Abstract

Multilingual assessment is an area of growing relevance and importance in the field of speech language pathology. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the current assessment practices among school-based SLPs in relation to their language background status (e.g. monolingual, bilingual, multilingual) and their perceptions on issues related to multilingualism. A survey instrument was created, which asked SLPs to respond to questions on various topics, including demographics, caseload information, assessment practices, statements on multilingual perceptions, and clinical scenarios. There were 267 participants included in the study from across the country with varying ages and years of experience in the field. This included 205 monolinguals, 52 bilinguals, and 10 multilinguals. Results indicated significant differences between language groups in their assessment practices and multilingual perceptions, with multilinguals demonstrating increased cultural responsivity and awareness in comparison to other groups. These findings imply that SLPs continue to increase their cultural responsivity in the context of multilingual assessment. They also imply that language background influences both multilingual assessment practices and multilingual perceptions. Awareness of other cultures and languages may play a large role in SLPs' ability to appropriately conduct multilingual assessment.

Degree

College and Department

David O. McKay School of Education; Communication Disorders

Rights

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