CAPD

Does My Child Have Central Auditory Processing Disorder?

By Mindy Hudon, M.S., CCC-SLP

Allison quickly sits down at her desk, waiting for the teacher's directions. Her eyes are glued on Mrs. Smith, and she is ready to listen. "Class, before we start reading chapter five of our history book, I need you to take out your spelling and math homework from your blue folder and put it in the center of the desk. I will be coming by to collect it," says Mrs. Smith. Allison gets out her history book and stares at it nervously. She looks around the room at her classmates for clues to her next step. At home that night, Allison cries on her mother's shoulder and says she is stupid and that she can't do her third-grade school work. The next day, Allison's mother calls the school and accuses the teacher of putting too much pressure on her daughter and impacting her self image.

For most children, Mrs. Smith's directions were easy to follow; however, for other children like Allison, these directions can cause havoc. Every day, children in schools are asked to listen, pay attention and follow directions. Some children who have "normal" hearing acuity have difficulty processing or understanding spoken language, particularly when a lot of information is presented quickly within a noisy room. These children, who are often labeled as "not very intelligent" or "not paying attention," may actually be experiencing a central auditory processing disorder (CAPD).

CAPD is defined as "Difficulty in the ability to actively process auditory information rapidly, accurately and in sequence, even though the person has average intelligence and normal hearing sensitivity," say Kathleen Loftus West, M.A., CCC/A, pediatric audiologist at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Children's Hospital in Lexington, Mass., and Kristine E. Strand, Ed.D., CCC/SLP, speech-language pathologist in private practice in Boston, Mass.

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