Language and Literacy in Young People
Associate Professor Suze Leitão
This week, we set the scene for many upcoming conversations from researchers in the area of language and literacy.
We took a broad view of what Language and Literacy in Young People is, what research is currently being conducted and where we can look to for the most up to date research in the area.
There are several strands of research that we discussed which include intervention, theory and assessment, justice and mental health. All of this research along with resources from the team are freely available at https://www.languageandliteracyinyoungpeople.com/
A common question I often get from friends and colleagues is in the absence of any formal diagnosis, when should a child be referred to a speech pathologist?
I learnt that a key concept is that if a parent or significant person in a child’s life has concerns, then it is wise to seek an assessment. Far too often, parents are told ‘they will grow out of it.’ We discussed some of the work by this research team is access to and maintenance of access to services.
One of their projects is called “Finding the way to services: families' use of advice and publicly available information in navigating access to early intervention services." With more than one in five children in Western Australia (WA) considered developmentally vulnerable at school-entry, it is well-established that intervening early is essential to supporting lifelong developmental trajectories.
However, research globally has identified significant delays across the stages of noticing, sharing concerns, and accessing services for children with developmental delays. As we discussed in the podcast, you can be part of this study through the following links:
https://curtin.au1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_1IcFxhLPPfU8up0 and through Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Finding-the-Way-to-Services/100082601830008/
Another resource Suze discussed was the website for families who are waiting for speech pathology: https://wnswlhd.health.nsw.gov.au/our-services/speech-pathology/
Finally, another resource Suze discussed was the book for parents and professionals to help them sort out snake oil from evidence based practice. This book is called Making Sense of Interventions for Children with Developmental Disorders: A guide for parents and professionals, by Caroline Bowen and Pamela Snow Croydon: J&R Press, 2017, 406pp., ISBN: 978-1-907826-32-0
https://www.jr-press.co.uk/making-sense-of-interventions-for-childrens-developmental-disorders.html
Stay tuned for a deeper dive into some of the areas we discussed in this podcast with Suze.
