CHAPTER 11

THE STUDENTS WITH SPEECH

AND LANGUAGE DISORDERS

Yolanda T. Capulong
 Basic Concepts on
Communication, Speech and
Language
The concepts of communication, speech and language
are interrelated. Speech and language are the key
components of communication. Basically,
communication takes place when both the sender and
receiver of the message use common speech patterns
and language. Difficulties in speech production and lack
of language skills interfere with effective
communication. Nevertheless, these concepts have
their respective definitions, descriptions and uses.
 Communication

Communication is the exchange of information,

ideas, needs and desires between two or more
persons. It is an interactive process where there
is (1) the intention to send message, (2) a sender
who encodes and expresses the message, (3) a
receiver who decodes and responds to the
message, and (4) a shared means of
communication. In general, speech and language
make communication possible.
 SPEECH
Speech is the actual behavior of producing a language
code by making appropriate vocal sound patterns
(Hubbell, 1985, cited in Heward, 2003). It is the
neuromuscular act of producing sounds that are used in
language. While the eye is the specific organ for vision
and the ear for audition, there is not one specific organ
for speech. Instead the parts of the speech organs are
“borrowed” from the respiratory system and the
digestive system. Figure 51 illustrates the anatomy of the
speech mechanism.
Speech is the most effective and
efficient method of expressing
language. It is also the most complex
and difficult human activity.

The other ways of expressing

language are gestures, manual
signing, pictures and written
symbols.
 Four separate but related
processes in the
production of speech
sounds

1. Respiration

2. Phonation

3. Resonation

4. Articulation.
1. Respiration or breathing provides the air or
power supply for speech sounds to be audible.

2. Phonation is the production of sounds as the

vocal bands or folds of the larynx are drawn
together by the contraction of specific muscles
causing the air to oscillate or vibrate.
3. Resonation refers to the sound quality or the
oscillating air that is shaped as it passes through the
throat or pharyngeal, oral or mouth, and nasal
cavities.

4. Articulation is the formation of specific,

recognizable speech sounds by the tongue, lips,
teeth and mouth.
 Pharyngeal,
Respiratory Vocal Folds
Oral and
System (oscillator)
Nasal Speech
(air supply) Cavities
(resonators)
 Language

Language is a “code whereby ideas about the

word are expressed through a conventional
system of arbitrary signals for communication”
(Lately, 1988, cited in Heward, 2003). Language
has five dimensions, namely, phonology,
morphology, syntax, semantics and pragmatics.
 Phonology

Refers to the linguistic rule governing a

language’s sound system. The rules
describe how sounds are sequenced
and combined.
 Phonemes

Represented by letters or other symbols

between slashes. For example, the
phoneme /n/ represents the “ng” sound in
sing.
 Morphology

refers to the way the basic units of meaning

are combined into words. A morpheme is the
smallest element of a language that carries
meaning. For example, the word basket and
ball have one morpheme each. The word
basketball has two morphemes.
 Syntax

System of rules governing the

meaningful arrangement of words into
sentences.
 Semantics

Is a system rules that relate phonology

and syntax to meaning. Semantics
describes how people use language to
convey meaning.
 Pragmatics

is a set of rules governing how language is used. There

are three kinds of pragmatic skills: (1) using language
to achieve various communicative functions and goals,
(2) using information from the conversational context,
for example, modifying one’s message according to
listener reaction, and (3) knowing how to use
conversational skills effectively, for example, starting
and ending a conversation, turn taking. The language
model refers to pragmatics as the use of language.
Milestones in Language Development

The milestones in normal language

development from birth to five years
(Perangelo, 1998) are shown. It is helpful
to know how infants, toddlers and
children acquire language as they
mature.

Cooing is a speech sound

because the characteristics
resemble certain sounds that
adults produce.
 Birth to 6 months
● First form of communication is crying.
● Babies make sounds of comfort, such
as coos and gurgles.
● Babbling soon follows as a form of
communication.
● Vowel sounds are produced.
● No meaning is attached to the words
heard from others.
 6 to 12 months
● The baby’s voice begins to rise and fall while
making sounds.
● Child begins to understand certain words.
● Child may respond appropriately to the word
“no.”
● Child may perform an action when asked.
● Child may repeat words said by others.
 12 to 18 months

● Child has learned to say several words with

appropriate meaning.
● Child is able to tell what he or she wants by
pointing.
● Child responds to simple commands
 18 to 24 months

● There is a great spurt in the acquisition and

use of speech at this stage
● Child begins to combine words.
● Child begins to forms words into short
sentences.
 2 to 3 years
● At this age, the child talks.
● Child asks questions.
● Child has vocabulary of about 900 words.
● Child participate in conversation.
● Child can identify colors.
● Child can use plurals.
● Child can tell simple stories.
● Child begins to use consonants sounds.
 3 to 4 years

● Childs begins to speak rapidly.

● Child begins to ask questions to obtain
information.
● Sentences are longer and more varied.
● Child can complete simple analogies.
 4 to 5 years
● Child has an average vocabulary of over 1,500
words.
● Child’s sentences average 5 words in length.
● Child is able to modify speech.
● Child is able to define words.
● Child can use conjunctions.
● Child can recite poems and sing songs from
memory.
 Speech and
Language Disorder
Speech and language disorders cause problems
is communication. In the United States, it is
estimated that 5% of the school population has
communication disorders. In the Philippines, the
incidence of children and youth with
communication disorders may be higher.
 Speech Disorders

“speech is abnormal when it deviates so far from

the speech of other people that it calls attention to
itself, interferes with communication, or causes the
speaker or his listeners to feel distressed.” Van Riper
(1984, cited in Heward, 2003)

Perkins (1977) defines speech impairment as

“unintelligible, abuses the speech mechanism,
or culturally or personally unsatisfactory.”
Any deviation in the condition of the
breathing and voice producing mechanisms
including the integrity of the mouth and oral
cavity can cause speech disorders. There are
speech related problems that cause
ineffective communication like problems in
voice, articulation, and fluency.
Voice disorders are deviations in phonation such as
pitch (too high or too low), frequency (too loud or
too soft) and quality (pleasant or irritating to the
ears).

Articulation disorders are errors in the

formation of speech sounds.
 Four basic errors of
articulation
omission
(see for
seen),
substitutio
n (wip for
distortion
lip) (talt for salt)
addition of
extra sounds
(buhrown for
brown).
 Fluency disorders
Interrupt the natural, smooth flow of
speech with inappropriate pauses,
hesitations, or repetitions. Unlike normal
speech that makes use of rhythm and timing
so that words and phrases flow easily,
fluency disorders are characterized by
unnatural variations in speed, stress and
pauses.
 Cluttering and stuttering
In cluttering, speech is very fast with extra
sounds and mispronounced sounds that
make speech garbled and unintelligible.

Stuttering is marked by “rapid-fire repetitions of

consonant or vowel sounds especially at the
beginning or words and complete verbal
blocks” (Jonas, 1976, cited in Heward 2003).
The cause of stuttering is unknown. It is a
disorders of childhood that appears between
the ages of 3 and 5 after the child has acquired
fluency in speech. The condition is more
common among males than females and occurs
more frequently among twins. It is situational
and appears to be related to the setting of
circumstances of speech.
 Language Disorders
The American Speech-Language-Association
(ASLA) defines language disorders as the
abnormal acquisition, comprehension or
expression of spoken or written language.

The disorder may involve one, some or all

of the phonologic, morphologic, semantic,
syntactic or pragmatic components of the
linguistic system.
The following factors can contribute to language
disorders in children (Chaney and Frodoma, 1982, cited
in heward, 2003):

• cognitive limitations or intellectual disability

• environmental deprivation
• hearing impairment
• emotional deprivation or behavioral disorders
• structural abnormalities of the speech mechanism
Language may be delayed, disordered or absent as a
result of the above factors. Adults reward children for
efficient communication skills as shown in the ability to
recite, orate, sing or recall information. Others may
punish children for talking too much or participation in
conversation among adults. Lack of motivation at home
to engage in communicative activities may discourage a
child from developing his or her own skills in using
vocabulary learned and in expressing ideas. As a result,
problems connected with the form, content and use of
language may occur.
● Form problems cover phonology, morphology and
syntax problems that range from difficulty of decoding
spoken language, abnormal use of prefixes to abnormal
structure of words and wrong use of tenses.
● Content problems include semantic disorders
manifested in poor vocabulary development,
inappropriate use of words, and poor comprehension of
the meaning of words.
● Use of pragmatic problems cover the inability to
comprehend or use language in context or conversation
on various situations.
 Some examples of
language disorders

Central auditory processing

disorder is a problem in processing
sounds attributed to hearing loss or
intellectual capacity.
Aphasia is a language
disorder that results from
damage to parts of the brain
responsible for language.
Apraxia also known as verbal
apraxia or dyspraxia is a condition
where the child has trouble saying
what he or she wants to say
correctly and constantly.
Dysarthria is the speech condition
where the weakening of the muscles
of the mouth, face and respiratory
system affects the production of oral
language.
 Speech and Language Disorders that
Result from Hearing Impairment

Persons who are deaf or hard of hearing

manifest speech and language disorders as a
result of conductive, sensorineural, auditory
nerve, central auditory nervous system and
functional hearing losses.
 Etiology of Speech and
Language Disorders
The causes of speech and language disorders are
complex.
• can be functional like environmental stress
• can also be organic in the case of cleft palate
• can be congenital when the disorder is
present at birth or the can be adventitious or
acquired after birth, in infancy and early
childhood and in the later years.
Etiological factors are traced to brain damage, or
the causes can be secondary to intellectual
disability, hearing loss, ADHD, learning
disabilities, autism, schizophrenia, cerebral
palsy, cleft palate, vocal chord injury, disorders
of the palate and Gilles de la Tourette syndrome.
 Incidence and Prevalence
Language and speech disorder is a high incidence
disorder.
In the US, approximately 20% of children receiving special
education services are with speech and language
disorders, excluding cases that are secondary to these
conditions.

The estimate for speech and language disorders is agreed

to be at least 5% of school aged children. Of this figure3%
has voice disorders and stuttering, 1%. The incidence of
school children who manifest articulation is 2% to 3% but
this percentage decreases steadily with age.
 Learning and Behavioral
Characteristics
Children with speech and language disorders have
problems in receptive and expressive language.

They have difficulties in understanding what is

meant by spoken communication as shown in the
inability to follow directions improper use of words,
difficulty in expressing ideas in oral, signed or
written forms, inappropriate grammatical patterns,
and minimal vocabulary.
Children with speech and language disorders have
problems in receptive and expressive language.
Children with receptive language deficits have difficulty in
communicating their ideas as shown in the inability to express
or verbalize their thoughts, respond to questions, retain and
retrieve or recall information and difficulties in activities that
require abstraction.
Delays in language development shown when the child is
behind his or her peers in the acquisition of speech and
language skills.
 Assessment Procedures
1. Pre-referral Intervention
Teachers in regular classes, parents,
classmates and other people who communicate
with the child regularly report the student who is
suspected to have speech and language disorders to
the school principal. A “Teacher Nomination Form”
is accomplished, scored and interpreted. A child
who manifests at least half of the characteristics of
speech and language disorders is recommended for
screening.
 2. Multifactored Evaluation

Ideally, formal evaluation must be done by a speech

pathologist. While there are few professionals in
this field in the Philippines, their services are often
inaccessible to students in public schools. Thus, the
special education teacher, especially those who
trained in teaching children who are deaf, are called
to administer several assessment tools to
determine the presence of speech and language
disorders.
 Educational Programs
Inclusion encourages immediate intervention as the
teacher corrects the child’s mispronunciation. It
also minimizes the isolation of the children from
speech environments and social development.

Classroom management provides for preferential seating

arrangement, minimum distractions and opportunities for
interaction. The child works with the special education
teacher or speech pathologists for speech habilitation.
The American Speech-Language-
Hearing Association offers some
suggestions for the regular teacher
(Gargiulo, 2003) in an inclusive class
and for the special education teacher
as well.
1. Introduce changes in the home and school
setting especially if the child has central auditory
processing problems.

To help the child focus and maintain

attention, give him or her a seat that is
away from auditory and visual distractions.
A seat close to the teacher and the
blackboard and away from the window or
door may be helpful.
2. Reduce external visual and
auditory distractions.

A large display of posters or cluttered bulletin

boards can be distracting. Provide the child with
a study carrel. Ear plugs may be useful to block
distracting noises. Check with an audiologist to
find out if the ear plugs are appropriate and
which kind of use.
3. To improve the listening environment, the
following rules are helpful.
When speaking to the class:

• Gain the child’s attention before giving

directions.
• Speak slowly and clearly, but do not over
exaggerate speech.
• Use simple, brief directions.
• Give directions in a logical, time-ordered
sequence. Use words that make the sequence
clear, such as first, next, finally.
• Use visual aids and write instructions to
supplement spoken information.
• Emphasize key words when speaking or writing,
especially when presenting new information.
Preliminary instructions with emphasis on the
main ideas to be presented may be effective.
• Use gestures that clarify information.
• Vary loudness to increase attention.
• Check comprehension by asking the child
questions or asking for a brief summary after key
ideas have been presented.
• Paraphrase instructions and information to
shorter and simpler sentences rather than just
repeating them.
• Encourage the child to ask questions for further
clarification
• Make instructional transitions clear.
• Review previously learned material.
• Recognize periods of fatigue and give breaks
as necessary.
• Avoid showing frustrations when the child
misunderstands a message.
• Avoid asking the child to listen and write
at the same time. For children with
severe central auditory processing
problem, ask a buddy to take notes, or
ask the teacher to provide notes. Tape
recording classes is another effective
strategy.
 THANK
YOU FOR
LISTENING!
!!