Feasibility of Assessing Expressive and Receptive Vocabulary via Telepractice for Early Elementary-Age Children With Language Impairment.

PURPOSE: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, millions of school-age children with language impairment (LI) and their speech-language pathologists (SLPs) relied on telepractice service delivery models. Unfortunately, the dearth of evidence and procedural guidance available to SLPs has made this transition challenging at best. METHOD: The current study utilized a sample of 20 young children with LI to determine the feasibility of procedures necessary for conducting vocabulary assessments via telepractice platforms and the reliability of scoring participant responses using standardized assessments. RESULTS: Study findings resulted in numerous practical suggestions for SLPs working with young children with LI via telepractice. Results suggest that these adaptations result in strong interrater reliability for scoring participant responses in an online format. CONCLUSION: Study findings suggest that conducting telepractice assessments can be a useful and reliable tool for school-based SLPs, with implications reaching beyond the pandemic era.

Change in School-Based Speech-Language Pathologists' Job Satisfaction During COVID-19 School Closures: Applying the Conservation of Resources Theory.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this investigation was to explore how school-based speech-language pathologists' (SLPs') job satisfaction changed because of the COVID-19 global pandemic. We situated job satisfaction within the Conservation Resources (COR) theory. METHOD: We distributed a web-based survey to school-based SLPs throughout the United States. A total of 1,352 SLPs followed the link and 1,069 completed at least 90% of the survey. The survey was composed of four parts: (a) demographic information, (b) obstacles faced during COVID-19 school closures, (c) job satisfaction, and (d) self-efficacy. Self-efficacy was divided into three subscales: decision-making, instructional, and disciplinary. RESULTS: Nearly half (48%, n = 522) of the sample reported a decline in job satisfaction following COVID-19 school closures. Using a binomial logistic regression, we found that time pressures and disciplinary self-efficacy predicted this change in job satisfaction. Individuals who reported higher disciplinary self-efficacy and more pressures on their time were 1.2 times more likely to experience a decline in job satisfaction. Number of obstacles faced, caseload size, years of experience, and the additional two self-efficacy scales were not related to this change. CONCLUSIONS: Job satisfaction is considered a malleable resource within the COR theory. Indeed, we observed a change in this resource due to the rapid shift in service delivery methods, paired with variable levels of support and resources from school districts. Our results have implications for how administration may support SLPs in and out of times of acute crises.