Speech and Language Pathologist Role in the Schools

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I am celebrating my 44th year as a speech and language pathologist and the majority of them have been in the public schools. What is the speech and language pathologist’s role in the schools?

Speech-language pathologists (also known as speech therapists) play a vital role in the schools by providing services to students who have difficulty with communication and related disorders. A speech-language pathologist (SLP) is a professional who is trained to evaluate and treat individuals with speech, language, and communication difficulties. In schools, SLPs often work with students who have difficulties with:

Producing sounds correctly to form words
Using language effectively to communicate thoughts, ideas, and needs
Understanding and using language to comprehend what is being said to them
Reading and writing skills

SLPs may work with individuals, groups, or entire classrooms, depending on the needs of the students. Some of the specific tasks that a speech-language pathologist might perform in the schools include:

Assessing a student’s communication skills and identifying areas of difficulty
Developing and implementing treatment plans to help students improve their communication skills
Providing direct therapy to students to help them practice and improve their language and communication skills
Collaborating with teachers and other school staff to integrate language and communication support into the classroom and school environment
Consulting with parents and caregivers to provide information and support for working on communication skills at home
Participating in meetings with educators, school staff, and parents to discuss the student’s progress and needs
Keeping accurate and up-to-date records of a student’s progress and treatment plan.

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I love the school setting as a speech and language pathologist as it allows me to develop a relationship with my students and their families that can last for years. The variety of cases forces me to keep current on evidenced based practices so that I am offering the best to my students. I am seeing the students in the natural habitat which allows me not only to teach skills but also see if there is carryover of these skills. You are just as likely to see me out at recess as you are to see me in the therapy room.

I am known to my students as “The Queen” which began as a story that I wrote with two classes and then the nickname stuck. I love that I can be creative in this setting. Who else can have a job in which you they may hear a child’s first word, see a child make their first friend, see the magic when a child first unlocks the phonetic code to begin to read or listen to one of your students be able to do the morning announcements fluently. The speech and language pathologist role in the schools is an exciting and rewarding one.