The Role of Speech & Language Therapists in the Education of Pupils with Special Educational Needs. Final Report to the Scottish Office Education & Industry Department.

A 3-year study of 12 regional and 3 island authorities in Scotland investigated: (1) the speech and language therapy needs of pupils with special education needs; (2) forms of collaboration among parents and professionals; and (3) the perceived effectiveness of different models of speech and language therapy service delivery. The research results included the following findings: (1) there is a pattern of ever increasing demand for speech and language therapy that continuously outstrips increases in provision; (2) speech and language therapy managers felt that they had lost the power to give priority to children who did not have Records of Needs but who had equally pressing needs for speech and language therapy; (3) speech and language therapy managers felt services to pre-school children were increasingly at risk because of the reallocation of resources to school-aged children; (4) effective provision of speech and language therapy to pupils in mainstream schools has not yet been achieved; (5) provision of speech and language therapy is reported by parents and professionals to be especially poor at the secondary school level; and (6) collaborative practices were found in both mainstream and special educational settings, but particularly in evidence in special educational facilities. (Contains 36 references.) (CR)