Faculty of Humanities
School of Social Sciences
Department of Communication Pathology
Selected Highlights from Research Findings
Important research conducted by Kommunika (a division of the Centre for Early Intervention in Communication Pathology) explored the needs of teachers and learners in multilingual urban pre-schools, and the role of the speech-language therapist in supporting both teachers and learners. The main purpose of the research was to describe the perceptions of teachers regarding the language and communication difficulties experienced by multilingual pre-schoolers, the needs of teachers regarding their own equipment to meet the needs of these pre-schoolers, as well as the language and communication development needs of the pre-schoolers as determined by the communication pathologist. The extreme diversity in the pre-school poses special challenges to the collaborative educator-therapist team. The teachers expressed a need for training, information and support in several areas related to the facilitation of language development in the multilingual preschool. They were able to identify some, but not all, of the needs of the pre-schoolers. Findings of this research will be applied in the development of a support package to be implemented in collaborative practice by communication pathologists and teachers in multilingual pre-schools. Furthermore, this project was instrumental in obtaining a substantial grant for Kommunika.
In belangrike navorsing wat deur Kommunika ('n afdeling van die Sentrum vir Vroeë Intervensie in Kommunikasiepatologie) uitgevoer word, word die behoeftes van onderwysers en leerders in veeltalige stedelike voorskoolse sentrums en die rol van die spraak-taalterapeut ter ondersteuning van beide onderwysers en leerders, ondersoek. Die hoofoogmerk van die navorsing was om die persepsies van onderwysers van die taal- en kommunikasieprobleme wat deur meertalige voorskoolse leerders ondervind word, die behoeftes van onderwysers aan die nodige toerusting om hierdie probleme van die leerders aan te spreek, asook die taal- en kommunikasie ontwikkelingsbehoeftes van die voorskoolse leerders soos deur die kommunikasiepatoloog bepaal is, te beskryf. Die uiteenlopende verskille in die voorskool hou besondere uitdagings in vir die opvoeder-terapeut span. Die onderwysers het 'n behoefte aan opleiding, inligting en ondersteuning op verskeie gebiede in verband met die fasilitering van taalontwikkeling in die veeltalige voorskool uitgespreek. Hulle kon sommige, hoewel nie alle behoeftes van die voorskoolse leerders identifiseer. Die bevindinge van hierdie navorsing sal toegepas word in die ontwikkeling van 'n ondersteuningspakket wat in samewerkende praktyk deur kommunikasiepatoloë en onderwysers in veeltalige voorskole geïmplementeer sal word. Hierdie projek was instrumenteel om 'n aansienlike toekenning vir Kommunika te verwerf.
Contact person: Ms EC Naudé.
A novel study aimed to determine the prevalence and nature of hearing impairment experienced by musicians who play wind instruments. Middle ear infection is a symptom frequently experienced by wind instrumentalists, with the prevalence of this condition more common in this group than in the rest of the population. This is possibly associated with post-nasal pathology caused by playing these instruments.
'n Nuwe studie het ten doel die bestudering van die voorkoms en aard van gehoorverswakking wat deur musikante wat blaasinstrumente bespeel, ondervind word. Middeloorontsteking is 'n simptoom wat dikwels deur blaasinstrumentaliste ondervind word — dit kom meer dikwels by hulle voor as in die res van die bevolking en kan waarskynlik toegeskryf word aan die post-nasale patalogie wat veroorsaak word deur hierdie instrumente te bespeel.
Contact person: Ms E Groenewald.
Certain people, such as babies, emotionally disturbed people, or comatose patients, are unable to co-operate under standard hearing test conditions. For them, other objective audiometric procedures need to be developed. A research project aimed at predicting the hearing threshold by the use of a new technique, the dichotic multiple frequency steady state. It evoked potentials, which was assessed and compared to other objective procedures, for example, the auditory brainstem response protocol. Results show that this procedure could be an important tool in a total test battery approach for the evaluation of hearing function.
Contact person: Dr DL Schmulian.
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