Auditory Processing
Auditory Processing refers to how the brain identifies and interprets sound information. For there to be successful auditory processing, children require skills such as the ability to detect a sound or to differentiate between sounds, and to tune into one particular sound or noise. Children with Central Auditory Processing deficits have normal hearing; however they struggle to decode the sounds they hear, struggle to filter out unwanted sounds, and difficulty with paying attention to the sounds they need to hear.
3 skills essential for Auditory Processing success include:
Auditory Awareness
The ability to detect sound
The ability to locate the sound source
The ability to attend to important auditory information even when there is competing background noise
Auditory Discrimination
The ability to detect differences between sounds in the environment, differences between specific speech sounds and differences in other aspects of speech including pitch and rate
Auditory Identification
The ability to attach meaning to sounds and speech
The ability to change speech production based on information you get from hearing yourself speak
Phonological Awareness- Phonological awareness is the ability to recognize and manipulate the spoken parts of sentences and words.
Auditory Memory
· The ability to store and recall auditory information
Symptoms of Auditory Processing Deficits:
Struggling to listen and pay attention
Mis-hearing words
Difficulty following directions
Difficulty learning how to read
Frequently asking “what” or “huh”
Difficulty understanding speech in the presence of background noise
Poor social interaction
Getting lost in conversations
Language delays
How to diagnose APD?
To properly diagnose APD, special tests need to be administered by an audiologist. Individuals with APD usually pass standard hearing tests because standard hearing tests are designed to test the quietest sounds one can hear.
Treatment of APD:
Many times the suggestions offered to parents to help their children with auditory processing problems are compensatory strategies, which are ways to help the child cope.
· Using simple, one-step directions
· Speaking at a slower rate or slightly higher volume
· Providing a quiet spot for doing work
· Being patient and repeating things
While these are useful in the short-term, helping them deal with day-to-day situations, you also need to remediate the underlying problem. The main treatment for APD is speech therapy. The earlier treatment starts, the better.
There are some computer programs that address auditory processing therapeutically, such as:
Language Processing Deficits vs. Auditory Processing Deficits:
They are NOT the same thing!
Language Processing Disorder: Affects any language-related activity, including understanding conversations, reading, and writing.
Auditory Processing Disorder: Affects the way the brain interprets and processes sound. It does not directly affect language skills.