Education for primary care : an official publication of the Association of Course Organisers, National Association of GP Tutors, World Organisation of Family Doctors·2019
Supervision is crucial for speech-language pathology (SLP) students' clinical training.
Understanding student perceptions of supervision can enhance training programs.
Existing research may not fully capture the nuances of SLP student supervisory needs.
Purpose of the Study:
To assess the perceived supervisory needs of speech-language pathology students.
To identify factors influencing student perceptions of supervisory practices.
To inform improvements in clinical supervision within SLP training programs.
Main Methods:
A 43-item questionnaire was administered to 191 speech-language pathology students across six Michigan universities.
Participants were selected based on academic status, university, and earned clinical clock hours.
Data were analyzed to compare perceptions based on demographic and experiential factors.
Main Results:
Student perceptions of supervisory practices varied significantly based on earned clinical clock hours and training site.
No significant differences in perceptions were found between undergraduate and graduate students.
Specific areas of supervisory needs included lesson plan and report writing, observation, conferencing, professional responsibility, and general practices.
Conclusions:
Clinical clock hours and training location are significant factors in how speech-language pathology students perceive supervision.
Training programs should consider these variables to tailor supervisory experiences.
Further research could explore specific interventions to address identified perceptual differences.