Turn the Page, Speech-Language Pathologists: Adequate, Authentic, and Accurate Representation as a Consideration in the Selection of Picture Books for Use in Treatment

• Published in: Language, speech & hearing services in schools Vol. 52; no. 4; pp. 955 - 966
• Main Authors: Harris, Sierrah, Owen Van Horne, Amanda J
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Speech-Language-Hearing Association 01.10.2021
• Subjects: Accountability; Allied Health Personnel; Analysis; Bilingualism; Child; Child development; Children & youth; Children's stories; Childrens Literature; Childrens picture books; Clinical medicine; Communication; Communication Disorders; Communities of Practice; Community Relations; Cultural Awareness; Cultural competence; Cultural Pluralism; Culturally Relevant Education; Demographic aspects; Educational Practices; Elementary Education; Elementary Schools; Ethical aspects; Ethics; Ethnicity; Family (Sociological Unit); Guidelines; Humans; Individual Differences; Language disorders; Materials selection; Media Selection; Metacognition; Minority & ethnic groups; Multiculturalism; Pathologists; Picture Books; Preschool Children; Professions; Psychological aspects; Racial Differences; Racial discrimination; Racism; Reading Material Selection; Self Actualization; Self Evaluation (Individuals); Social aspects; Speech; Speech Language Pathology; Speech therapists; Speech Therapy; Speech-language pathologists; Student Empowerment; Students; Teaching Methods; Young Children; United States; United States > US
• ISSN: 0161-1461; 1558-9129
• DOI: 10.1044/2021_LSHSS-20-00155

Purpose: This tutorial discusses what it means to be a culturally responsive speech-language pathologist (SLP) and then grounds this discussion in strategies that SLPs can engage in to diversify the books and other materials that they use in clinical practice. Method: We motivate the tutorial by reviewing policy statements and theoretical information from allied literature. Then, we suggest some ways that SLPs can reflect on their practice to enact an antiracist/culturally responsive approach to treatment, taking the selection of children's literature up as a particular example. We identified strategies that have been suggested across a variety of fields and illustrate these strategies with examples. We both provide recommendations for how to select picture books and also suggest ways to implement these suggestions with accountability. Conclusions: There is a need for SLPs to reflect on how to be culturally responsive in their practice and to review their materials selection practices with regard to how materials reflect the composition of their caseloads. As a predominantly White profession serving diverse caseloads, we have an ethical obligation to review our choice of materials and align them with culturally responsive practices.