Speech Language Referral Guide Posters Aligned to Pennsylvania

Speech Language Referral Guide Posters Aligned to Pennsylvania Core Mari Heenan, Bridgett Coombs, Stacey De. Blassio, and Kate Laidlaw

Project Description • We created a speech referral guide for teachers based on grade level PA core standards • This guide can be easily used by teachers to highlight potential deficit areas in students who will be referred for a speech and language screening.

Why Did We Do This? • Based on our collective experiences, we have found teachers can be unsure of when to refer students to speech • We aligned it to the newly adapted PA Core Standards that we all need to become familiar with • To demonstrate to teachers that we can help their students achieve the grade-level standards and better access their curriculum • Better focus speech screenings based on students’ true areas of need

What did we need to do this? • Pennsylvania Core Standards • Speech and Language Norms • Collaboration with Special Education and General Education Teachers

Step-by-Step Plan • Reviewed PA Core Standards • Isolated speech and language-related standards by grade level • Gathered developmental norms from professional resources • Developed screening guides • Reviewed guides with grade-level teachers to ensure appropriateness

Method Used to Evaluate • Feedback from grade-level teachers • “I never realized that speech used the same standards we did” – Third Grade Teacher • “I didn’t know you guys worked on all this” – Kindergarten teacher • “This is really helpful!” – Fourth Grade Teacher • “I like it that it’s on one page” – Kindergarten Teacher • “It helps me be more specific, instead of just saying ‘I can’t understand him!’” – Specialized Learning Support Teacher • Further evaluation will be apparent based on teacher use and improved appropriate referrals including sensitivity/specificity measures

Impact to Student Achievement • Identify the students who truly need services and where to focus our efforts • Avoid removing children from their classrooms for unnecessary screenings • Standards presented in “Child can” format to encourage higher self-confidence

Impact to personal professional growth & new learning • Easier development of standard-aligned goals for speech therapists • Gain better understanding of PA Core Standards • Develop better relationships with teachers • Increased awareness of speech therapist’s scope of practice

Expansion of Professional Learning Community • This resource will hopefully provide speech therapists and the teachers that they work with a more focused format in which to base referrals and discussions of common core aligned instruction and therapy plans.