Comparing measures of spontaneous speech of Turkish-speaking children with and without language impairment

Children with language impairments (LIs) have deficits in one or more ofthe language areas, including phonology, syntax, morphology, semanticsand pragmatics. In Turkey, identification of children with LI has recentlybeen raised as an important issue. Speech-language therapy (SLT) is ayoung profession in Turkey, although it is growing rapidly (Topbaş, 2006).As part of the new professional law establishing SLT, regulations setforth by the Ministry of Health (2011) in cooperation with the Ministryof National Education (MoNE, 2014) included obligations to offer SLTservices to individuals with speech-language impairments. Until a decadeago, the identification of children with LIs (including those who wouldnow be diagnosed with specific language impairment [SLI]) was left to theintuition of doctors or other professionals’ opinions. Language disorderswere (a) included along with developmental disabilities occurring secondaryto hearing impairment, mental retardation, learning disabilities, autism andother organic, neurological or psychiatric disorders; or (b) denied altogether,often by taking a wait-and-see approach for many years. No doubt, manychildren were inappropriately underdiagnosed or unattended.