Auditory Processing Difficulties

Sometimes children have difficulty understanding what is said to them even though they have "good hearing." In the classroom, these children may not follow a teacher's directions or may appear to have difficulty remembering what to do.

Difficulty understanding language, especially when it is complex, spoken rapidly, is lengthy, or is spoken in a noisy place (like a classroom), may indicate an auditory processing problem. This has been described as "how well the ear talks to the brain, and how well the brain understands what the ear tells it."

A diagnosis of a central auditory processing difficulty is usually made by an audiologist who can evaluate the child's hearing and identify possible processing problems. A speech language pathologist can evaluate how these problems are affecting the child's receptive (understanding) and expressive (production) language development.

When a child is diagnosed with an auditory processing problem, treatment strategies usually involve different approaches. The first approach is to train auditory listening skills, such as telling the difference in words such as knee and me (auditory discrimination), sequencing sounds, identifying sounds in a noisy environment (figure ground) and location of sounds. Teaching functional language skills, such as vocabulary, grammar, and conversational skills can help to facilitate the processing of language. An audiologist may recommend a listening device to help block out background noise in the classroom.

Teachers are an important part of the picture. In the classroom they can help by placing the student away from the door, close to the board. If they gain the child's attention before giving directions, they will improve the child's ability to focus on the information. This can be as simple as making eye contact first. By giving directions slowly, they are allowing the child time to process and think about what they have to do. Varying loudness also helps children keep their attention on auditory information. When possible, teachers should use visual aids to supplement spoken information.

Parents can assist at home as well. Make eye contact before giving directions. Have your child repeat the directions to you to make sure they understood them and can remember them. By repeating the directions and saying them outloud, your child will be reviewing what to do. Ask questions after they hear the directions. " What do you have to do first?" " What do you do after that?" If they are having difficulty remembering the directions, rephrase them, or say them in a simpler way.

This information has been adapted from Let's Talk, a publication of the American Speech and Hearing Association.