Voice
If a student has an impairment of the voice, this may present in change of pitch, loudness and quality of the vocal sound. Impairment in voice may be the result of vocal abuse. This may occur from talking too loudly, talking too often, making animal like noises, excessive throat clearing and coughing, as well as excessive singing and shouting tone (Winkworth & Livesey, 2000, p. 62).
It is estimated that 6% of students aged 6-18 years have clinically significant voice disorders (2000, p. 61) and only a small portion of these present to clinics! If a teacher suspects a student may have a voice disorder they should refer them to a speech therapist for assessment of the lifestyle and vocal behaviours, which may be contributing factors to the impairment.
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