (2)
...sek J. (2009). Language Characteristics in Individuals with Down Syndrome. National Institutes of Health. pp.112-132.
crease, slightly flattened facial profile, an upward slant to the eyes, small mouth, and protruding
As mentioned in the introduction, Down Syndrome is a genetic disorder caused by the presence of an extra copy of chromosome 21. The extra genetic material is typically responsible for the alteration of physical development. Some of the most common physical traits of Down Syndrome are distinct facial features such as a upward slanting almond shaped eyes, a seemingly flattened face, a tongue that tends to stick out, and small ears. Some of the other physical traits that are sometimes present are short stature, poor muscle tone, and a crease across the palm of the hand (CDC). Due to the poor muscle tone in their bodies, people who have Down Syndrome are more susceptible to conditions such as obesity and sleep apnea...
Alan Kamhi (2006) understood treatment options are not easy to choose because “there is no simple prescription for choosing an intervention approach because clinical expertise and client values will vary” (p. 272). Helping a child succeed needs more than one person’s help. A great way for children’s speech impediments to disappear is if every person in those children’s lives to be active teachers. Yauch (1952) believed that the speech correctionist must “help the teacher become more competent” because the student’s improvement will be more “consistent” (p. 98). Instead of a student going to a speech therapist two or three times a week as their cure, parents, relatives, siblings, and teachers must participate in the student’s therapy. If treatment effort is begun promptly, “75% of children with speech delay normalize their speech errors by age 6” (Kamhi, 2006, p. 272). How can society make that percentage increase? Children usually go to treatment with a specialized therapist for two to three hours a week. If parents, teachers, and siblings start to help too, the child has treatment 24/7, which will help the child’s disorder disappear much faster. The way this is possible is for the parents and teachers to have a meeting with the school’s speech therapist to explain what the child has trouble on, what part of the mouth the impediment is coming from, words that are often pronounced wrong by the child, and ways to help
National Institute of Health. (2011). National Institute on Deafness and other communication disorders: Improving the lives of people who have communication disorders. National Institute on
"Speech Disorders - Children." U.S National Library of Medicine. U.S. National Library of Medicine, 12 June 2012. Web. 25 Nov. 2013.
Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS) is a difficult disorder to diagnose and treat. Categorized as a developmental speech sound disorder, children with CAS often exhibit inconsistent problems with individual sounds, syllables, and words with varying intelligibility due to inaccurate movement of the articulators (CITE?!?). CAS is a neurological disorder that affects the planning and programming of speech and is not due to weakness in the muscles required for speech. Possibly the most challenging aspect of CAS is that there is no set of differential features that are consistent with this specific disorder (ASHA). Lists of common features of CAS have been obtained through observation and research. Such features include vowel distortions, difficulty
...the fast growing body of research should encourage clinicians and educators to consider PECS for similar children (e.g. children with ASD with some speech but limited use of this” (Travis & Geiger, 2010).
Communication is very crucial in life, especially in education. Whether it be delivering a message or receiving information, without the ability to communicate learning can be extremely difficult. Students with speech and language disorders may have “trouble producing speech sounds, using spoken language to communicate, or understanding what other people say” (Turkington, p10, 2003) Each of these problems can create major setbacks in the classroom. Articulation, expression and reception are all essential components for communication. If a student has an issue with articulation, they most likely then have difficulty speaking clearly and at a normal rate (Turkington, 2003). When they produce words, they may omit, substitute, or even distort sounds, hindering their ability to talk. Students who lack in ways of expression have problems explaining what they are thinking and feeling because they do not understand certain parts of language. As with all types of learning disabilities, the severity can range. Two extreme cases of expression disorders are dysphasia and aphasia, in which there is partial to no communication at all (Greene, 435, 2002). Individuals can also have a receptive disorder, in which they do not fully comprehend and understand information that is being given to them. They can experience problems making sense of things. “Children may hear or see a word but not be able to understand its meaning” (National Institutes of Health, 1993, p1). Whether children have difficulty articulating speech, expressing words, receiving information, or a combination of the three, there is no doubt that the tasks given to them in school cause frustration. These children experience anxiety when...