Üsküdar Üniversitesi Faculty of Health Sciences Head of the Department of Speech and Language Therapy Prof. Dr. Ahmet Konrot, participated as a speaker in the program organized by the Kadıköy District Directorate of National Education. In the program broadcast live on Instagram, Konrot made evaluations regarding the topic of “Speech and Language Disorders.”
“Communication is a type of intentional interaction”
Konrot, emphasizing that communication is a type of intentional interaction, said; “From the moment we are born, there are various stimuli around us. A newborn baby is aware that something is happening around them, but doesn't know what it is. They don't even recognize their mother and father. They try to symbolically understand ideas about what the world is. We intentionally try to convey the thoughts in our minds to the person in front of us. One of these is language.”
“Regional, dialectal, and accent differences are not speech disorders”
Konrot, pointing out that a speech and language therapist only deals with communication, speech, language, and swallowing problems, said; “A speech and language therapist only deals with communication, speech, language, and swallowing problems. If a person has a problem with their ability to feel the need for communication, this can also be classified as a speech and language disorder. Speech disorders are the morphological dimension related to conveying meaning as a result of sounds being placed side by side. You need to know the characteristic of the form, what meaning this form expresses, and where and how to use which form. Dialectal and accent differences based on regions are not speech disorders. They are differences. There might be language or speech issues.”
“Early intervention in education for children with special needs is important”
Continuing his speech, Konrot offered advice for children with special needs and their teachers; “For children with special needs, the curriculum can be adapted for the children. What is important is how early our teachers identify special education needs. The earlier you provide them with aids/devices, the more effective the child's integration into society will be. During this process, the family must definitely be involved.”