20 -26 August 2023
Speech Pathology for Schools, SPS, is celebrating Speech Pathology week. This week take the opportunity to celebrate your school speech pathologist.
What is Speech Pathology Week?
Each year Speech Pathology Australia hosts Speech Pathology Week to raise awareness of those in our community who have a communication disability. The week highlights the important role that speech pathologists play in assisting Australians with communication disability. Communication skills underpin the ability to read and write, get a job, and enjoy family and friends. Speech pathologists work with people to change lives and build opportunities.
2023 Theme - Communicating for Life.
‘Communicating for life’. Highlighting the vital role speech pathologists play in supporting quality of life across the lifespan.
Communication disability in Australia*
In Australia today, delayed development in literacy and oral language remains largely invisible. 20-30% of our students require explicit support and intervention delivered by a speech pathologist.
Communication disability affects a person’s ability to understand and be understood by others. Levels of limitation range from mild to profound and can be temporary or last a lifetime.
Communication disabilities can impact on the way a person participates in family life, education, the workforce, and the wider community.
People with communication disability are less likely to have qualifications additional to school (42%) than people without communication disability (61%).
Thirty-eight per cent (38%) of people with communication disability are participating in the labour force compared with eighty per cent (80%) of people without communication disability.
Communication is a basic human right. It is fundamental to a student's ability to participate fully in the social, educational, economic and sporting aspects of our community.
Our students with communication disability cannot maximise educational, health and social outcomes, without the intervention of a speech pathologist.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics has established that 1.2 million Australians have communication disability. Communication disability affects a person's ability to understand and be understood by others.
Children make up significant proportion of people with communication disability. Three in 5 people who have an unmet need for formal assistance with communication were children.
People with communication disability were less likely to have a non-school qualification (42%) than people without communication disability (61%).
Speech Pathology for Schools, SPS, believes that good communication for all results in better outcomes for our students. That is why during Speech Pathology Week, from 20-26 August, Speech Pathology for Schools, is highlighting the week’s theme: Communicating for Life.
What you can do during Speech Pathology week, 20 -26 August 2023?
Say hello to you school based speech pathologists and learn a little more about what they are doing to improve student outcomes.
Have a wonderful week.
Mala