About the Author: My name is Amanda Elias and I am from West Monroe, Louisiana. I am a Speech-Language Pathologist and Assistant Professor at the University of Louisiana Monroe (ULM). I received my undergraduate degree from Louisiana State University in 2008, master’s degree from Louisiana Tech University in 2010, and my PhD through ULM’s Marriage and Family Therapy Program with a concentration in Systemic Studies in 2025. I am involved with the National Stuttering Association (NSA) as a Chapter Leader for the Monroe, LA Chapter, and I am also a Regional Chapter Coordinator for the NSA. I also hold an Ally of Stuttering Seal through Spero Stuttering, Inc.

I recently had the opportunity to interview mothers of children who stutter that received or were receiving speech-language pathology services for stuttering within the public-school system in the United States as a part of my dissertation process. While each mother reported experiencing collaboration with their child’s public-school based speech-language pathologist (SLP) differently, many consistencies were revealed throughout this process regarding how they view their child’s stuttering and stuttering treatment. These mothers reported there being a disconnect between how they wished their child’s stuttering was viewed/treated by the SLP and how their child’s stuttering was actually viewed/treated. Many of the mothers I interviewed reported wanting more of a collaborative relationship with their child’s public school SLP. Collaboration was described by these mothers as being updated by the SLP on the progress their child was making in therapy, being involved in both the evaluation and treatment processes, and being given resources and education about stuttering. 

When these mothers were faced with collaboration challenges, they met those challenges with advocacy. Mothers interviewed reported becoming advocates for their child both within the school system and outside of the school system. Advocating for their children was described as making sure their child was evaluated for services, making sure their child received services outlined in their IEP, requesting more frequent treatment, and overseeing the system by ensuring the time spent within the sessions was used wisely. At times, these mothers were tasked with educating the SLP on more updated views of stuttering and stuttering therapy. 

Many well-meaning SLPs in the United States approach stuttering with the mentality of needing to “fix” the child’s stuttering or “fix” their fluency. These children are viewed as speaking in a way that is “wrong” or “unnatural” based on cultural expectations and societal norms. If the SLP adheres to this type of thinking or was educated by an SLP who views stuttering through this “problematic” lens, the therapy a child who stutters receives will consist of teaching techniques aimed at hiding the stuttering and pushing the narrative of stuttering being a bad thing. Parents who are not connected to the stuttering community via support groups or camps might only be educated on stuttering through their child’s SLP. Misguided or uninformed SLPs can wrongly educate parents to believe the same as they do, that stuttering is something to be fixed or hidden away from the rest of the world. 

As an SLP who views stuttering as a different way of speaking and not something to be fixed, I have had plenty of conversations with SLPs that view stuttering differently than I do. You can imagine my surprise and delight to hear one of the mothers I interviewed say there is “nothing to fix because my child isn’t broken.” This mother had been told inaccurate information about stuttering from the SLP who first treated her child, and later when her son was assigned to an SLP who stuttered, their viewpoint on stuttering was changed as their family was introduced to the world of stuttering support and advocacy. This mother reported her family being on a journey of empowerment now that they view stuttering as part of their son’s characteristics and traits instead of stuttering being something that overshadowed their son’s abilities and future. 

Another mother I interviewed expressed the same sentiment and expressed distain for the term “fix” when applied to how speech therapy was going to fix her child’s stuttering. This mother reported therapy sessions being negative when therapy was aimed at “hiding” her son’s stutter. She described the SLP trying to “fix” her child’s stuttering as a hinderance to collaboration because how the mother viewed the stutter and how the SLP viewed the stutter was significantly different. Advocacy for this mother meant educating the SLP on stuttering and pointing the SLP to resources to help them collaborate more efficiently and effectively. Again, if this mother had viewed stuttering in the same way the SLP did, the outcomes of her child’s treatment could be very different. 

These mothers viewed meeting their children’s challenges, whether it was the challenge of stuttering, the challenge of collaboration, or the challenge of differing viewpoints, with the strength of advocacy, education, and support. If parents do not know about stuttering and updated research, they will continue to think of their child as broken. If SLPs do not know about stuttering and updated research, they will continue to think of their stuttering clients as broken. It is because of the strength of these mothers advocating for their children and challenging others’ perception of stuttering, even those tasked with providing therapy to their children, that they are furthering their own understanding of stuttering, their family’s understanding of stuttering, and fostering positive mentality surrounding their child’s communication and their future.

Elias, A. J. (2025). Experiences and stories of parents working collaboratively with public-school speech-language pathologists to address their child’s stuttering and related emotions (Order No. 31933234). Available from Dissertations & Theses @ University of Louisiana @ Monroe; ProQuest Dissertations & Theses A&I. (3206718816). https://www.proquest.com/dissertations-theses/experiences-stories-parents-working/docview/3206718816/se-2