1 of 5 The National Strategies Asset 1.6 What are speech, language and needs? a) Summary of key points Taken from the Primary and Secondary Inclusion Development Programme (IDP): Dyslexia and speech, language and needs (SLCN) DCSF (2008), section What is SLCN? Definition: Children and young people with SLCN experience varying degrees of regular in. Difficulties can be experienced with: speech clarity and fluency of speech expressive language vocabulary and combining words to make sentences and longer sequences of language receptive language words, sentences, narratives, etc. functional and social use of language using language and verbal and non-verbal rules of. Numbers Around 5 7% of children have a specific language impairment. In some parts of the country as many as 40 50% of children have problems with speech, language and that could be addressed through a strong universal offer and through a language-rich environment. Self-esteem Older children with SLCN may perceive themselves more negatively than children with typical language development, while this low self-esteem is not so apparent in younger children. Impact of speech, language and on learning Pupils may have with literacy; decoding and segmenting words for reading and spelling, comprehension of reading Pupils may have difficulty with vocabulary to access the curriculum, such as concept language for Pupils may have difficulty with higher-order language skills, such as predicting an outcome in science Pupils may have difficulty with developing learning through conversations with peers Social interaction Pupils may have with of reciprocity and awareness of the motives, thoughts and feelings of others Some have withdrawn social interaction styles, others display significant behaviour Emotional development and behaviour There may be behaviour seen in reaction to situations that could be easily resolved through language Behaviour can be seen as the difficulty and underlying language can be missed completely
2 of 5 The National Strategies Links between SLCN and emotional and behavioural problems can increase with age b) Evidence on the impact of speech, language and needs (Taken from the Primary and Secondary Inclusion Development Programme (IDP): Dyslexia and speech, language and needs (SLCN) section Library ) Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists 2007 Speech, language and needs are the most common disability presenting in early childhood 1. It is estimated that approximately 6 8% of children aged 0 11 have speech, language and needs 2. A study investigating four-year-olds in areas of deprivation found the prevalence of speech, language and needs was as high as 55% 3. The gender ratio for speech and language impairments is approximately 2.8 males to every female 4. There are around 4:1 males to females with autistic spectrum disorders 5. The association between speech and language disorders and behaviour is well established 6. Difficulties in make children very vulnerable in relation to education 7. Up to one third of children with diagnosed problems will develop mental illness if untreated 8. Evidence relating to the criminal justice system includes: At Polmont Young Offenders Institute 26% of young men in have clinically significant impairment and 70% of young offenders have problems with poor literacy and numeracy (Scottish Prison Service, 2003). A 2004 study surveyed 10% of young offenders in one institution on a variety of measures and found that: o 43% of participants scored at a level significantly lower than the limits acceptable for their age on the Boston Naming Test o 73% scored significantly below the acceptable limits on grammatical competency o 23% scored significantly below the acceptable limits on language comprehension o 47% of participants received more than one rating of moderate impairment on picture description. It confirmed that high levels of speech, language and are present in the young offender population 9. 1 Law, J. (Ed), (1992) The Early Identification of Language Impairment in Children, Chapman and Hall 2 Law J., Boyle J., Harris F., Harkness A., Nye C. (1998) Screening for speech and language delay: a systematic review of the literature, Health Technology Assessment 3 Locke, A., Ginsbourg, J. and Peers, I. (2002) Development and Disadvantage: implications for the early years and beyond, International Journal of Language and Communication Disorders, 2002:37 pp. 3 15 4 Robinson, R. J. (1987) The causes of language disorder: introduction and overview, Proceedings of the First International Symposium on Specific Speech and Language Disorders in Children, Aphasic 5 Gillberg, G. (2002) The Epidemiology of autism: NAS International Conference Proceedings 6 Humber, E. and Snow, P. C. (2001) The language processing and production skills of juvenile offenders: A pilot investigation. Psychiatry, Psychology and Law 8, 1 11 7 Hooper, S. J. et al. (2003) Core language predictors of behavioural functioning in early elementary school children: Concurrent and longitudinal findings in Behavioural Disorders, 2003:29 (1) pp. 10 21 8 Clegg, J. Hollis, C. and Rutter, M. (November 1999) Life Sentence, RCSLT Bulletin 9 Bryan K., Freer J. and Furlong J. (2004) Speech and language therapy provision for young people in prison, Third project report
3 of 5 The National Strategies c) Identification of pupils with SLCN: primary Taken from the Primary and Secondary Inclusion Development Programme (IDP): Dyslexia and speech, language and needs (SLCN) DCSF (2008) Speech Expressive Speaking Listening Literacy Mathematics Social Behaviour Organisational Speech difficult to understand though people may get tuned in Difficulties speaking in sentences and getting message across to others with fine-tune listening, e.g. discriminating between speech sounds May struggle to listen effectively, especially in group activities where they feel they cannot play an active role some children opt out with decoding and segmenting for reading and spelling Will have formulating sentences Any with oral language are likely to be reflected in written language No specific associated with May struggle with labelling elements of, e.g. remembering shape names May not have language for concepts, e.g. more than, less than socialising due to problems with being understood Social interaction compromised Will struggle to negotiate roles and clarify s Don t have the language to engage fully in imaginative play situations Other children sometimes give up Do not have the necessary language to organise play activities, e.g. let s pretend you are x and I am y and Might struggle to organise self for activities, or get equipment if there is a need to ask for it home school
4 of 5 The National Strategies Understanding Often expressive skills are restricted with poor Often poor listening and concentration with languagerich activities will switch off All levels of literacy can be affected Some may have reasonable phonic skills, though with reading comprehension concepts, e.g. addition, subtraction interpreting language-rich problems, though may have technical knowledge to do the sum No specific with the technical aspects of, though may struggle with some of the problem-solving aspects play situations that demand of language Difficulties rules of games Problems socialising and interacting with peers due to lack of Can have organisational, e.g. remembering information, letters for home, and instructions for homework, knowing what is expected and coping with changes in routine Social Can speak clearly, though can be difficult to understand because of the way in which they use language Can be poor at listening, especially when on own agenda Really struggles to listen effectively at times, even on a one-to-one basis organising longer narratives a tendency to attend to detail rather than the bigger picture Stories may be around areas of interest only Huge with social interaction Pupils can become isolated They don t know how to join in and maintain conversations Often do not see the point of view of others Often like routine and this helps to be organised Might not like changes to routine Still may struggle to organise themselves for complex tasks
5 of 5 The National Strategies d) Identification of pupils with SLCN: secondary Young person s name: Completed by: Date: Speech Speaks too quickly (words run into each other) Not easily understood Says the same word differently at different times Stammers, e.g. hesitates, repeats sounds/words, and gets stuck Expressive language Limited vocabulary which could lead to excessive swearing Finds it hard to express emotions verbally Fluent clear speech which doesn t seem to mean much Trouble learning new words, e.g. names of people and objects Failure to provide significant information to listeners Uses made-up words which are almost appropriate, e.g. window worker man Problems with prepositions (e.g. on, under, over, behind, etc.) or tenses May take a long time to organise words into a sentence Misses out words or puts them in the wrong order Problems giving specific answers or explanations Difficulties joining sentences with and, because so, etc. or by using one of these words too much Has problems sequencing events and ideas appropriately Cannot retell a simple story Understanding language Difficulties following long or complex instructions Better in a one-to-one situation than in a group Watches and copies others when instructions are given Unable to remember and recount last week s episode of a soap on TV Tends to take things literally Inappropriate response to abstract language, e.g. keep your hair on Repeats what you say rather than responding appropriately Problems implied meaning (e.g. I wouldn't take my shoes off now, meaning Don t take your shoes off ) Slow to learn new routines Using language with others Interrupts inappropriately Avoids situations which require words Unable to vary language with the situation Attracts attention in inappropriate ways or without words In conversation, moves from topic to topic for no obvious reason or finds it difficult to change the subject Has problems taking turns in conversation Does not ask questions or start a conversation Does not say if cannot understand