Many people think of speech therapists as a profession that only specializes in teaching the precise production of speech sounds in words, phrases, sentences, and conversations. While articulation therapy is one aspect of speech therapy, they are not the only duties and responsibilities of a speech therapist in a nutshell.
First things first, the correct terminology is speech-language pathologist, established by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. However, speech-language therapist and speech therapist are used interchangeably. Perhaps it is easier to say the last of the two than the first title.
Many people do not see or understand the importance of articulation therapy. Learning to hear and produce individual sound-phonemes are vital ingredients for good phonological skills, and these skills are very important for learning to read. Phonemic awareness and phonological skills are essential tools in literacy and language. The smallest unit of a word, which is a sound, changes the meaning of the word. If a child doesn’t hear or can’t hear or say sounds correctly, she may have a hard time with her academic skills. The child may have difficulty learning to spell and make sounds to make a word. In this case, the articulation may be justified to help the child strengthen the skills necessary for emergent literacy or to master literacy skills. Therefore, articulation therapy is invaluable for a beginning reader who may have difficulty producing sounds in words. Furthermore, articulation therapy is not only intended to help improve a child’s speech skills so that she can effectively express her ‘needs’, ‘wants’ and ‘ideas’ within her environment. Articulation therapy/speech therapy can help children with all aspects of human communication, as it can improve children’s cognitive ability, making them more aware of various components of language, in addition to spelling, reading, and writing.
Most speech therapists aim to improve developmentally age appropriate sounds with an error of at least 90% accuracy. We know that no one speaks perfectly (a goal set at 100% accuracy would be ridiculous), but perfect practice helps get you closer and that’s why we aim for 90% accuracy. A speech therapist can help children maximize their communication skills in order to communicate effectively within their environment. The creator of the universe created us in his image and likeness and if he is perfect, we should aspire to be near perfect in everything we do.
Chances are someone will tell you that your child is in speech therapy. The child is receiving more than speech rehabilitation services. The child may be in therapy for one of the following problems: apraxia of speech (incoordination of the musculature of speech), fluency disorder/stuttering/chattering, voice disorder, ADHD/ADD, dysphagia (difficulty swallowing), etc The above problems and disorders can have an adverse effect on a child’s articulation performance.
When should you worry about your child’s articulation skills? According to Charles Van Riper and Robert L. Erickson, you should be concerned when “speech is affected and deviates so much from other people’s speech that it (1) draws attention to itself, (2) interferes with communication, or (3) causes anguish in the speaker or in the listener”. (Charles Van Riper and Robert L. Erickson, 1996).
Speech therapy is more than sounds in words!
