The Washington State University Pullman Catalog

Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences, WSU Spokane

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Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences, WSU Spokane

www.speechandhearing.wsu.edu/index.html
Health Sciences Building 125X
509-358-7602

Professor and Department Chair, G. D. Chermak; Professor, C. L. Madison; Associate Professors, E. Inglebret, N. Potter; Assistant Professor, L. Swineford, M. VanDam; Clinical Professor, L. Power; Clinical Associate Professors, A. Meredith; Clinical Assistant Professors, G. Lynch, K. Simpson; Instructors, K. Jones, M. Ratsch; Professor Emeritus, R. E. Potter.

The Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences offers courses of study leading to the degrees of Bachelor of Arts in Speech and Hearing Sciences and Master of Science in Speech and Hearing Sciences. Training in speech and hearing sciences through the bachelor's level degree is considered a pre-professional degree. State and national clinical and educational certifications and licensure require completion of the master's degree.

Academic course work and clinical practicum offerings prepare professional personnel to meet the diagnostic and therapy needs of individuals of all ages evidencing a wide variety of speech, language, hearing and learning problems.

Graduate students are prepared as speech-language pathologists to provide direct and consultative services in education and medical settings. The course of study emphasizes the physiological, neurological, psychological, and behavioral processes of normal development, the fundamental communication process, and the disorders of communication. The analytic and independent application of course content to the clinical process is encouraged.

The undergraduate and graduate programs, located in the Health Sciences Building on the Washington State University Health Sciences Spokane campus, are cooperative ventures, combining faculty and resources of Washington State University and Eastern Washington University to form University Programs in Communication Disorders (UPCD). WSU students enroll through and receive their degrees from Washington State University. The Hearing and Speech Clinic is the Spokane campus graduate training facility for the University Programs in Communication Disorders. Opportunities to work with special populations and in medical settings are readily available for graduate students in the Spokane area. A capstone graduate internship program provides intensive practical experience in many clinical and educational settings.

The graduate program in speech-language pathology is accredited nationally by the Council on Academic Accreditation of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and recognized at the state level by the Washington State Board of Education. State and national clinical and educational certifications and licensure require a master’s degree. Bachelor’s-level training in speech and hearing sciences is considered pre-professional. The upper-division course work in the major is offered in Spokane.

Student Learning Outcomes

A graduate of the bachelor’s Speech and Hearing Sciences program will be able to: 1) identify needs or issues in clinical service delivery; 2) identify contextual factors to consider in addressing clinical service delivery needs/issues; 3) identify and consider various perspectives important to analysis of the needs/issues and underlying assumptions associated with each; 4) identify and assess the quality of evidence supporting particular service delivery practices; 5)  identify and assess conclusions, implications, and consequences associated with examination of the needs/issues; 6)  Provide informed leadership to achieve desired social outcomes.

Learning outcomes for students in Speech & Hearing Sciences master's program reflect the knowledge and skills competencies required by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Students earning a master's degree will be able to demonstrate: 1) knowledge of the basic human communication and swallowing processes; 2) knowledge of the nature of speech, language, hearing, and communication disorders and differences, and swallowing disorders; 3) knowledge of the principles and methods of prevention, assessment, and intervention for people with communication and swallowing disorders; 4) knowledge of standards of ethical conduct; 5) knowledge of the processes used in research and the integration of research principles into evidence-based clinical practice; 6) knowledge of contemporary professional issues; 7) skills in screening, evaluation and prevention procedures; 8) skills in developing, implementing, and monitoring appropriate intervention plans with measurable and achievable goals that meet clients'/patients' needs.

Preparation for Graduate Study

Students with undergraduate majors in human development, linguistics, education, psychology, and other social and behavioral sciences, as well as those with undergraduate majors in speech and hearing sciences, may be accepted for graduate study in this department. Those with majors in areas other than speech and hearing sciences may be required to take undergraduate prerequisite coursework prior to taking graduate coursework.



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