Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a neurodegenerative disease that results in loss of most motor functions by the time of death. Most persons with ALS experience a dysarthria that eventually renders oral/vocal communication unintelligible. This article reviews the communication needs of persons with ALS and the range of communication…

This paper examines studies of speech sound errors using traditional articulation and phonological process descriptions, focusing on the specific types of errors exhibited by young children who stutter. Approaches for treating children who exhibit both stuttering and disordered phonology are discussed, including issues of concurrent versus…

The three general approaches for measuring speech intelligibility in young children are open-set word identification, closed-set word identification, and rating scales. Positive and negative aspects of the various procedures for measuring speech intelligibility are discussed. (Author/DB)

This article identifies issues in phonetic transcription of speech samples for speech language pathologists. Important terms and concepts from articulatory/clinical phonetics are reviewed and guidelines are provided for streamlining the process of whole-word live transcriptions and for refining transcriptions by incorporating features from…

This article reviews problems faced by researchers in the association between otitis media with effusion and phonological impairment and then summarizes currently established findings concerning otitis media and its effects on phonological acquisition. Professionals are cautioned to neither ignore nor exaggerate the possible influence of otitis…

This article describes a functional approach to language intervention that uses storybook reading contexts with preschool children who exhibit delayed phonological development. Oral scaffolding techniques, including discussions of narrative structure and content words, provide the modeling and metalinguistic descriptions typically used in…

The impact of a disordered phonological system (expressive or receptive) on language development is examined. Research results and guidelines are presented for identification of critical intelligibility and phonological awareness deficiencies and for intervention. Options for expediting intelligibility gains and research findings on enhancing…

This article examines age-related variables (e.g., neurological, cognitive, affective) in the acquisition of a second-language phonology and discusses six evaluation and intervention issues, including mispronunciations as an indicator of either disordered speech or normal second-language learning, culture and language influences, and effective…

Reviews relationships between phonological impairment, phonological awareness, and development of literacy in young children. Treatment options for preschoolers with phonological impairments are summarized. Critical variables in treatment research are identified, and four recent treatment research reports based on different phonological theories…