Date of Completion

Spring 5-9-2010

Thesis Advisor(s)

Bernard Grela

Honors Major

Communication Science

Disciplines

Communication Sciences and Disorders | Speech Pathology and Audiology

Abstract

There is a great amount of controversy surrounding childhood apraxia of speech (CAS). The most prominent issue is focused on the diagnostic criteria of which to utilize for this disorder. Because of this debate, assessment methods, along with intervention techniques, are heavily questioned. This study examines the progress children with characteristics of CAS make during intervention. Furthermore, it seeks to determine if another diagnosis is possible for these children by examining the speech sound errors such children make. Two children with characteristics of CAS were the focus of this study. Data for these children was gathered from client files at a university speech and hearing clinic. More specifically, the Goldman Fristoe Test of Articulation (GFTA-2: Goldman & Fristoe, 2000) was used to collect information on intervention progress and speech characteristics of these children. The results of this study suggest that CAS is a heterogeneous disorder, in which characteristics presented by individual children may be variable, resulting in different improvement rates during intervention. Furthermore, this suggests that there may not be a single diagnostic feature to utilize in the diagnosis of CAS.

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