1. LANGUAGE (Speech/Language Impaired)
Disability awareness Training

2. A communication disorder is an impairment in the ability to receive, send, process, and comprehend concepts or verbal, nonverbal and graphic symbol systems.
May be evident in the processes of hearing, language, and/or speech
May range in severity from mild to profound
May be developmental or acquired
Individuals may demonstrate one or any combination of communication disorders
A communication disorder may result in a primary disability or it may be secondary to other disabilities.
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. (1993). Definitions of communication disorders and variations [Relevant Paper]. Available from

3. A language disorder is impaired comprehension and/or use of spoken, written and/or other symbol systems. The disorder may involve (1) the form of language (phonology, morphology, syntax), (2) the content of language (semantics), and/or (3) the function of language in communication (pragmatics) in any combination.
Form of Language
Phonology is the sound system of a language and the rules that govern the sound combinations.
Morphology is the system that governs the structure of words and the construction of word forms.
Syntax is the system governing the order and combination of words to form sentences, and the relationships among the elements within a sentence.
Content of Language
Semantics is the system that governs the meanings of words and sentences.
Function of Language
Pragmatics is the system that combines the above language components in functional and socially appropriate communication.
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. (1993). Definitions of communication disorders and variations [Relevant Paper]. Available from

4. Types of Language Disorders
Receptive Language involves difficulty understanding what others are saying.
Expressive Language involves difficulty expressing thoughts and ideas.
Mixed Receptive-Expressive Language involves difficulty understanding and using spoken language.
Language disorders can either be acquired or developmental.
An acquired language disorder, like aphasia, shows up only after the person has had a neurological illness or injury. This could be a stroke or traumatic head injury.
A developmental language disorder is much more common in children.
Kids with developmental language disorders often start speaking later than their peers. This delay isn’t related to their intelligence level. In fact, kids with developmental language disorders typically have average or above-average intelligence. They usually have problems with receptive and expressive language skills before the age of 4.

5. Prevalence
As many as 5 percent of school-age children are believed to have a language disorder.
This makes language disorders one of the more common childhood disorders.
Of the 6.1 million children with disabilities who received special education under IDEA in public schools in the 2005–2006 school year, more than 1.1 million were served under the category of speech or language impairment.

6. Cause
Experts aren’t sure what causes language disorders. Most of the research has focused on the broader category of speech and language impairments (SLI), which includes language disorders and speech disorders. That research has been extensive and suggests some possible causes for SLI, such as:
Genes and heredity: Research has found that 20 to 40 percent of children with a family history of speech and language impairment have the condition themselves, compared with about 4 percent of those with no family history of SLI.
Prenatal nutrition: Some research has shown that when a woman takes prenatal folic acid supplements during pregnancy, her baby is less likely to have severe language issues.
Other conditions: Autism spectrum disorder, Down syndrome, intellectual disabilities and premature birth might also cause language disorders.

7. Symptoms Receptive Language Expressive Language
Trouble understanding what others say
Difficulty following directions
Difficulty organizing information that they hear
Can be hard to recognize in very young children
May start talking late (not speaking until age 2)
Has a limited vocabulary compared to children the same age
Frequently says “um” and substitutes general words like “stuff” and “things” for more precise words
Has trouble learning new vocabulary words
Leaves out key words and confuses verb tense
Uses certain phrases over and over again when talking
Seems frustrated by inability to communicate thoughts
May not talk much or often, but understands what other people say
Is able to pronounce words and sounds, but sentences often don’t make sense
Uses a limited variety of sentence structures when speaking

8. Tips and Strategies Focus on interactive communication.
Use active listening.
Incorporate the student’s interests into conversation.
Ensure that the student has a way to appropriately express their wants and needs.
Reinforce communication attempts (e.g. their gestures, partial verbalizations) when the student is non-verbal or emerging verbal.
Paraphrase back what the student has said or indicated.
Ask open-ended appropriate questions.
Use language for social interaction and to resolve conflicts.
Emphasize goals and tasks that are easy for the student to accomplish.
Work at the student's pace.
Present only one concept at a time.
Use computers in the classroom for language enhancement.
Encourage reading and writing daily.
Use tactile and visual cues (e.g., pictures, 3-D objects).
Incorporate vocabulary with unit being taught.
Provide fun activities that are functional and practical.
Be aware of the student's functioning level in auditory skills, semantics, word recall, syntax, phonology, and pragmatics (and how they affect academic performance).