The Light Center, College of the Redwoods

A person told she/he as an auditory processing problem often says, "But I had my hearing tested and it is fine" A hearing loss refers to a decrease in acuity or clarity of sound being received by the ear. Unlike a hearing loss or impairment, an auditory processing problem relates to what the brain does with the information sent to it by the ear. An auditory processing problem assumes that the ear is functioning adequately, but the brain is not successfully dealing with the information it receives. A hearing aid is not going to assist someone with an auditory processing problem because the problem is not one of "not hearing soft sounds adequately". So what is it?

Auditory processing refers to the ability to attend to various sounds, recall and repeat what is heard, determine from what direction a sound originates, and sequence and filter the sounds. Auditory processing problems exist in the presence of normal hearing acuity. This can involve a total of sixteen different processes or skills. Three of the more important of those processes are listed and described below.

Auditory memory refers to the ability to retain what has just been said. A common problem is the inability to "hang on to" a phone number long enough to write it down. Deficits in auditory memory can range from mild to severe, and can affect such skills as note taking, following directions, learning material by rote, and mastering math facts such as multiplication tables.

Auditory sequencing relates to the ability to recall information which has been presented verbally, in the correct order. Again, the phone number example fits. One may recall the numbers, but not in the correct sequence. This can affect word attack skills, following directions, recalling the sequence of steps involved in doing a math problem, and spelling.

Imagine yourself in a busy cafeteria trying to carry on a conversation with someone. You find that you must "filter out" the plate noise, others speaking, children crying etc. The person with auditory figure ground problems has great difficulty filtering out those auditory distractions. It is very difficult for them to function in a noisy classroom or a setting that echoes, such as a gymnasium. They are constantly distracted by noises going on around them.

Questions or Comments mailto:trish-blair@redwoods.edu

October 11, 1999

SUGGESTIONS FOR HELPING STUDENTS WITH AUDITORY PROCESSING PROBLEMS

• Provide an outline of the lecture, with key vocabulary words highlighted.
• Make directions short and concise.
• Provide assignments and exam dates in writing.
• Encourage the student to develop a buddy system to double check on assignments and concepts.
• Give preferential seating to a student who has auditory processing problems.
• Make use of body language, facial and hand gestures to accompany your verbal output.
• Provide information through a multisensory format--videos, charts, pictures, graphs--to complement the verbal information.
• If the student is distracted during seatwork, encourage the use of earplugs or headphones to dampen interfering noise.
• Provide demonstrations whenever possible.
• Give directions and assignments while the class is attentive, not as they are packing up to leave.

" The process of learning requires not only hearing and applying, but also forgetting and then remembering again."

--- John Gray, Men Are From Mars, Woman Are From Venus (Harper Collins)