Presentations at American Speech-Language-Hearing Association Convention in New Orleans

At the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association Convention in New Orleans, LA I am presenting two invited sessions and am co-author on a technical session: 

MC06: Building Research to Close the Science-Practice Gap in Communication Sciences and Disorders: A Global Perspective - Holly Storkel, Sharynne McLeod, Pamela Enderby, Danielle Glista

Location: CC/R7 Date: Thursday, Nov 17 1:00 PM Duration: 2 hours Format: 2-Hour Master Class (In-Person) Code: MC06 PDH(s): 2 Hrs

This session is developed by, and presenters invited by the ASHFoundation. This master class is FREE and not ticketed, and will focus on a global perspective to improve evidence-based practices in Communication Sciences and Disorders through research. A panel of international scholars will share their ideas about closing the science-practice gap. Panel members will present the state of evidence-based practice in their countries and discuss the need for research that addresses closing the science-practice gap. They will share challenges and solutions they have encountered in building this research capacity. Further, in light of the current global health crisis, panel members will consider how research efforts in this area might change in the future. The session will include an opportunity for discussion among panel members and the audience to problem solve the state of the art in CSD. This inaugural international symposium is supported by the American-Speech-Language-Hearing Foundation through its endowed Max D. and Ruth Steer Fund. 

Lesley Olswang, Pam Enderby, Sharynne McLeod

1469L: Children's Speech Development: An Update - Sharynne McLeod

Location: CC/275-277 Date: Friday, Nov 18 1:15 PM Duration: 1 hour Format: 1-Hour Seminar (In-Person) Code: 1469L PDH(s): 1 Hr

This session is developed by, and presenters invited by, Speech Sound Disorders and Motor Speech Disorder in Children, to provide an update of research evidence related to children’s speech development. Typical development of General American English will be compared with typical development of other English dialects and languages. SLPs will be guided to consider perspectives relating to “correct” production and to implement knowledge of typical speech development in assessment and intervention for children with speech sound disorders.

Kate Crowe, Lisa Furlong, Sharynne McLeod

4638L: Addressing Tension in the Eligibility Process: Findings from Focus Group Discussions - Marie Ireland, Sarah Verdon, Sharynne McLeod

Location: CC/342 Date: Friday, Nov 18 11:00 AM Duration: 30 minutes Format: Technical Research (Live) Code: 4638L PDH(s): 30 Minutes

In order for students to receive SLP services in U.S. schools, they must be found eligible. Three focus groups of school-based SLPs discussed the complex nature of evaluation practices and decision making in schools. Qualitative analysis using the Cultural Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) framework revealed nine tensions: SLPs’ concerns regarding eligibility decision outcomes; Concerns about evaluation data used for decision making; Documentation of educational impact; Complexities of students learning English as an additional language; Overuse of SLI for students who do not qualify; Parents’ intervention in decision making; Rule bending by administration; Disagreement between team members; Need for greater SLP empowerment and advocacy. SLPs and leaders may use the CHAT framework to reduce obstacles and as a catalyst for change.

Sharynne McLeod and Marie Ireland

 

Children’s English consonant acquisition in the United States: A review

The following manuscript has been accepted for publication.
Crowe, K. & McLeod, S. (2020, in press May). Children’s English consonant acquisition in the United States: A review. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology. 

It accompanies this manuscript (that won the AJSLP editor's award)
McLeod, S. & Crowe, K. (2018). Children’s consonant acquisition in 27 languages: A cross-linguistic review. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 27(4), 1546-1571. doi:10.1044/2018_AJSLP-17-0100

Here is the abstract

Purpose: Speech-language pathologists’ (SLPs) clinical decision-making and consideration of eligibility for services relies on quality evidence, including information about consonant acquisition (developmental norms). The purpose of this review is to describe the typical age and pattern of acquisition of English consonants by children in the United States.  
Method: Data were identified from published journal articles and assessments reporting English consonant acquisition by typically developing children living in the United States. Sources were identified through searching 11 electronic databases, review articles, and the Buros database, and contacting experts. Data describing studies, participants, methodology, and age of consonant acquisition were extracted.
Results: Fifteen studies (six articles and nine assessments) were included, reporting consonant acquisition of 18,907 children acquiring English in the United States. These cross-sectional studies primarily used single-word elicitation. Most consonants were acquired by 5;0 years. The consonants /b, n, m, p, h, w, d/ were acquired by 2;0-2;11 (years;months); /ɡ, k, f, t, ŋ, j/ by 3;0-3;11; /v, ʤ, s, ʧ, l, ʃ, z/ by 4;0-4;11; /ɹ, ð, ʒ/ by 5;0-5;11; and /θ/ by 6;0-6;11 years (ordered by mean age of acquisition, 90% criterion). Variation was evident across studies resulting from different assessments, criteria, and cohorts of children.
Conclusions: These findings echo the cross-linguistic findings of McLeod and Crowe (2018) across 27 languages that children had acquired most consonants by 5;0 years. On average all plosives, nasals, and glides were acquired by 3;11, all affricates by 4;11, all liquids by 5;11 and all fricatives by 6;11 (90% criterion). As SLPs apply this information to clinical decision-making and eligibility decisions, synthesis of knowledge from multiple sources is recommended.

Impact! Apparently we "broke the internet" with our speech acquisition paper

Recently I was shown a blog post documenting the impact of the publication of McLeod and Crowe (2018) after the distribution of our speech sound infographics at the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association convention.

Here is the blog post talking about the impact of our work: "That one time a journal article on speech sounds broke the SLP internet"
https://www.theinformedslp.com/how-to/that-one-time-a-journal-article-on-speech-sound-norms-broke-the-slp-internet

Here is my blog post about our original journal article (McLeod & Crowe, 2018) with all of our relevant links: https://speakingmylanguages.blogspot.com/2018/11/childrens-consonant-acquisition.html

I had heard that our paper and infographics had been of interest to SLPs - particularly in the US - but hadn't realised the extent of discussion about it. I am pleased that its legacy has been to promote extensive discussion about how to identify children for intervention. Kate and I have been invited to discuss our work at the 2019 American Speech-Language-Hearing Association convention, so this should be fun.

Here are some other blog posts about our journal article:

• https://www.banterspeech.com.au/important-update-in-what-order-and-at-what-age-should-my-child-learn-to-say-his-her-consonants-faqs/ 
• https://www.slptoolkit.com/blog/we-have-been-interpreting-the-articulation-norms-all-wrong/

Studying typical Vietnamese speech acquisition in over 1000 children

Dr Ly Kha Nguyen is a phonetics and linguistics lecturer at Phạm Ngọc Thạch University and at the HCMC University of Education and Training. She has undertaken a study of typical Vietnamese speech acquisition in over 1000 children in Ho Chi Minh City and surrounding areas. She has invited Ms Xuan and myself to work with her to analyse the data and work towards publishing the data in an English journal. We had many discussions about her research plans in 2011 - so it is extremely exciting to see that the data have now been collected and the first phase of analysis has been undertaken. On Thursday we spent four hours together discussing the data and writing the first draft of the article. With Ms Xuan's excellent interpreting skills it did not seem that Dr Ly Kha and I spoke different languages - and we were so engrossed in our conversation that we missed lunch! (Each day at the university there is a 2 hour lunch break from 11:30-1:30 where the students eat, then lay out their silk cloth on the ground and have a sleep. Typically that is when English-speaking staff have lunch and meetings). We have planned to keep working on the paper together next week. This paper will form a useful first step for working with children with speech sound disorders in Vietnam. These data will provide a preliminary benchmark for decision-making regarding children’s need for speech-language pathology services and for planning appropriate intervention goals.

Ms Xuan, Dr Ly Kha, and Sharynne