Speech Pathologists
Provides diagnostic assessment and management of disorders of communication and swallowing through direct intervention, education, consultancy, advocacy, or a combination of these approaches across the lifespan.
A clinic morning and a school visit
You are a speech pathologist who sees children at a clinic in the morning and visits a primary school in the afternoon. It is 8:45am. You have back-to-back sessions before lunch, a school visit after, and an email from the clinic manager that you have not had time to read.
Choose what you would do. Then see what happens. There are often good reasons for each choice.
We speak Vietnamese at home, and my daughter's teacher says that she is behind in English. Should we stop speaking Vietnamese at home so she can catch up? Please tell me what to do.
Say that learning two languages can slow children down, so English-only at home is the safer choice
She switches to English at home, and her daughter loses time with her grandparents in their shared language. The change causes stress and does not solve the difficulty.
Explain that being bilingual is not the cause and show her how to build both languages
Mrs Nguyen is visibly relieved. You show her ways to play and read in both languages. Her daughter's English builds on what she already knows.
Say it is a personal choice and you cannot advise on language use at home
She leaves unsure, because she asked for your opinion. A professional who stays silent on a question like this may be passing on a worse answer from someone else.
One of your students, Jarrah, keeps getting his words stuck, and the other kids laugh. I want to help but I don't know how. Can you give me a quick fix I can use in class?
Give him a list of tips and tell him to try them all
He tries three on the same day and none stick. A long list can feel like a to-do list, and he stops looking at it by the end of the week.
Suggest two simple things to try in class this week, and agree on a time to check back in
He tries both and reports back. One helps, and you change the other. A small start with a check-in can be better than a long plan.
Ask what he has noticed, suggest one or two things and offer to talk with the class
He realises that the laughing is the biggest issue. A short talk with the class changes the room, and Jarrah speaks up more in the following weeks.
A family has just rung in tears. Their son has been on the waiting list for months and they are desperate. Can you take on one more child this term, even though your list is full?
Say you will fit him in, then squeeze extra time out of your lunch breaks and evenings
You manage for three weeks, then you are tired and your sessions begin to suffer. Every child gets a little less of you, including the new one.
Say you cannot because your list is full and others are waiting
Your answer is fair, but the family receives only a no. Fatima asks you to help think of anything else, and you realise you did not offer an alternative.
Explain what you can safely take on, and suggest a short group session while he waits
Fatima agrees. The family starts with a group session and some home activities, and gets a place for individual sessions as soon as one opens up.
How it went
When the clinic closes, you have a stack of notes and a few children you cannot stop thinking about. Speech pathology is play, science and patience in equal parts, and it means working with whole families and classrooms. Could you wait calmly for a child to find their voice?
This is a simplified, fictional situation to help you explore. It is not professional instruction or a test of your ability.
Case study: The little boy and the toy trucks
A fictional case set in a children's therapy clinic, with weekly visits to a primary school.
The situation
Nomvula was a speech pathologist at a children's therapy clinic. Eli, four years old, had barely said a word in the waiting room or in his first two sessions. His parents were worried, and his mother cried a little as she explained that nursery staff had said he was far behind. Nomvula had prepared flashcards of animals and foods, and Eli ignored every one. He sat in the corner holding a toy truck and refusing to look at her.
What they did
Nomvula put the flashcards away. She noticed that Eli held the truck close, and sat on the floor with a few trucks of her own. She said very little, and when she spoke, she used simple, repeated words like go, stop, crash. She did not ask him to say anything. After ten minutes, Eli pushed his truck to hers. Over the next weeks she kept building the sessions around what he enjoyed, and taught his parents to do the same at home with a few words at a time.
How it turned out
By the sixth session Eli said go when pushing his truck, then stop, then truck. It was not a miracle, and it was a long way from where his nursery wanted him to be, but his parents were thrilled. Nomvula said that waiting for a child to want to talk to you is not wasted time.
What would you do?
- Why do you think the flashcards did not work with Eli?
- What did Nomvula learn by being quiet?
- How could parents help a child's speech in everyday moments?