Child and young person development 4

The importance of early identification of speech, language and communication delays and disorders and the potential risks of late recognition

A delay in communication skills has a negative influence on a child’s social and cognitive development therefore early intervention in this area is key.

As far as the social aspect is concerned, a speech or language disorder can lead to frustration, behaviour problems and have a negative influence on relationships. Children tend to be rather selfish and impatient with those who they do not understand or those who do not understand what they say. A child with communication problems can easily find him/herself to be excluded from games whose rules he/she cannot grasp or left out of general playground conversations. Teaching staff have to make the classmates aware of the communication problem of their peer and prompt them to interact with this child regardless of the difficulties. Furthermore a speech difficulty can make them introverted and shy, so they will not even initiate social interactions if they are not encouraged by a teacher or their peers.

As regarding the cognitive side, communication is crucial to learning because it is the channel of the new information handed over by the teacher. Not to mention the fact that a difficulty with speech and language affects the way one organise their thoughts, develop abstract thinking and express themselves. Maybe they cannot follow what the teacher is talking about in the lesson, have reading difficulties because they do not understand the worlds or have a delay in their writing skills since it is very difficult for them to organise their thoughts into sentences. If an early intervention to communication delays is missed, the child will lack the essential foundations in brain development for further studies.

Co-operation of multi-agency teams to support speech, language and communication

A child’s language difficulties may stem from different sources. Therefore a range of specialised professionals are available to support children with various language development delays. In most cases the school’s SENCO should be prepared to advise and support the class teacher in working with these pupils or find appropriate help from external agencies.

Autistic children often have problems with expressing themselves or understanding the world around them because of their condition. An Autism Advisory Teacher is trained in dealing with autistic pupils and in supporting them to improve their communication skills.

If a child is suffering from a speech disorder that prevents them from properly pronouncing words or building up sentences, a Speech and Language Therapist is able to support them in learning the proper techniques of sound production and in overcoming their difficulties. These problems may arise because English is not the child’s and their family’s first language. In this case visual aids and a clear sample of pronunciation from the teacher can be enough for the pupil to learn the new words and enrich their knowledge of the language.

An Educational Psychologists uses psychological tests and assessment to find out if a language delay is a result of psychological or emotional problems or medical conditions. In the first case the pupil needs therapy in order to overcome the communication difficulties. If these problems are a result of a medical condition, i.e. a problem in the connection between brain neurons and speech skills, the child may need hospital treatment or medication to help them.

If the cause of speech disorder is the child’s deafness or hearing difficulties, visual aids may be as helpful as in case of a foreign child. In addition Sensory Support Teachers are available to support those children whose communication is delayed due to hearing problems.

How can play and activities be used to support the development of speech, language and communication?

A teacher or teaching assistant can promote effective communication through the way they communicate with children and through encouraging them to communicate with each other. Different classroom activities involving communication or playground games (whether teacher or child initiated) can support the improvement of these skills.

Communication involves physical aspects, e.g. pointing and gestures that make understanding easier for those pupils who for different reasons (e.g. hearing problem, English as a second language) do not fully understand the words or sentences used.

In my opinion, language skills can be developed best by social activities and interactions. Body language help us understand the real meaning of what a person says if we can read these prompts accurately. It is useful for children to learn to read these signs early as it is not only useful in supporting their development of communication, but will be a helpful source of clue in their adult life as well. Playing a board game together is a fun activity but also teaches important lessons to the pupils about the rules of taking turns and talking only when it is your time. They also have to read, understand and follow the rules, and this knowledge will spread to other aspects of their lives too.

Communication activities that can easily be integrated into the lesson will support the pupils’ intellectual development as well. Reading a story together or listening to the teacher telling or reading it out support their skills to listen and pay attention. We can challenge their memory and self-expression after this by asking them to retell the story. Listening to, learning and singing song has a similar effect, also including musical skills and hearing.

Play activities, e.g. role plays help children in their cognitive and social development, support them in getting a better understanding of the world around them and have a positive effect on their communication skills. However, teaching staff have to monitor pupil behaviour during free play to make sure that everyone benefits from the activity. Popular children usually have good social skills, easily join activities, share toys and accept the rules. Unpopular children, conversely, may be disruptive in the game, aggressive to peers, and want to take over control. The reason for this is that they often wrongly interpret social prompts, therefore it is the teacher’s task to help these pupils integrate into the game and the community of peers and develop socially through these activities. If everyone can participate equally, a role play can help children to develop social, communication and cognitive skills. For example, when acting out shopping in a supermarket from a pre-written shopping list, children practise Maths when counting out the three apples and five bananas that they need to buy. Also during role play they are not bound by fear of getting an answer wrong like in a regular classroom situation. Knowledge acquired this way will also stick with them more effectively because they are more motivated and enthusiastic about this kind of activity than doing exercise sheets. Interaction during the role play is especially beneficial for shy and introverted students as these activities can reduce their fear of communication and teach them why social interactions are important in our lives. (How does roleplaying…, n.d.)

Reference list

How does role playing help my child? N.d., KalliKids, accessed 20/10/2013, <http://www.kallikids.com/en/KalliKids/For-families/learning-articles/Specific-Areas-Of-Learning/Role-playing-and-child-learning.cfm>