Have you heard of auditory perception disorder?

If you have ever heard of learning difficulties, you may have heard that they are divided into two types: developmental learning difficulties and academic learning difficulties. While there are several types of developmental learning difficulties, we are specifically talking about auditory processing difficulties, or what is known as auditory perception disorder.

It is worth noting that auditory perception disorder is different from hearing impairment, but rather it is a condition that makes the child unable to understand what he hears correctly.

If you want to know more about learning difficulties and their types, you can read the article Types of Learning Difficulties .

What is Auditory Perceptual Disorder? APD

It is a disorder caused by an imbalance between auditory processing processes in the brain that results in the inability of the affected person to distinguish between sounds when there are multiple sounds. Children with APD have difficulty understanding what is being said to them when they are in noisier places such as the classroom, playground, sporting event, school cafeteria, or party.

What are the symptoms of auditory perception disorder (APD )?

1. Mishearing sounds and words.
2. Speech and pronunciation problems.
3. Understanding is clearer in quiet places.
4. Inability to distinguish sounds in noisy places.
5. Inability to distinguish mixed sounds.
6. Inability to follow verbal directions.

When do symptoms of auditory perception disorder (APD) begin to appear ?

Symptoms begin to appear in the first few years of early childhood.

What might make it difficult to diagnose auditory perception disorder (APD) ?

The symptoms of APD are similar to those of other learning disabilities , so it may not be diagnosed accurately. APD symptoms may not be present because of other problems, such as delayed speech and language, learning disabilities, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), depression, as well as auditory memory deficits, auditory attention problems, and sound sensitivity.

It is not a symptom of APD , but it may also involve a problem in using auditory information correctly; therefore, diagnosis must be made with the help of a doctor and a specialist.

How is auditory perception disorder (APD) diagnosed?

Auditory Perceptual Disorder (APD) is usually diagnosed using a specific set of hearing tests. In some ways, specialists identify these main problems in children with APD :

Auditory form: This occurs when a child has difficulty understanding speech when there is a voice in the speech, or ambient background noise. Noisy, disorganized, or crowded classrooms can be very frustrating for a child with APD .

Auditory closure: This occurs when a child cannot (fill gaps) in speech when it is most difficult. This can happen in a quieter setting but is more common when the speaker’s voice is too fast or muffled, making it difficult for the child to understand sounds and words.

Dyadic listening: This occurs when a child has difficulty understanding meaningful reciprocal speech that is occurring at the same time. For example, if a teacher is speaking on one side of the child, and another student is speaking on the other side, the child with APD cannot understand the speech of one or both speakers.

Temporal Processing: This is the timing of a child's processing system, and it aims to help them recognize differences in speech sounds. It also helps them understand intonation, intonation (for example, asking a question rather than giving a command), understand riddles and jokes, and make inferences.

Binaural hearing: This is the ability to detect side speech or sounds coming from around the room. Although this problem is less common, it occurs in children who have a history of brain trauma or seizure disorders.

Is auditory nerve weakness dangerous?

Yes, this is a very serious condition. Auditory nerve impairment (or sensorineural hearing loss) is a condition characterized by damage or impairment of the auditory nerve, which is the nerve responsible for transmitting auditory signals from the inner ear to the brain. Auditory nerve impairment makes it difficult to receive and interpret sound signals, leading to a deterioration in hearing ability.

There are several causes of auditory nerve weakness, including age, exposure to loud noise, noise pollution, injury or trauma to the ear, and some diseases and other health conditions.

Symptoms of auditory nerve damage include difficulty hearing marginal sounds, stress or distress when trying to understand speech, ringing in the ears, and difficulty communicating in noisy environments.

There is a relationship between auditory nerve weakness and learning difficulties. When there is a weakness in the auditory nerve, it can negatively affect the ability to absorb and understand auditory information in students, and thus can lead to learning difficulties such as:

Difficulty understanding the teacher:

• Students with hearing loss may have difficulty understanding the teacher during audio lessons.
• Hearing loss can cause you to miss vital details in the audio explanation and thus affect your understanding of the material.

Impact on active participation:

• It may be difficult for hearing-impaired students to actively participate in audio discussions or group activities.
• They may feel embarrassed or anxious about not being able to hear others clearly or interact effectively.

Reading and writing:

• The ability to learn language, including reading and writing, may be affected as a result of auditory nerve impairment.
• Good hearing plays an important role in the development of language and speech, so hearing loss can affect reading and writing skills .

Fortunately, there are strategies and compensatory tools that can help students with hearing impairment overcome learning difficulties . These include using hearing aids, providing a sound environment that is conducive to learning, using complementary visual aids such as pictures and illustrations, and providing additional individual learning support such as those provided by the Madrasa.com platform . Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) may also provide techniques to overcome the challenges associated with learning difficulties.

What is the best age to screen for auditory perception disorder (APD ) ?

For accurate screening, it is best for the child to be at least 7 years old; therefore, many children may not be diagnosed until first grade or later.

But the good news is that modern electrophysiology tests, which use non-invasive electrodes to check the body's response to speech, can provide some early information about the central auditory system in children as young as 7 years old.

What are the causes of auditory perception disorder (APD) ?

1. Head injuries.
2. Lead poisoning.
3. Disorder, seizures, or chronic ear infections.
4. In some cases there may be more than one cause.

What are the methods of treating auditory perception disorder (APD) ?

1. Physical facilities to improve the listening environment.
2. Individual treatments.
3. Help from other professionals to manage symptoms of not listening. For example, a child may benefit from:
4. Speech and language therapy for language impairment.
5. Counseling to help with depression or anxiety.
6. Art therapy or music therapy to build self-esteem.
7. Occupational therapy to help with sensory issues or auditory timing concerns.

One common method is the remote microphone system, formerly known as the frequency modulation (FM) system.

This assistive listening device focuses on the speaker's voice rather than background noise, making the sound clearer so the child can understand it. The person speaking wears a small microphone transmitter, which in turn sends a signal to a wireless receiver the child wears on the ear, or to a speaker box.

Other accommodations often focus on improving a child's access to speech. Improving speech means reducing interference from other things, such as background noise, or audio and visual distractions.

In general, children's hearing begins to improve as they get older until they reach 14 years of age.

How to deal with a child with auditory perception disorder (APD) at home?

Reduce background noise whenever possible.

1. Have your child look at you when you speak; this helps give your child visual clues (to fill in the gaps) in missing speech information.
2. Use strategies such as chunking, which means giving your child simple verbal directions with fewer words, a key word to remember, and fewer steps.
3. Speak a little slower, and in a clear voice.
4. Have your child repeat the directions back to you to make sure he understands them.
5. Many children with APD find the use of close-up captions on television and computer programs helpful.
6. Encourage children to stand up for themselves without embarrassment, have them say they can't hear well if this happens.
7. Shy children may need to use agreed-upon visual cards or signals to coaches, parents, and teachers to let them know if there is a problem.
8. Remind your child that there is nothing to be ashamed of, and that we all learn in different ways.
9. Be patient with him and teach him patience. This may be difficult for your child and takes time because he wants to be better.

Activities for children with auditory perception disorder:

Children with auditory perceptual disorder have difficulty processing auditory information and understanding speech and instructions. Therefore, they need activities that help them improve their auditory, language, and social skills. Here are some activities that may be helpful for children with this disorder:

• Sound games : These games involve using different sounds to stimulate listening and differentiating between sounds. For example, you could play a sound memory game, where you hide some objects that make familiar sounds, such as an alarm clock, a telephone, or a bell, and ask the child to guess what the object is based on the sound he hears. Or you could play a sound and movement game, where you make different sounds, such as animals, machines, or nature, and ask the child to imitate the appropriate sound and movement.
• Auditory stories : These activities involve listening to recorded or read aloud stories and interacting with them in different ways. For example, you might ask the child to predict what will happen in the story before it ends, ask questions about characters, events, or feelings, retell the story in their own words, draw a picture of the story, or act out a role from the story.
• Language games : These games involve using words and sentences in creative and fun ways. For example, you could play a crossword puzzle, where you give definitions for words that start with a certain letter, and ask the child to find the correct word. Or you could play a written sentence game, where you write a sentence on a piece of paper, and ask the child to read it out loud, changing one thing in it, such as the subject, verb, tense, or place, and read it back.
  
  These are some activities that can help children with auditory perceptual disorder develop their skills and self-confidence.

You can also learn the difference between learning difficulties - academic delay - and slow learning through the following article.

The difference between learning difficulties - academic delay - and slow learning