Click on the session title to view the presetners, abstract, learner outcomes and level of learning.

SESSION DETAIL

Session 45                                         Track:  Audiology
9:15 am - 10:15 am
Before Hearing Aids; Increasing Auditory Processing can Improve Speech Understanding
John Isenhath, PhD
Instructional Level: Introductory

Millions of Adults can hear sound but cannot understand conversation in background noise.  Since hearing is relatively normal, they are not hearing aid candidates.  For millions of people, this means there is no viable treatment that can resolve their type of hearing problem.  Difficulty understanding conversation in crowds occurs not in the ear alone, but in the brain and can be caused by poor processing.   Hearing aids address hearing loss, but not poor processing. We investigated whether an increase in auditory processing will have a positive effect on a listeners’ ability to understand speech.  This approach was prompted in part by studies conducted over the past 30 years in which researchers worldwide consistently found that hearing the unexpected excites brain activity (auditory processing).  They found that unpredictable conversation makes the brain work harder to understand the meaning of words.  It is one of the most robust findings in neuroscience. Results suggest that regular exposure to unpredictable conversation repeatedly increases auditory processing and this in turn, helps train the brain to understand speech more efficiently. Practical applications, protocol, candidate identification, treatment length and longevity of training effect will be discussed.

Learner Outcomes: The participant will learn a new approach in auditory training based on neuroscience, gain an overview of how scientists have been using even-related potentials (ERPs) to study how the brain processes the meanings of words and will focus in particular on the N400 ERP and learn how a technique, derived from neuroscience research has the potential to become a new audiological tool for improving speech understanding in background noise.

Session 46                                      Track:  Adult
9:15 am - 10:15 am
PACE: A Progressive Model for Elder Care
Lisa Fannin
Instructional Level: Introductory

Participants will learn about the Program for All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) which is an accountable-care organization that provides all medical needs for qualified geriatric populations to include therapy and wellness.  PACE is a community-based program designed to keep people in their homes and out of facilities. Participants will also learn about dementia care in this setting, integrating speech therapy into daily routines and coordination of care with an interdisciplinary team.

Learner Outcomes: The participants will be able to list 3 benefits of PACE to its participants, identify 3 strategies for dementia management in a community-based setting, and identify 3 ways to incorporate speech objectives into daily routines.

Session 47                                   Track: Early Intervention
9:15 am - 10:15 am
The Prosody of Parentese
Jennifer Corena, BS, University of Virginia; Katherine Wolfe, BA, University of Virginia; Elizabeth Sutphin, BS, UVA
Instructional Level: Introductory

Our research between the University of Virginia and University College Gent is focused on examining the prosodic characteristics of
Parentese, or Child Directed Speech. This can be defined as modifications to speech and language that individuals spontaneously make when speaking with young children. This makes infant and child directed speech different from the speech patterns used in adult-to-adult interactions. The three aspects of prosody analyzed are pitch, rate and intensity. Eighteen parents participated in the project: ten mothers and eight fathers. Each of the participants had at least one child who was under the age of two and normally developing. The data demonstrated that parents make fewer changes in intensity level per unit of time as well as speak louder to children. Fewer syllables are spoken per second and fewer words are spoken per minute when a parent is addressing a child. Overall, this leads to the belief that parents speak and articulate slower when talking to a child than an adult. The data also suggest that parents tend to speak in a higher pitch and use a greater range of pitch when talking to their children.

Learner Outcomes: The participant will be able to recognize the characteristics of child-directed speech, identify the role that prosody can play in language development, identify the language and gender effects in “Parentese.”

Session 48                                             Track:  School Age
9:15 am - 10:15 am
Working Memory: What does it Mean for an SLP?
Anne Michalek, CCC-SLP, Old Dominion University; Silvana Watson, PhD, Old Dominion University
Instructional Level: Intermediate                      

Working Memory is a cognitive process which supports and facilitates receptive and expressive language skills. There are several models of working memory which help explain how it's components work together to help an individual develop vocabulary, comprehend text and engage in discourse. This session will explain working memory in the context of two specific theoretical models. Using these models, examples of how working memory impacts individuals with a speech and language deficit will be provided and appropriate interventions will be reviewed.

Learner Outcomes: Participants will be able to define and describe working memory according to one of the two theoretical models explained use the theoretical models to identify functional examples of the role working memory plays when processing and producing spoken and written language, identify and explain two appropriate and effective interventions for spoken and written language disorders which incorporate theories of working memory

Session 49                                             Track:  School Age
9:15 am - 11:15 am
MythBusters:  Speech Sound Disorders Edition
Gayle Daly, MA, Longwood University; Lissa Power-deFur, PhD
Instructional Level: Intermediate                      

Although one of the oldest components of our scope of practice, services for children with speech sound disorders is often viewed as simplistic, resulting in a number of commonly-held myths.  This session will review the current evidence to “bust” the following myths: All I need to know I learned in my Articulation class back in grad school; oral motor exercises should be used for “warm up”; the GFTA-2 provides all the necessary information to begin therapy; there is no academic context for articulation therapy; it is so boring. To dispel these myths, the presenters will refresh participants’ knowledge of phonological patterns and phonetic contexts.  Following a review of the research regarding non-speech oral motor exercises (NSOME) and effective intervention programs, the presenters will explain how speech sound intervention has evolved from the articulation therapy of yesteryears. 

Learner Outcomes: The Participant will be able to correctly analyze phonological patterns present in children's speech sound errors, identify the inappropriate and appropriate use of NSOMEs, identify two new speech sound disorder intervention strategies that are evidence-based and link to the academic curriculum.

Session 50                                            Track: Multi-Interest
9:15 am - 12:15 pm
Helping Students With Asperger Syndrome Succeed in School
Dan Coulter and Julie Coulter
Instructional Level: Intermediate                      

This session will describe steps educators can take to help elementary, middle and high school students with Asperger Syndrome reach their academic and social goals. Dan and Julie are the parents of Drew Coulter, who was diagnosed “communication handicapped” while in preschool and then with Asperger Syndrome as he entered high school. Included in this session will be video clips of interviews with a special education teacher, regular education teachers, a social worker/case manager and a psychologist who supported Drew.  The following will also be discussed: An overview of Asperger Syndrome and how it typically affects students, teaching tips and techniques that help a student with Asperger Syndrome do well academically and socially,  structure and flexibility, accommodations, transitioning, giving directions, calming upset students, dealing with interruptions, class sessions as opportunities to excel, using student feedback, one-on-one communication tools, appropriate scheduling, promoting general awareness of Asperger Syndrome and ways to disclose that an individual student has AS, pragmatic language skills training, social skills training, helping parents advocate effectively, finding resources to support a student with Asperger Syndrome and the positive things a student with Asperger Syndrome can bring to a class.

Learner Outcomes: The participant will be able to identify key behaviors commonly associated with Asperger Syndrome, recommend specific techniques to deal with a student’s Asperger-related behaviors in developing an Individual Education Plan and apply those techniques to help integrate a student with Asperger Syndrome into a mainstream classroom, incorporate a student’s special interests in social skills groups and classroom curriculum to improve pragmatic language skills.

Session 51                                              Track: Multi-Interest
10:45 am - 11:45 am
ADHD and Stuttering
Corrin Richels, PhD, Old Dominion University
Instructional Level: Introductory

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has been cited as being diagnosed in upwards of 20% of the school-aged population. 
Conversely, the incidence of stuttering in the preschool population is approximately 2.43%. Of this 2.43%, on average 1% continue to stutter into the school years and into adulthood.  What do clinicians do when the two disorders coexist in the same individual? The purpose of this session is to discuss a) the core features of ADHD, b) recent evidence showing a potentially shared genetic link between stuttering and ADHD and c) the implications for speech-language treatment in individuals who have both ADHD and stuttering.

Learner Outcomes: The participant will be able to describe the core features of ADHD, discuss the features of ADHD that specifically impact speech and language, and discuss accommodations that may be necessary during treatment for individuals who stutter and have ADHD

Session 52                                            Track: Professional Issue
10:45 am - 11:45 am
Advocacy:  Everyone's Doing It!
Laura Phillips, CCC-SLP
Instructional Level: Introductory

This session will outline legislative and regulatory advocacy systems utilized within the Commonwealth of Virginia.  It will describe techniques to work with insurance plans, agencies and commissioners from contracting to negotiating. This session will provide attendees with the tools required to develop a state action plan to set grassroots in motion, including identifying their own personality traits in regard to negotiation, using technology to advocate for their profession and developing communication strategies with their colleagues and advocacy partners.

Learner Outcomes:  The participants will be able to identify the differences between Virginia legislative and regulatory advocacy, prepare therapists to write and speak with their legislators, prepare therapists negotiate contracts with insurance plans.

Session 53                                           Track: Early Intervention
10:45 am - 11:45 am
Supervision in Early Intervention: An Inside-Out Perspective
Darlene Robke, CCC-SLP; Kimberly McGinley, CCC-SLP
Instructional Level: Intermediate                      

The session discusses how the roles and perspectives of the clinician and supervisor within an Early Intervention (EI) model differ from a center-based model. A unique "inside-out supervisory perspective/ approach is emphasized. The influence of relationships and reflective practice during effective supervision in EI will also be addressed.

Learner Outcomes:  Participant will be able to identify 3 challenges for supervising in the early intervention environment, understand the impact of relationships in EI supervision, and identify 3 strategies for teaching reflective practice during EI supervision.

Session 54                                           Track:  Audiology
10:45 am - 11:45 am
Response Differentiation in Infant Head Turns to Visual and Auditory Languages: Signs of Acquisition
Brenda Seal, PhD, Gallaudet University and James Madison University; Rory DePaolis, PhD, James Madison University
Instructional Level: Introductory

A head-turn experiment used with hearing babies exposed to baby signs, and hearing and deaf babies exposed to American Sign Language revealed differences in 10-month-olds’ looking times to familiar and unfamiliar signs. Babies exposed to ASL by their deaf parents showed a preference for familiar signs that parallels the preferences hearing babies show to familiar words. Babies exposed to Baby Sign by their hearing parents showed a contrasting pattern with longer looking times at unfamiliar signs than the familiar signs. Hearing babies with chronic otitis media were also tested in an auditory head-turn experiment. They failed to show the same preference for familiar spoken words at 11 months that hearing babies without ear infections show. Both of these experiments, conducted at Gallaudet and James Madison University, suggest early predictors of language acquisition in infant attending behaviors. They also help inform early intervention when typical attending does not emerge.

Learner Outcomes:  Participant will be able to explain visual and auditory head-turn experiments and their benefits in predicting visual and auditory language acquisition, explain differences in babies’ responses to familiar and unfamiliar signs when exposed to baby sign from hearing parents and when exposed to ASL from deaf parents.