We recognize the vital role of early intervention, and newborn hearing screening is an essential first step in identifying hearing loss. However, additional hearing screenings during childhood are just as critical. Research indicates the incidence of hearing loss in school-age children is nearly ten times higher than in newborns. Unlike mandatory newborn hearing screening in the US and many places around the world, hearing screening of school age children does not seem to be regulated in the same way.
It is important to note that school-age hearing screening is not mandatory in all 50 states. Each state sets its own policies regarding school hearing screenings. Some states require screenings at specific grade levels, while others leave it up to individual school districts. Additionally, some states have guidelines rather than mandates, making participation voluntary. In states where school hearing screening is performed, the methods and requirements vary greatly. Many times, the guidelines are set by the state departments of health and the screenings are performed by parent volunteers or the school nurse. Often, there is not an audiologist that oversees the program. Historically, the standard hearing screening has been a pure tone test at 3 or 4 frequencies at one dB level. According to an article published by James W. Hall III, PhD.
“Guidelines for the American Speech Language and Hearing Association (ASHA, 1997) and the American Academy of Audiology (AAA, 2011) describe in detail the hearing screening of children with the pure tone technique. However, over 70 years of experience with pure tone hearing screening has revealed serious methodological limitations and practical problems with test performance, particularly for hearing screening of preschool and young school-age children.”
New research has been published to address the importance of not only school aged hearing screening, but also the methodology used in order to achieve the goal of hearing screening: Identify children with potential hearing issues so that they can be properly tested, diagnosed, and treated if necessary. Dr. Hall has developed a video series to discuss the new research-based hearing screening protocol for young and school-aged children. In this series, he introduces the new protocol recommendations and discusses the rationale behind each method.
Ensuring that children receive effective hearing screenings throughout their school years is essential for early identification and intervention. Check out the research and Dr. Hall’s video series, and if this is something that you believe needs additional attention, work with your state audiology organization to promote hearing screening in young and school age children.
Laura Prigge, AuD is the Manager of Clinical Education and Training at GSI. Laura received her Doctorate of Audiology degree from AT Still University, a Master's of Arts in Audiology from UCONN and a Bachelor's of Science degree in Communication Disorders from Western Illinois University. Laura’s 20+ years of experience includes providing manufacturing support for a leading hearing aid manufacturer as well as technical audiology training and support for an international audiologic equipment company. Prior to that, she managed education and training at another hearing aid manufacturer and conducted audiologic evaluations on children, adults, and geriatric patients at a retail hearing center.