Developmental Language Disorder: Considerations for Implementing School-Based Screenings

Abstract

Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) is a condition that impacts children’s ability to understand and/or use language. DLD is highly prevalent in the school-age population, but it remains misunderstood and underdiagnosed. Along with raising public awareness, there is a need for improved educational practices for identifying children with DLD. Universal language screening in the early grades is a promising solution for improving under-identification of DLD but it requires systematic approaches that consider the heterogeneity of school contexts and their unique challenges. In this paper, we introduce DLD and discuss how frameworks commonly used in implementation science can help with the adoption and maintenance of early language screening.