SPCHSCI 722 : Speech, Language and Communication Needs in Children 1

Science

2024 Semester Two (1245) (15 POINTS)

Course Prescription

The nature of speech, language and communication needs in children is introduced by focusing on pre-verbal and very early communication, the development of speech, language and communication through preschool and primary school ages, and adolescence. Topics will include developmental language disorders and phonological disorders in children as well as contextual approaches to assessment and intervention, incorporating clinical decision-making, cultural and linguistic diversity and evidence-based practices.

Course Overview

This course provides fundamental insights into managing speech, language, and communication needs in children. It is important to note that stuttering and voice disorders are not part of the course content.

Speech, language, and communication needs in children represent a substantial proportion of the caseload within the field of speech-language therapy in Aotearoa New Zealand. SPCHSCI 722 serves as an introductory exploration of these domains and your learning in this field will continue throughout your entire professional career.

SPCHSCI 722 will cover speech, language and communication needs in children from the early verbal stage through primary school stages. Pre-verbal and adolescent stages are covered elsewhere in the MSLT(Prac). 

This course builds on the knowledge and skills you gained in SPCHSCI 711. Your understanding of the breadth of human communication and your emerging skills in how to analyse these are both foundational to SPCHSCI 722. Your grasp of phonetics and phonology from SPCHSCI 712, as well as other aspects of linguistics, will also be important. 

The course integrates Te Reo Māori and tikanga Māori as part of our commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi. The course will have you investigate the evidence base for interventions in children with speech, language and communication needs.  


Course Requirements

Prerequisite: SPCHSCI 711

Capabilities Developed in this Course

Capability 1: People and Place
Capability 2: Sustainability
Capability 3: Knowledge and Practice
Capability 4: Critical Thinking
Capability 5: Solution Seeking
Capability 6: Communication
Capability 7: Collaboration
Capability 8: Ethics and Professionalism

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course, students will be able to:
  1. Explain the nature of speech, language, and communication needs in children. (Capability 1, 3, 6 and 8)
  2. Apply the principles and practices of assessment of speech and language in children. (Capability 1, 3, 4, 5 and 8)
  3. Analyse and interpret a range of data on a child's speech, language, and communication needs, in the context of their environment. (Capability 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 8)
  4. Plan and prepare intervention approaches for speech, language, and communication needs in preschool and primary school-aged children. (Capability 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8)
  5. Consistently demonstrate and reflect upon cultural responsiveness and te Tiriti o Waitangi in all areas of child speech, language and communication knowledge and practice. (Capability 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 8)

Assessments

Assessment Type Percentage Classification
Assignment 35% Individual Coursework
Class test 15% Individual Test
Final Exam 50% Individual Examination
Assessment Type Learning Outcome Addressed
1 2 3 4 5
Assignment
Class test
Final Exam

Tuākana

Tuākana Science is a multi-faceted programme for Māori and Pacific students providing topic specific tutorials, one-on-one sessions, test and exam preparation and more. Explore your options at
https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/science/study-with-us/pacific-in-our-faculty.html
https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/science/study-with-us/maori-in-our-faculty.html

This course is supported by the Tuākana in Science Programme, which facilitates the success and wellbeing of our Māori and Pacific students. All Speech Science courses follow the foundation of the Tuākana Programme. That is the tuākana-teina principle of an integral relationship in which older or more expert tuākana (traditionally brother, sister or cousin) guides a younger or less expert teina (traditionally younger sibling or cousin). This is a reciprocal relationship which fosters safe learning and teaching environments. Read more here: https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/science/study-with-us/maori-and-pacific-at-the-faculty/tuakana-programme.html

Special Requirements

Students are required to attend all lectures and tutorials for this accredited course.

Workload Expectations

This course is a 15-point course and students are expected to spend 15-20 hours per week involved in work for it. 

For this course you can expect 3-5 hours of kanohi ki te kanohi classes, 3-5 hours of reading and thinking about the content and 3-5 hours of work on assignments and/or assessment preparation each week. This may not spread evenly for you, but it is recommended that you try to maintain something close to this, to prevent loading yourself up when assignments are due.  

Delivery Mode

Campus Experience

  • Attendance is required at scheduled classes to complete all components of the course.
  • Classes will be available as recordings. Classes will involve formal teaching, activities (tutorial style) or discussion, and will usually involve all three to varying degrees. Recording will be turned off for discussions and may also be for class activities, during which recordings are often not helpful.
  • The course may include a small number of live online events.
  • The activities for the course are scheduled as a standard weekly timetable. 

Learning Resources

Course materials are made available in a learning and collaboration tool called Canvas which also includes reading lists and lecture recordings (where available).

Please remember that the recording of any class on a personal device requires the permission of the instructor.

The following list contains the recommended reading for this course. Further readings are provided each week as part of the lecture content. 

  • Bowen, Caroline. (2023). Children's speech sound disorders (3rd ed.) Oxford, Wiley-Blackwell. ISBN: 978-1-119-74311-8. 
  • McLeod, Sharynne, & Baker, Elise. (2017) Children’s Speech: An evidence-based approach to Assessment and Intervention. Boston: Pearson.
  • Paul, Rhea; Norbury, Courtenay & Gosse, Carolyn. (2018). Language disorders from infancy through adolescence: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and communicating. (5th ed). St Louis: Elseveier. ISBN 978-0-323-07174-0. 
  • Ukrainetz, Teresa A. (2006).  Contextualized Language Intervention: Scaffolding PreK-12 Literacy Achievement. Thinking Publications.

Student Feedback

During the course Class Representatives in each class can take feedback to the staff responsible for the course and staff-student consultative committees.

At the end of the course students will be invited to give feedback on the course and teaching through a tool called SET or Qualtrics. The lecturers and course co-ordinators will consider all feedback.

Your feedback helps to improve the course and its delivery for all students.

Students are encouraged to be kind with their constructive feedback so that improvements can be made to the course for future students. 

Academic Integrity

The University of Auckland will not tolerate cheating, or assisting others to cheat, and views cheating in coursework as a serious academic offence. The work that a student submits for grading must be the student's own work, reflecting their learning. Where work from other sources is used, it must be properly acknowledged and referenced. This requirement also applies to sources on the internet. A student's assessed work may be reviewed for potential plagiarism or other forms of academic misconduct, using computerised detection mechanisms.

Class Representatives

Class representatives are students tasked with representing student issues to departments, faculties, and the wider university. If you have a complaint about this course, please contact your class rep who will know how to raise it in the right channels. See your departmental noticeboard for contact details for your class reps.

Copyright

The content and delivery of content in this course are protected by copyright. Material belonging to others may have been used in this course and copied by and solely for the educational purposes of the University under license.

You may copy the course content for the purposes of private study or research, but you may not upload onto any third party site, make a further copy or sell, alter or further reproduce or distribute any part of the course content to another person.

Inclusive Learning

All students are asked to discuss any impairment related requirements privately, face to face and/or in written form with the course coordinator, lecturer or tutor.

Student Disability Services also provides support for students with a wide range of impairments, both visible and invisible, to succeed and excel at the University. For more information and contact details, please visit the Student Disability Services’ website http://disability.auckland.ac.nz

Special Circumstances

If your ability to complete assessed coursework is affected by illness or other personal circumstances outside of your control, contact a member of teaching staff as soon as possible before the assessment is due.

If your personal circumstances significantly affect your performance, or preparation, for an exam or eligible written test, refer to the University’s aegrotat or compassionate consideration page https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/academic-information/exams-and-final-results/during-exams/aegrotat-and-compassionate-consideration.html.

This should be done as soon as possible and no later than seven days after the affected test or exam date.

You are encouraged to come to the teaching staff and discuss your progress and any issues you may have with it earlier rather than later.  This MSLT(Prac) course is demanding, and we recognise it does not allow much space for anything going wrong for you. It is normal for things to go wrong from time to time, so do manage it with our help, as much as possible. We want to see you succeed.

Learning Continuity

In the event of an unexpected disruption, we undertake to maintain the continuity and standard of teaching and learning in all your courses throughout the year. If there are unexpected disruptions the University has contingency plans to ensure that access to your course continues and course assessment continues to meet the principles of the University’s assessment policy. Some adjustments may need to be made in emergencies. You will be kept fully informed by your course co-ordinator/director, and if disruption occurs you should refer to the university website for information about how to proceed.

The delivery mode may change depending on COVID restrictions. Any changes will be communicated through Canvas.

Student Charter and Responsibilities

The Student Charter assumes and acknowledges that students are active participants in the learning process and that they have responsibilities to the institution and the international community of scholars. The University expects that students will act at all times in a way that demonstrates respect for the rights of other students and staff so that the learning environment is both safe and productive. For further information visit Student Charter https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/forms-policies-and-guidelines/student-policies-and-guidelines/student-charter.html.

Disclaimer

Elements of this outline may be subject to change. The latest information about the course will be available for enrolled students in Canvas.

In this course students may be asked to submit coursework assessments digitally. The University reserves the right to conduct scheduled tests and examinations for this course online or through the use of computers or other electronic devices. Where tests or examinations are conducted online remote invigilation arrangements may be used. In exceptional circumstances changes to elements of this course may be necessary at short notice. Students enrolled in this course will be informed of any such changes and the reasons for them, as soon as possible, through Canvas.

Published on 01/11/2023 10:23 a.m.