Why can't my child understand directions? When kids are listening, but not taking in information
Auditory Processing Deficit - D y s l e x i a
School Term: (SLD - Specific Learning Disability) or
Specific Literacy/Learning Difficulties SLD/ (Dyslexia)
Challenges: 1 or more
- Following verbal directions unless they are short and simple
- Understanding and remembering spoken language .
- Often need others to repeat themselves
- Reading, spelling, writing
- Telling where sound is coming from
- Paying attention
- Singing or enjoying music.
- Understanding words that are spoken quickly or in a noisy room
- Take longer to reply to someone who is talking to you.
In typical hearing, the brain's auditory center takes the sound waves sent from the ears and turns them into sounds you know. But with auditory processing disorder (APD), the auditory part of the brain can't do this.
Teachers might mistake these reactions as
- defiance or disinterest.
- not trying
- sounding out words is a skill they should know
Auditory processing disorder (APD) is a condition where your brain can’t understand and interpret auditory signals the way it should. You can hear, but you might have trouble understanding certain sounds. There isn’t a cure for APD, but treatment can help you manage the condition.
You hear words, but it might take your brain a bit longer to understand them. It is a condition that makes it harder to process sounds and language. You may also be more of a visual learner
Types of Auditory Processing
- Decoding. You hear sounds but your brain can’t process them as words.
- Integration. It’s hard to multitask when you’re listening. Taking notes in school is one example.
- Organizational. You have trouble recalling information in a specific order.
- Prosodic. You have difficulty interpreting tone and inflection. For instance, you might not notice that the tone of a person’s voice scoops up at the end of a question
It may make it difficult to follow verbal directions. Have long conversations in loud environments. Responding immediately during conversations. Telling the difference between words and understanding rapid speech. In addition, processing delays impact working memory, which is the ability to hear information, hold it in short-term memory, and then use or apply that information.
Impact on learning and academic performance
- Reading and phonological skills: A core deficit is the inability to break words into individual sounds/syllables (phonemes), which is crucial for reading. This makes learning to read and spell very difficult.
- Listening and attention: Individuals with APD find listening exhausting and often can't process enough of a lecture or conversation to make sense of it. This can lead to a failure to pay attention and a need for frequent repetition of instructions.
- Comprehension: Students have to work so hard to decode words that they are unable to focus on the content of what they are reading.
- Memory: It's hard to retain information presented orally, especially multi-step directions. This is because the brain has difficulty holding the information in short-term or working memory long enough to use it.
- Academic performance: These difficulties can lead to low academic performance, poor vocabulary, and problems with comprehension and written language.
- Behavioral and social issues: Difficulty understanding conversations can lead to embarrassment, frustration, and social withdrawal.
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/24938-auditory-processing-disorder
https://www.forbrain.com/free-auditory-processing-disorder-test/how-does-apd-affect-learning/