It Was All Greek To Me

Translating the Terminology of Speech-Language Pathology

by Amy B. Sherman, M.A., CCC-SLP

Have you ever dreamed you were in a foreign land where you can’t understand a word anyone says and your handy-dandy translation dictionary is nowhere to be found? Everyone else is able to communicate but it’s all “Greek” to you.

Entering the world of speech-language pathology can be as bewildering as that dream. The terminology seems alien and complex. There is the added stress of trying to be a well informed advocate for your child. The following terms will help parents new to speech-pathology feel less baf fled and better able to find an appro priate action plan.

Speech – the act of speaking, expressing or describing thoughts, feelings or perceptions through the use of words; an utterance; vocal communication or conversation; the coordination of the muscles, including breath support and voice producing mechanisms (the throat and the mouth).

Articulation – the act of vocal expression by producing a speech sound. This term can refer to a beginning, middle or ending sound or it can be a consonant blend.

Consonant blend or Consonant cluster – two or three consonants that are grouped together to make a specific sound (“br” in “break,” “sp” in “spot,” “spr” in “spray”).

Co-articulation – stringing speech sounds together in words, phrases or sentences.

Phonological process – a pattern where one substitutes, uses, moves or omits several sounds in a particular way and often within a particular place in the word. Some of the more common patterns are:

Fronting – consistently replacing a /d/ sound for a /g/ sound and/or a /t/ sound for a /k/ sound.
Backing – substituting and using the /k, g/ sounds for the /t, d/ sounds.
Initial consonant deletion – omission of the first (initial) sound in words.
Syllabic reduction or medial consonant deletion – omission of the middle consonants.
Final consonant deletion – omission of the ending (final) conso nants.
Consonant cluster reduction – the omission of part of a consonant cluster or blend.

Oral-motor exercises – mouth strengthening exercises to improve strength, coordination, function and movement, as well as to separate movements of and decrease tension of the lips, cheeks, jaw or tongue.

Stimulable – a child’s readiness to produce the specifi c speech movement or speech sound that has been in error. SLPs look at several factors (including use of different cues – visual, verbal, tactile) to determine what the child is ready to address at a particular time.

Intelligibility – the capability of being understood for the purpose of communicating needs, wants and thoughts. It does not refl ect IQ. SLPs use it to describe how much of what a child says is being understood by a familiar and unfamiliar listener.

Apraxia – in developmental apraxia or childhood apraxia of speech, children may know what they want to say, but the words don’t come out right. This is because there is difficulty coordinating or sequencing mouth movements necessary to produce and combine consonants and vowels to form syllables, words, phrases or sentences with control. For more information, please visit www.apraxia-kids.org.

Language – communication of thoughts and feelings through a system of signals, such as voice, sounds, gestures, signs or written symbols; a learned code or system of rules that enables people to communicate ideas and express wants and needs and thoughts; reading, writing, gesturing, signing and speaking are all forms of language. There are three sub-categories within this definition:

Receptive language – understanding speech and language (i.e. following directions, choosing the correct color or pointing to the object that is named and any other activity that demonstrates language comprehension).
Expressive language or communication – use of language to include uttering or writing grammatically correct sentences, answering questions appropriately, labeling items, telling about a movie or explaining how to complete a task.
Pragmatic skills – the social skills and nuances of communication.

Stutter, stuttering, dysfluency (also spelled disfluency) – to speak with repetition or prolongation of part of a word or the whole word; a disruption in the word that is being produced.

Voice disorders – problems with the voice (vocal folds, throat, or larynx, and may also include the breathing mechanism, known as the diaphragm) that can include an audible quality such as hoarseness, roughness, weakness, breathiness and raspiness. The voice can be too loud or too soft in volume. Also, it can be too high or too low in pitch.

Audiological testing – “audiological” refers to the ears and hearing which are tested in two ways:

Audiological screening – performed by a speech-language pathologist or physician, usually conducted with headphones worn by the child and is scored only as a pass/fail. If a child fails a screening, he would then be referred for an audiological evaluation.
Audiological evaluation – a more extensive test of the ears and usually performed by an audiologist.

Central auditory processing (also known as auditory processing) – occurs when the sounds that are heard are adversely affected and interpreted differently by the central nervous system. Subtle sounds between words are not recognized even though the sounds themselves are heard loud and clear. This can especially occur in a noisy environment or when listening to complex information (www.ldonline.com/article/8056). Effective auditory processing is associated with other higher level communication-cognitive skills including phonological processing, understanding and interpreting auditory information and attention to and memory for auditory information.

Though there are many terms associated with speech-language pathology, you won’t be expected to become an expert after reading just one article. This list gives you an effective starting point, and with the help of professionals, it will sound less like “Greek” and more like terms that apply to your child’s specific needs and treatment plan.

Amy B. Sherman, M.A., CCC- SLP is the owner of Atlanta Speech Therapy and Training. She specializes in evaluating and treating children beginning at 16 months providing personalized therapy with a whole-child approach. She can be reached at 770-330-9944.

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