Efforts to implement high-quality communication instruction for students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and complex communication needs (CCN) may be difficult for some educators with limited time and resources. In this article, we offer guidance on implementing several economic strategies that can be easily embedded into existing classroom…

Young children develop the skills necessary for communication in infancy. Interactions with family members and other caregivers nurture and support those skills. Spoken (expressive) language progresses rapidly after a child's first word. A typical 2-year-old has an expressive vocabulary of approximately 150-300 words. Around this time, as they…

Background: Globally, there is an increased prevalence of preschool and school-age children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorders. Current reports show that about one in every 110 children fall within this category of disorders. Consequently, the successful inclusion of these children in both regular and special education classes is becoming a…

Essentially, the goal of the P-16 educational process is to teach students to become self-determined adults. Unfortunately, educational systems sometimes fail in addressing these factors and in educating students with various disabilities in the area of self-determination. In this article, the authors present the major findings that emerged from…

Background: Many speech and language therapists (SLTs) in the UK work with speech and language therapy assistants, and the numbers of SLT assistants is expected to grow. There has been very little empirical investigation of how SLTs feel about this situation or the effect on working practices of working indirectly. Aims: To investigate SLTs'…

This article proposes a synergistic, interactive model of cluttering, a fluency disorder manifested in rapid or erratic speech rates, reduced intelligibility, and language deviations. Clinical strategies are presented in a framework of several working assumptions about cluttering. Despite encouraging reports, further research into the nature and…

Several factors have been shown to influence inclusion of children with special educational needs. This paper reports on findings from a questionnaire investigating training, specialist knowledge, confidence, attitudes and beliefs of the Reception class, Year 1, and Year 2 teachers of a cohort of children with a preschool diagnosis of moderate or…

Guidelines for teachers of a student with a cleft palate include understand the physical problem; know what kind of speech problem to expect; be alert to the possibility of language-based learning difficulties; watch for signs of hearing loss; be alert to socialization problems; help the student make up work; and avoid self-fulfilling prophecies.…

Teaching techniques that enhance the functional communication skills of children in primary-level classes are presented. The techniques focus on articulation, receptive and expressive language, and auditory processing. The role of the teacher as a communication model is noted. (JDD)

Many young children have speech or language disorders or delays that require the coordinated services of a preschool intervention team. Young children with delayed talking skills benefit when their parents and their preschool teachers collaborate to include assistive technology in home and preschool routines. Assistive technology for communication…

This commentary reviews the articles in this special issue focusing on treatment of preschool and school-aged students with fluency disorders. The commentary addresses therapy and counseling models, the importance of attending to attitudes among children and parents, service delivery models for school programs, transfer of training, and recent…

Reviews arguments against including content-rich art activities within the special education curriculum. Provides counterarguments for including such activities and reports on the work of a speech pathologist who used art activities. Discusses approaches and strategies for teaching children with behavior problems. (CFR)

This column about federal government actions impacting school services for students with communication disorders examines concerns related to billing by schools providing Medicaid services, summarizes federal Medicaid regulations, and discusses ethical considerations and suggested actions for speech-language pathologists and audiologists. The…