This course is designed to provide students with an overview of the profession of a Speech-Language Assistant. Topics include professional ethics, the American Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA), and gaining familiarity with the association's guidelines for becoming a registered Speech Language Assistant. Also discussed are roles and responsibilities such as observing, documenting, defining, and understanding goals and objectives in educational and medical settings; implementing both immediate and long-term accommodations; working as part of a team; practicing appropriate health and safety precautions; and working effectively with cultural differences in diverse populations.

This course is designed to provide students in the speech-language concentration with knowledge of the basic anatomy and physiology of the speech production and perception systems to support understanding of directions from a Speech-Language Pathologist. The focus is on those aspects of anatomy and physiology that are critical for clinical implementation. Measurement tools and instrumentation used in the field are discussed.

This course is designed to equip Speech-Language Assistant concentration students with knowledge of the hearing process, symptoms of hearing impairment, basic methods by which an audiologist diagnoses hearing difficulties, and elements of rehabilitative approaches for persons with hearing impairment. An overview of various causes of hearing impairment is explored.

This course provides students in the Speech-Language Assistant concentration with a series of introductory fieldwork experiences during which they will observe Speech-Language Pathologists as they provide speech and language therapy to clients. Students gain practical experience in observing techniques and theories as applied in a therapeutic setting. Twenty-five hours of observation are required for each two-credit practicum, in settings approved by the clinical faculty.