Importance of Educating Future SLPAs and SLPs on Fluency Disorders
Hi my name is Demi Dang and I am a graduating senior at California State University Fullerton with a Communication Sciences and Disorders Major. I am currently taking Introduction to Fluency Disorders and I recently learned from PWS speakers and from lectures from class that many SLPs and therapists are not well educated about PWS. One of the PWS speakers mentioned that they had a bad experience with therapy because they made their experience very discouraging. For example, one of his sessions he showed the therapist/SLP what he had been working on and the therapist/SLP told him he wasn’t practicing hard enough and she can tell. However, the PWS speaker was practicing. My question is, as a PWS or a Professional, do you think future SLPAs and SLPs should have further education added to the curriculum nationwide on fluency disorders? In my opinion, this could be beneficial for the client and also clinicians as well.
Hi Demi,
My paper in this year’s ISAD conference relates to this very issue, and I highlight some of the research showing the past and current state of academic and clinical education in relation to stuttering. I would encourage you to hop over to the paper entitled, “Acting on the Call for the Better Equipping of Speech-Language Pathologists.”
You’re absolutely right that we need more training. Stuttering is a complex multifactorial difference, and our intervention approach can be harmful when we don’t understand the stuttering experience. There are several challenges and barriers within clinical education and no simple solutions, but we must advocate for improved training during and post graduate school!
Ana Paula
Hi Ana,
Thank you for the reply! I’m so glad to hear the work and research you have put into this issue. Thank you for the recommendation, I will go on over and read your paper.
Thank you so much!
Demi Dang
Hi Demi,
Yes, I totally agree that further education on stuttering needs to be added to curriculums about fluency vs stuttering. Some universities only have one course about stuttering and some have none. Some new SLPs begin work with never having met a person who stutters, let alone worked with a person who stutters in any type of therapeutic relationship or alliance.
At the very least, SLP students should be required to attend local stuttering support group meetings either in person or online. But to learn, not sit in the back and take notes.
Or listen to podcasts about people who stutter who stutter while sharing their experiences. There’s a great one at http://www.stutterrockstar.com
Pam