Speech, Language & Audiology Department

The role of therapy within our remedial environment is supportive but collaborative within the multidisciplinary team. Intervention addresses the skills required for academic progress. Current practice includes assessment and treatment within the broad areas of vocabulary development, comprehension, language and linguistically based auditory perceptual skills, individually, in small groups and in the classrooms setting as determined by the individual needs of the learner. Hearing Impaired learners who use spoken language are also part of the caseload.

A “Story Grammar” approach is used in classrooms with the aim of extending vocabulary skills based on the classroom theme. In addition, therapy for Central Auditory Perceptual Disorders is provided using resources which include computer programmes. A high percentage of classrooms are equipped with FM systems which are important in improving the signal to noise ratio in the classrooms. These benefit learners with fluctuating hearing loss, processing difficulties, concentration difficulties, children with differing home languages and younger learners with developing language skills.

Therapy follows a traditional method in the individual and small group setting. However, classroom therapy addresses language and auditory perceptual areas and educators are present to reinforce the aims in daily classroom activities. The benefit of this is the integration of knowledge and skills into the environment where academic progress is regularly monitored using curriculum and criterion referenced tests. Therapists are able to observe how learners transfer their skills into a classroom setting and provide them with strategies for their pervasive difficulties. Therapy is supported by a home programme, with parental involvement encouraged.