CSDS Students Perform Hearing Screenings at Local Schools

October 11, 2023

Graduate students in the Waters College of Health Professions Communication Sciences and Disorders (CSDS) program are gaining hands-on experience by providing hearing screenings to approximately 10,000 first-to-ninth grade students attending schools in Chatham and Effingham County this year. Hearing screenings are a critical component in identifying children with hearing loss and getting the vital intervention needed for the child to be successful.

“Early detection of hearing loss is essential to a child’s educational success,” stated Brittany Tyler, clinical instructor at Georgia Southern University’s RiteCare Center for Communication Disorders. “Hearing function is vital to a child’s social, emotional and academic development and research has indicated that any level of hearing loss can significantly impact a child’s ability to learn.”

First-year graduate student Anna Grace Sapp is one of 21 CSDS students who has been assisting in providing these hearing screenings.

“It’s important for students to get hands-on experience in our field of practice and having an opportunity to provide hearing screenings for children in the area has been a monumental opportunity for us to not only apply our knowledge but be active in our community,” stated Sapp.

While performing the hearing screenings, CSDS students also had an opportunity to work with and learn from other health professionals.

“It is such a joy to be surrounded by the students and not only screen their hearing, but also to educate them on how an audiometer works,” stated Sapp. “Many people do not know that screening is included in a speech-language pathologist’s scope of practice, so this is also a great opportunity to educate kids about what speech-language pathologists do. Being part of this experience is an honor and I am grateful to get to work alongside and learn from other health professionals as well as from the children I screen.”