Seminar on Topics in Language Disorders: Multicultural and Bilingual Populations

Catalog description

This course focuses on the acquisition of knowledge and skills needed to provide culturally and globally responsive services to culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) children, adolescents, and adults. Major topics include understanding diversity and variability found among individuals as it impacts communication, social pragmatic communication, and language(s) development and use. Areas to be studied include methods available for providing the least biased and most culturally responsive assessment practices for various communication disorders; use of portfolio assessment, narrative assessment, and dynamic assessment methods, identifying the difference vs. disorder aspect in second language speakers (ESL, ELL) and speakers of language variations. Developing the ability to reflect on health disparities in clinical practices in CSD and appreciate beliefs, values, biases, and assumptions of individuals of all ages, as well as within the clinicians themselves, will be explored within the context of their impact on assessment and intervention. The course will address the SLP’s role in educating the IEP team about delivering culturally responsive services and considering the diverse cultural aspects that can influence the assessment and intervention processes in CLD school-age students with communication disorders. Additionally, this course will discuss advocating for inclusion and equitable services for patients with neurodiversity and gender-diverse individuals as well as applying social justice principles to the assessment and treatment of clients from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.