Purpose: Fluent speech is described as effortless speech while stuttering is characterized by impairments in the fluency of speech. Preschool children who stutter mostly benefit from speech therapy if it is applied early. Teachers are the primary people in the lives of the children in the preschool years. Therefore, it is critical that early childhood education teachers are aware of the difficulties that their students confront and assist them in overcoming with appropriate approaches. This study’s goal is twofold. The main goal of this study is to to identify the knowledge and attitudes of students enrolled in the undergraduate programme of early childhood education about stuttering. The other goal of the study is to determine the awareness of early childhood education teacher candidates regarding which profession group they should consult for diagnosis and intervention, as well as how well they can identify students who stutter. Method: The students enrolled in early childhood education undergraduate programme at Ankara, Gazi, Hacettepe, Middle East Technical, and TED Universities that are located in Ankara were included in the study. The study was carried out with 48 (9 male and 39 female) volunteer participants aged between 18 and 23 years. In order to determine the awareness and attitudes of undergraduate students of early childhood education programme about stuttering, a questionnaire prepared by the researchers was delivered to the participants via online platforms. The questionnaire was based on Teacher Attitudes Toward Stuttering Inventory (Crowe & Walton, 1978), Teacher Perceptions of Stuttering Inventory (Yeakle & Cooper, 1986), and the studies by Pachigar et al. (2011) and Plexico et al. (2013). The findings of the study were analyzed with descriptive statistics. Results: While 24.99% (n=12) of the participants believe that they have sufficient knowledge about stuttering, 35.41% (n=17) of the participants think that they do not. 49.99% (n=24) and 41.66% (n=20) of the participants stated that stuttering occurs after an accident or trauma and fear, respectively. Furthermore, 85.41% (n=41) of all participants answered that even if their students do not stutter while singing, the participants would continue to suspect about stuttering. 54.16% (n=26) of the participants stated that it is possible to become a person who stutters by imitating someone who stutters. While 91.66% (n=44) of the participants did not agree with the statement that a person who stutters may also have mental retardation, 8.33% (n=4) of the participants were unsure about it. In order to increase the participation of a student who is suspected of stuttering, 49.99% (n=24) of the participants stated that they would increase activities that require fewer verbal skills. 64.57% (n=31) of the participants thought that their suspicion would increase about stuttering if they observed secondary behaviors with their students. 85.41% (n=41) of the participants said they would examine their student's interaction with his/her peers if they had suspicion of stuttering. While 81.24% (n=39) of the participants stated that they would exchange opinions with their colleagues if they suspected a student about stuttering, 91.66% (n=44) of the participants said that they would schedule an interview with their family members. Only, 47.91% (n=23) of the participants stated that they would direct their students whom they suspect of stuttering to speech and language therapy. Conclusion: This preliminary study is important as it reveals the knowledge and attitudes of teacher candidates of early education who holds primary contact with preschool children who stutter. In addition, it reveals the necessity of increasing the knowledge about the profession of speech and language therapy in order to improve the attitudes of teacher candidates of early education about stuttering. Furthermore, it has been found that the participants either have incorrect knowledge about stuttering or are unsure. It was observed that the information about the cooperation with speech and language therapists should be given to the undergraduate students of early childhood education as they are primarily in contact with preschool children who stutter.
stuttering awareness, preschool, early childhood education, speech and language therapy
stuttering awareness, preschool, early childhood education, speech and language therapy
Abdalla, F. A., & St. Louis, K. O. (2012). Arab school teachers’ knowledge, beliefs and reactions regarding stuttering. Journal of Fluency Disorders, 37(1), 54-69.
Abdalla, F., & St. Louis, K. O. (2014). Modifying attitudes of Arab school teachers toward stuttering. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 45(1), 14-25.
Abrahams, K., Harty, M., St. Louis, K. O., Thabane, L., ve Kathard, H. (2016). Primary school teachers' opinions and attitudes towards stuttering in two South African urban education districts. South African Journal of Communication Disorders, 63(1), 1-10.
Arnold, H. S., Li, J., ve Goltl, K. (2015). Beliefs of teachers versus non-teachers about people who stutter. Journal of Fluency Disorders, 43, 28-39.
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. (2016). Scope of practice in speech-language pathology. https://www.asha.org/policy/sp2016-00343/ adresinden alınmıştır (Erişim Tarihi: 14.11.2021).
Blood, G. W., & Blood, I. M. (2016). Long-term consequences of childhood bullying in adults who stutter: Social anxiety, fear of negative evaluation, self-esteem, and satisfaction with life. Journal of Fluency Disorders, 50, 72-84.
Breadner, B. W., Warr-Leeper, G. A., ve Husband, S. J. (1987). A study of public awareness of speech-language pathology: Then and now. Age (years), 18(19), 10-13.
Craig, A., & Tran, Y. (2005). The epidemiology of stuttering: The need for reliable estimates of prevalence and anxiety levels over the lifespan. Advances in Speech Language Pathology, 7(1), 41-46.
Crowe, T. A., & Walton, J. H. (1978). Teacher attitudes toward stuttering inventory. The University of Mississippi, Department of Communicative Disorders.
Crowe, T. A., & Walton, J. H. (1981). Teacher attitudes toward stuttering. Journal of Fluency Disorders, 6(2), 163-174.
Daşdemir, İ. (2016). Bilimsel araştırma yöntemi (1. baskı). Nobel Yayıncılık.
Davis, S., Howell, P., ve Cooke, F. (2002). Sociodynamic relationships between children who stutter and their non‐stuttering classmates. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 43(7), 939-947.
Dorsey, M., & Guenther, R. K. (2000). Attitudes of professors and students toward college students who stutter. Journal of Fluency Disorders, 25(1), 77-83.
Duru, H., Akgün, E., ve Maviş, İ. (2018). Dil ve konuşma terapisi mesleğine yönelik farkındalığın belirlenmesi. Dil, Konuşma ve Yutma Araştırmaları Dergisi, 1(3), 257-280.
Einarsdóttir, J., & Ingham, R. J. (2008). The effect of stuttering measurement training on judging stuttering occurrence in preschool children who stutter. Journal of Fluency Disorders, 33(3), 167-179.
Erickson, S., & Block, S. (2013). The social and communication impact of stuttering on adolescents and their families. Journal of Fluency Disorders, 38(4), 311-324.
Franck, A. L., Jackson, R. A., Pimentel, J. T., ve Greenwood, G. S. (2003). School-age children’s perceptions of a person who stutters. Journal of Fluency Disorders, 28(1), 1-15.
Gottwald, S. R., & Starkweather, C. W. (1995). Fluency intervention for preschoolers and their families in the public schools. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 26(2), 117-126.
Greenwood, N., Wright, J. A., ve Bithell, C. (2006). Perceptions of speech and language therapy amongst UK school and college students: Implications for recruitment. International Journal of Language & Communication Disorders, 41(1), 83-94.
Groenewald, T. (2004). A phenomenological research design illustrated. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 3(1), 1–26.
Guitar, B. (2006). Stuttering: An integrated approach to its nature and treatment. (3. baskı). Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
Guitar, B. (2013). Stuttering: An integrated approach to its nature and treatment (4. baskı). Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
Guttormsen, L. S., Yaruss, J. S., ve Næss, K. A. B. (2020). Caregivers’ perceptions of stuttering impact in young children: Agreement in mothers’, fathers’ and teachers’ ratings. Journal of Communication Disorders, 86, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcomdis.2020.106001
Hugh‐Jones, S., & Smith, P. K. (1999). Self‐reports of short‐and long‐term effects of bullying on children who stammer. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 69(2), 141-158.
Irani, F., & Gabel, R. (2008). School teachers' attitudes towards people who stutter: Results of a mail survey. Canadian Journal of Speech-Language Pathology & Audiology, 32(3), 129-134.
Juster, F. T., Ono, H., ve Stafford, F. P. (2004). Changing times of American youth: 1981-2003. Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan.
Kara, İ., & Karamete, A. (2018). Kekemeliği olan yetişkinlerin okul çağındaki akran zorbalığı mağduriyetlerinin belirlenmesi: Ön çalışma. Dil, Konuşma ve Yutma Araştırmaları Dergisi, 1(1), 50-61.
Kelman E., & Nicholas A. (2008). Practical intervention for early childhood stammering: Palin PCI approach (3. Baskı). Speechmark.
Langevin, M., & Prasad, N. N. (2012). A stuttering education and bullying awareness and prevention resource: A feasibility study. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 43(3) , 344-358.
Lass, N. J., Ruscello, D. M., Pannbacker, M., Schmitt, J. F., Kiser, A. M., Mussa, A. M., ve Lockhart, P. (1994). School administrators’ perceptions of people who stutter. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 25(2), 90-93.
Lass, N. J., Ruscello, D. M., Schmitt, J. F., Pannbacker, M. D., Orlando, M. B., Dean, K. A., Ruziska, J. C., ve Bradshaw, K. H. (1992). Teachers’ perceptions of stutterers. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 23(1), 78-81.
Lees, R. M. (1999). Stammering in school children. Support for Learning, 14(1), 22-26.
Manning, W. H. (2010). Clinical decision making in fluency disorders (3. Baskı). Singular Publishing.
Oğuz, Ö., & Aytar, B. (2020). Tıp fakültesi öğrencilerinin dil ve konuşma terapistliği mesleğine yönelik farkındalık ve tutumları: İnterdisipliner takım çalışmasına yönelik çıkarımlar. Dil, Konuşma ve Yutma Araştırmaları Dergisi, 3(2), 200-217.
Özdemir, R. S., St. Louis, K. O., ve Topbaş, S. (2011a). Public attitudes toward stuttering in Turkey: Probability versus convenience sampling. Journal of Fluency Disorders, 36(4), 262-267.
Özdemir, R. S., St. Louis, K. O., ve Topbaş, S. (2011b). Stuttering attitudes among Turkish family generations and neighbors from representative samples. Journal of Fluency Disorders, 36(4), 318-333.
Pachigar, V., Stansfield, J., ve Goldbart, J. (2011). Beliefs and attitudes of primary school teachers in Mumbai, India towards children who stutter. International Journal of Disability, Development and Education, 58(3), 287-302.
Plexico, L. W., Plumb, A. M., ve Beacham, J. (2013). Teacher knowledge and perceptions of stuttering and bullying in school‐age children. Perspectives on Fluency and Fluency Disorders, 23(2), 39-53.
Reilly, S., Onslow, M., Packman, A., Wake, M., Bavin, E., Prior, M., Eadie, P., Cini, E., Bolzonello, C. ve Ukoumunne, O. (2009). Predicting stuttering onset by the age of 3 years: A prospective, community cohorts study. Pediatrics, 123(1), 270-277.
Ruscello, D. M., Lass, N. J., Schmitt, J. F., ve Pannbacker, M. D. (1994). Special educators' perceptions of stutterers. Journal of Fluency Disorders, 19(2), 125-132.
Scott, L. (2009). Helping stutterers. The Education Digest, 74(8), 59.
St. Louis, K. O., Węsierska, K., ve Polewczyk, I. (2018). Improving Polish stuttering attitudes: An experimental study of teachers and university students. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 27(3S), 1195-1210.
Taner, G. (2005). Bireyi Tanıma Tekniklerinin Okul Öncesi Eğitim Kurumlarında Uygulanmasına ilişkin Öğretmen Görüşlerinin İncelenmesi. [Yayınlanmamış Yüksek Lisans Tezi] Selçuk Üniversitesi.
Toğram, B., & Maviş, İ. (2009). Aileler, öğretmenler ve dil ve konuşma terapistlerinin çocuklardaki dil ve konuşma bozukluklarına yönelik tutum ve bilgilerinin değerlendirilmesi. Ankara Üniversitesi Eğitim Bilimleri Fakültesi Özel Eğitim Dergisi, 10(01), 71-85.
Yairi, E., & Ambrose, N. (1999). Early childhood stuttering I. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 42(5), 1097-11.
Yairi, E., & Ambrose, N. G. (2004). Early childhood stuttering. Pro-Ed, Inc.
Yairi, E., & Seery, C. H. (2015). Stuttering: Foundations and clinical applications. Pearson.
Yeakle, M. K., & Cooper, E. B. (1986). Teacher perceptions of stuttering. Journal of Fluency Disorders, 11(4), 345-359.