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Communication Month: childhood language development

NOISE AND LISTENING ABILITY DON'T MIX

Montreal, may 2000

— In conjunction with Communication Month, the Ordre des orthophonistes et audiologistes du Québec (OOAQ) would like to help make people more aware of the importance of developing listening ability in children, and of the need to reduce noise levels to enhance the learning of language skills and school subjects.

In a recent study of 25 Montreal-area daycares, noise levels at one out of five exceeded the Commission de la santé et de la sécurité du Travail (CSST) standard of 90 decibels. Young children exposed to noise for long periods may face major communication problems due to a significant reduction in their ability to listen. Possible consequences include retardation of the development of language skills, concentration and behavioural problems, and even hyperactivity.

Any interference with the development of listening skills can affect a child's entire cognitive, emotional, and communicative development. The same problems are encountered in schools where excessively noisy classrooms make learning harder for many children. In fact, studies conducted during the 1990s prove what many teachers and parents have long known: academic performance is superior where silence reigns.

The Importance of Prevention

Hearing plays a crucial role in learning - at daycare, at home, and at school. Children must first master basic hearing skills. They must also learn to pay attention during an explanation, not be distracted by other sounds in the daycare or classroom, and memorize instructions. One way to encourage the development of listening skills is to tell children a story every day, and occasionally ask them to repeat it back.

Reducing the noise at the source by improving the acoustics of the premises is also a good idea: get rid of noisy toys and make children aware of noise pollution at a very early age. "Ultimately, everyone wins when we reduce noise at the source: the children win because they can hear better and develop the listening ability that is essential to learning; and the staff wins because they save their voices and don't get as tired," says OOAQ President Louis Beaulieu.

A Few Statistics

Nearly 15% of Québec children have hearing, language, or communication problems. The latest studies indicate that approximately 50% of these children will develop social or emotional adjustment or behavioural problems.

Substantial research has shown that difficulties in learning to read and write are often an extension of early childhood oral communication problems. It is estimated that 80% of children with learning difficulties also have problems communicating. These problems affect an average of three children in every classroom.

If there is the slightest doubt, it is recommended that an audiologist or speech therapist be consulted. Minor language problems that are neglected among preschoolers can often evolve into difficulties with reading and writing. Children who enter first grade with an undetected communication problem soon end up failing, which makes them more likely to drop out of school later.

About the OOAQ

L'Ordre des orthophonistes et audiologistes du Québec, whose mission is to ensure public protection, encompasses all communication-difficulty professionals in the province, including some 190 audiologists and 900 Speech-Language Pathologists / Speech Therapists. Their job is to study, examine, assess, and treat communication difficulties. Audiologists deal with hearing-related problems, while Speech-Language Pathologists / Speech Therapists work with difficulties involving the voice, speech, or language.

Although they work primarily with young children at the language-learning stage, they help people of every age who face problems with hearing, speech, or language: deafness, language disorders, aphasia, stuttering, etc. They also treat those who are suffering from dysphagia. Some 700,000 Québecers have communication problems: that translates to 10% of the population.

 

Contact:

Sylvie Roberge Ordre des orthophonistes et audiologistes du Québec (514) 282-9123

 

Ordre des orthophonistes et audiologistes du Québec, mai 2000.