Language and Cognition Seminar - Mélanie Gréaux

Speech and Language Therapy provision for autistic children in the UK and India:

An investigation of cross-cultural learning to embrace linguistic and cultural diversity in clinical practice

Speech and Language Therapists (SLTs) provide services to an increasingly linguistically and culturally diverse population, but also report significant conceptual and practical challenges to adapt their practice to best support these clients. Using technology to connect SLT communities around the world represents a highly promising endeavour to exchange practices, knowledge and resources reflecting and respectful of linguistic and cultural diversity.

In this talk, I will provide the rationale for my PhD study aiming to implement an online collaborative learning platform for SLTs. More specifically, I will focus on how SLTs practising in the UK and in India can learn from one another around the care for autistic children of diverse backgrounds. Conceptually, I will demonstrate that these two professional communities demonstrate a huge potential for mutually beneficial knowledge exchange for this client group. Methodologically, I will suggest a research design mapped onto frameworks of Continuing Professional Development as an attempt to reduce the gap between researchers and practitioners.