A qualitative study on teachers' perceptions and response processes towards preschool children who stutter

Abstract

Objectives: A teacher can greatly contribute to improving the environment of a child who stutters along with his or her parents. Thus, in this research, teachers' perceptions and response processes towards stuttering preschool children will be analyzed and the causes of these particular perceptions and responses will be clarified. Methods: In-depth interviews with 6 homeroom teachers of preschool children who stutter have been performed, and then analyzed through the grounded theory approach. Results: The central phenomenon in the experiences of teachers towards children who stutter was found to be in the sense of 'need to do something'. The causal conditions of this phenomenon were the teachers' 'perception on stuttering', and 'identifying children's attitudes towards stuttering'. 'Perceptions and attitudes of peers', 'active attitudes of parents' functioned as contextual conditions influencing the phenomenon. The examples of a teacher's action/interaction with a stuttering child to handle such a phenomenon were 'observing the child intentionally', 'seeking ways to help', 'sharing the information with parents and peers', and, 'handling the stuttering behaviors'. The intervening conditions influencing these actions were 'lack of education on stuttering', 'an experience on a stuttering adult', 'priority to other disabilities', and 'limitation of classroom environment'. The action/interaction consequences towards the phenomenon were found to be 'encountering the limit', 'whether to perceive stuttering as disability or not', and 'optimism or concern about the future of the children who stutter'. Conclusion: This study identified the factors influencing the teachers' responses and their roles in therapy for children who stutter.