• Sound field amplification systems (SFA) in schools

Sound field amplification systems or SFA’s send teacher’s voice via radio or infrared transmission to receiver or radio unit. They are designed to equally distribute the teacher’s voice in the classroom. Amplification and digital signal processing overcomes background noise and poor acoustics. They also enable every child in a classroom to clearly hear all the speech components of the teacher’s voice no matter where a child is seated relative to the teacher’s position.

Naada clinic received a grant from Oticon foundation to carry out a study on the impact of sound field amplification system on the development of academic and language skills in school going children in 2011. Pre-kindergarten and second grade students of an international school served as subjects for this study. Children in classrooms with access to sound field amplification systems scored significantly higher on listening inventory for education, listening comprehension and phonological awareness. This suggests that exposure to the sound field amplification systems positively influenced student’s performance on skills directly related to the auditory modality. Further research on the impact of SFA’s on the performance of children in higher grades and diverse language and academic skills is also planned.

Fast mapping is a process by which a new concept is learnt in a short period of time with relatively limited exposure and is thought to contribute significantly to word learning in children. We are looking at fast mapping in bilingual and multilingual populations in India. Insights into fast mapping in these populations can explain the influence of multilingual exposure on language development in children and language learning in adult users.

Bilinguals use more than one language in their interactions and this influences the way they communicate. They mix, switch languages and can translate across languages. Our research looks at these bilingual specific behaviors in normal individuals and persons with communication disorders like aphasia. Bilingualism is on a rise and knowing about these bilingual behaviors would help speech and language therapists recognize and isolate these normative bilingual behaviors from real communication difficulties.

Aphasia in bilinguals can present complicated symptoms. There may be an interaction between bilingual linguistic phenomenon and effects of the brain damage. We look at aphasic symptoms in bilinguals with a purpose of isolating them from normative bilingual behaviors. Our research also focuses on building evidence for implementing specific rehabilitation practices in  bilingual individuals with aphasia.

Bhat, S., Iyengar, K., & Chengappa, S. (2001). Pragmatic deficits in Parkinson’s disease. Journal of Indian Speech and Hearing association, 15, 79-84. 

Chengappa, S., Bhat, S., & Damle, M. (2003). Paraphasias in multilingual aphasia: A single case study of Wernicke’s aphasia. Journal of Indian Speech and Hearing Association, 17, 66-70.

Chengappa, S., & Bhat, S. (2003). Syntactic deficits in Kannada speaking aphasics. International journal of Dravidian linguistics, XXXII (2), 151-170. 

Bhat, S., & Chengappa, S. (2004). Code mixing and code switching in Hindi-English and Kannada-English bilinguals. Osmania papers in linguistics, 30, 30-48. 

Krupa, E.D., Chengappa, S., & Bhat, S. (2004). Language mixing in Malayalam-English bilingual aphasics. Asia pacific journal of disability and rehabilitation, 15(2), 68-76. 

Chengappa, S., Bhat, S., & Padakannaya, P. (2004). Reading and writing skills in multilingual and multiliterate aphasics: two case studies. Reading and writing: Interdisciplinary journal, 17(1/2), 121-135.

Bhat, S., & Chengappa, S. (2005). Matrix language: Listener’s perspective. Journal of Indian Speech and Hearing association, 19, 98-105. 

Bhat, S., & Chengappa, S. (2005). Code switching in normal and aphasic Kannada-English bilinguals. Proceedings of 4th International symposium on bilingualism, ed. Cohen, J., McAlister,K  Rolstad, K and  McSwan, J. 306-316. Somerville,MA: Cascadilla Press.

Chengappa, S., & Bhat, S. (2005). Code switching in normal Hindi-English bilinguals. Indian Linguistics, 66 (1-4), 19-30. 

Chengappa, S., Bhat, S.,  Kapoor, P. & Treasa, M.G. (2007). Language deficits in Hindi speaking children subsequent to TBI. Asia pacific journal of speech, language and hearing, 10 (4), 32-41.

Hegde, M., & Bhat, S. (2007). Paraphasias in a multilingual conduction aphasic- A single case study. Indian journal of applied linguistics (special issue on neurolinguistics, psycholinguistics, language and cognition), 33(2), 45-52. 

Hegde, M., Achala, C & Bhat, S. (2009). Voice Handicap Index – A Comparison of Clinician’s Ratings and Self Ratings by Individuals with Dysphonia. Journal of All India institute of speech and hearing, 28,25-30.

Vishnu, K.K., Abraham, A., Bhat, S., & Chengappa, S. (2010). Fast mapping of novel words: A cross linguistic study. International journal of Brain, mind and cognition, 1(1), 57-70.  

Bhat, S. (2010). Effects of conversational contexts on language mixing in Kannada-English bilingual aphasics. Bilingual Aphasia - Proceedings of the ISBA held on 4th-5th, Jan, 2010. 148-156. All India institute of speech and hearing publication: Mysore, India.

Bhat, S. (2010). Speech therapy in India: A multilingual perspective. Logos: Audiologopaedisk tidsskrift, 60, 26-27. 

Hegde, M., Alva, D., Oommen, S.G., & Bhat, S. (2010). Discourse functions of code switching among normal Kannada-English and Malayalam-English bilinguals- A pilot study. Journal of All India institute of speech and hearing, 29(1), 23-29. 

Bhat, S. (2012). Bilingual speech and language pathology. Logos: Audiologopaedisk tidsskrift, 64, 7-11.