Language Therapy and Intervention

Language impairment involves a disorder in comprehension or production of spoken or written language. The disorder may manifest in difficulties in form (phonology, morphology, and syntax), content (semantics), use (pragmatics), or any combination of the three. Language impairment often occurs in the presence of other conditions such as intellectual disabilities, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, psychological and emotional disorders, autism spectrum disorder, hearing loss, developmental disabilities, or traumatic brain injury. Approximately 7% of children between the ages of 5 and 18 demonstrate some form of language impairment and require intervention. This entry discusses language intervention for children and adolescents.

[Page 1015]Language intervention is designed (a) to remediate or modify underlying problems that contribute to language difficulties or (b) to assist students to develop compensatory strategies to lessen ...