Meta description: Phonological disorder is the condition in which children are not exhibiting the ability to sound out words, or articulate properly for their age group ability.
Phonological disorder is fairly common, and hinders a child from being able to articulate sounds or words appropriately. A phonological disorder can be seen in most frequently in younger children who have not developed the ability to master their speech. Children with these developmental issues are normally placed in a special therapy class in order to teach them skills and techniques which allow them to more accurately execute proper speech. A phonological disorder may stay with an individual throughout their lifetime if the result is a physiological …show more content…
There are many children who have trouble with words and sounds early on in their developmental phase, but by the age of 3, the child should be understood for at least half of the time when they speak. If their speech is largely unintelligible by that age, it can signal the development of a phonological disorder. By the time the child reaches the age of 5 years, most of what they say should be understood by everyone. If there is a problem understanding their speech regularly it should be treated as a suspicious situation and requires evaluation by a professional working in the field of speech development. These tests can even be administered in a school. Most public schools have assigned speech development specialist who can not only diagnose, but treat a phonological disorder on the …show more content…
It is noted that there is a higher likelihood of the child having a phonological disorder if they come from a low-income family, or even a large family. Genetics may also play a part in the development of a phonological disorder. If there are members of the immediate family who are afflicted by a phonological disorder, there seems to be a higher occurrence rate for the disorder to appear in children. Researchers have also noted that a phonological disorder is more common in boys than in girls. Some causes for phonological disorders may stem from physical development issues and deformities in the child. A cleft palate may sometimes create a disruption in speech development and the ability to properly sound out words. The deformity affects the flow of words because the tongue falls in a different manner than it would in someone without the cleft palate. Other physiological deformities related to the bones of the jaw and the musculature in the jaw are also common causes for a phonological disorder to appear in a child. Another cause for the development of a speech disorder can stem from some sort of brain trauma or development issue. It can also affect the nerves and their ability to communicate information from the mouth to the brain. In turn, the child is unable to process the functions which are necessary to form words and sounds appropriately.