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Speech Pathology Resources |
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A resource for Speech Pathologists |
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Think Bilingual - Introduction
We, Tasneem Abdul Samad, Emily Batterham, Lauren Caldwell, Stephanie Fornaro, Sana Mahkri & Justina Su, are a group of 4th year Bachelor of Speech Pathology students at La Trobe University, Bundoora. We developed this resource package as part of our final year pass degree project, under the supervision of Gillian Steel.
Aim of our project:
The aim of our project is to provide Speech Pathologists with a complete resource package about bilingualism in preschoolers. Our resource consists of a comprehensive review of the literature as well as information and resources for parents, kindergarten teachers, health professionals and interpreters. These are based on research data and results from a survey we conducted, which assessed the need for resources within the field of bilingualism.
The need for this resource:
We created this resource package because there is a great need for bilingual information and resources within the Speech Pathology profession. Due to Australia being a multicultural society, we as Speech Pathologists are highly likely to encounter bilingual children in our clinical practice. According to the Australian census 2006, nearly 18% of Victorian children ages 0 to 4 years old speak another language other than English at home. Approximately half of these children do not speak English or lack proficiency. Despite these significant figures, the literature addressing communication disorders in bilingual children is limited, with varied consensus within the data. This could cause misconceptions amongst Speech Pathologists regarding normal communicative development, as well as best practice assessment, therapy and recommendations for bilingual children with language, speech or fluency disorders. Our resource endeavours to clarify these misconceptions.
How our resource can be used:
The literature review can be used by Speech Pathologists to gain an understanding of the different approaches used to assess and treat bilingual children, along with information regarding best practice within the field.
A variety of brochures and factsheets can be accessed by Speech Pathologists to be used within the clinical setting. These resources can also be distributed to families and professionals involved with young bilingual children.
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