1. Bankson-Bernthal Test of Phonology
BBTOP
Bankson-Bernthal Test of Phonology

2. Description Developed in 1989 Authors: Nicholas W. Bankson
John E. Bernthal
Designed to serve as a quick and easy method for assessment of phonology in preschool and school-age children
Organized into three sections:
Consonant Inventory
Phonological Process Inventory
Word Inventory

3. Assessment Goals
To assess the number of words produced without any consonant misarticulations
To assess the number of sounds (consonants and consonant clusters) in error.
To assess the number of errors reflecting one or more of the 10 most frequently occurring phonological processes.

4. Age Population
Designed primarily for preschool and early elementary school children
up to grade level 3
May be given to older children with severe phonologic/articulation problems
Screening version QSP may be used for a more brief assessment when needed
Quick screen of Phonology (QSP)
Based on 28 of the original 80 test items.

5. Test Materials Picture book:
80 simple, colorful pictures for target ages
Record form:
Organized into sections for easy recording
Examiner’s Manual
Provides source for norm tables for scoring

6. Consonant Inventory
Includes most English consonants in the initial and final positions
Assesses vocalic ‘er’ (stressed and unstressed)
Selected consonants clusters

7. Phonological Process Inventory
Provides a system for reviewing child’s phonologic production for the presence of 10 most frequently occurring phonological processes:
Assimilation
Fronting
Final consonant deletion
Weak syllable deletion
Stopping
Gliding
Cluster simplification
Depalatilization
Deaffrication
Vocalization

8. Word Inventory
Provides a short, reliable measure of overall phonological performance

9. Test Administration Administration time: Approximately 10-15 minutes.
Begin with casual conversation to ease child into comfort zone.
Instruct child to name or describe each picture that you show them from the picture book.
Clinician prompts are provided in Appendix F of the examiner’s manual.

10. Recording Responses
Mark 1 in the box on response form for item in the column under “Word Correct” if response is articulated correctly.
Mark incorrect articulations with a 0 and then phonetically transcribe the response.
Responses other than the target word should be followed with a clinician prompt (Appendix F), then treated as correct/incorrect. Mark Modeled on the record form.

11. Scoring Word Inventory
Calculate chronological age
Sum all words without misarticulations (raw score) and put in appropriate box on the record form
Refer to Appendix B to locate percentile rank and standard score based on the raw score.

12. Scoring Consonant Inventory
Turn to page 3 of the record form
Locate each consonant in it’s specified row
Mark only those consonants in error by circling I (initial) or F (final)
For each consonant, count the number of times I and F were circled in its column
OR you may use the developmental scale scoring method:
ranges from 0-4
0= No difficulty with sound
4= Strong evidence of difficulty with sound

13. Scoring Phonologic Process Inventory
Form has 10 columns, representing the 10 phonological processes tested
Each word on the test is listed in each column
Examples of each phonological process are provided in each column
Circle the word in each column that each specific phonological process occurs
Total the number of times each process is identified in each column
Add totals to get raw score
Refer to Appendix D in examiner’s manual to convert to %tile score and standard score.

14. Test Standardization
The BBTOP is standardized based on a sample size of 1070 subjects
Ages 3-9 years
61 sites across the United States
Standardization based on quantifying a child’s phonological performance

15. Test Norms
Examiner’s manual provides norm tables for 3 sections of the test
Based on a Mean of 100 and Standard Deviation of 15
Norms based on 3 month age intervals from 3-0 to 6-11 and 6 month intervals from 7-0 to 9-11

16. Pros and Cons Pros: Cons: Quick and Easy
Used as a formal test or as a screening device
Colorful pictures
Well-organized record form
Cons:
Can be confusing to new examiners
Older test (1989)

17. Thank You for Your Time and Attention!!!!
Dr. Frank Kersting
Western Kentucky University