Using a phonological framework to describe speech errors of orally trained, hearing-impaired school-agers

A phonological framework was used to analyze and describe the meaningful speech and speech errors of 13 orally trained, hearing-impaired children ages 5:11 to 15:11 enrolled in public school programs. Using speech samples elicited from the subjects, consonant inventories and percentage scores for correct production of consonants and for frequency of occurrence of phonological processes were derived and analyzed. Results of data analyses indicated initial consonant inventories were significantly larger and more complete than final inventories, although both were incomplete. Production accuracy for consonants in the subjects' inventories was significantly related to size of consonant inventories. Accuracy of production differed significantly between sound classes and word positions. Between 4 and 9 phonological processes were productive and co-occurring in the hearing-impaired subjects' meaningful speech. Comparisons with younger, normal hearing children and phonologically disabled children are drawn, and the clinical implications of the findings are discussed.