Language Statistics

• 90% of children with language impairment have had ear infections.

• Approximately 75%-85% of children with articulation and phonological disorders also experience difficulties in language development (Paul & Shriberg, 1982)

• By 3 years of age, a child’s spontaneous speech should be more than 50% intelligible to an unfamiliar adult.

• By 4 years of age, a child’s spontaneous speech should be completely intelligible to unfamiliar adults, although some articulation and phonological differences may occur.

• Deviant speech sound production is the most common type of communication disorder found among school-aged children.

• Articulation makes up approximately 70% of all communication disorders.

• By the second grade (age 7) children should have acquired normal speech patterns.

• 15 of every 10,000 children are diagnosed with autism (Sullivan, 1988)

• Premature and very low birth weight babies are at significantly higher risk for developmental problems as compared to those born full term and age appropriate weight.

• 1-3 babies of every 1000 are born with fetal alcohol syndrome (Petrakis 1987).

• Cerebral Palsy is diagnosed in 3-7% of live births. Over half of these children will have significant difficulties with communicative development.

• There are approximately 5000 children born with Cleft lip and palate each year.

• There are approximately 4000 children born with Down syndrome each year.

• Communication and language deficits are the result of all of these and other disorders, syndromes, and impairments. significant.

• Only half of all children with recognized early language delays progress to normal skill levels on their own.