Beyond the Myth: Socioeconomic Status and Language Development

In this episode of SLP Coffee Talk, Hallie sits down with Kylie Helm — school SLP, private practice owner, and PhD student who’s doing the research we all desperately need. Kylie shares how growing up low-SES herself and then working in a Title I school opened her eyes to the massive disconnect between what grad school teaches us and what these kids actually need. She gets real about the dangerous assumptions SLPs make (spoiler: poverty ≠ language disorder), why standardized vocabulary tests are basically useless for this population, and how syntax is actually the diagnostic hero we’ve been ignoring. If you’ve ever felt pressured to qualify a student just because they’re from a low-income family or wondered how to write a report that says “they bombed the test but don’t need services,” this conversation is packed with research-backed truth bombs and practical ways to do better.

Bullet Points to Discuss: 

• The myth that every low-SES kid has “bad language” and automatically needs services
• Why we need to stop using vocabulary scores as our diagnostic smoking gun
• Language samples and test-teach-retest: where the real answers actually live
• How to tell teachers the difference between functional communication gaps and academic language concerns
• When low vocabulary + low syntax = actual red flag vs. just environmental difference

Here’s what we learned: 

• Stop assuming multilingual + immigrant + low-SES + busy parents = needs speech therapy.
• Syntax is ability-based, vocabulary is environment-based—that changes everything about diagnosis.
• Dynamic assessment (test-teach-retest) shows learning ability, not just current knowledge.
• Strong syntax + weak vocabulary? Probably environmental. Weak syntax + weak vocabulary? Now we’re concerned.
• Teachers need to step outside their comfort zone too—it’s not all on us to adapt.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Learn more about Kylie Helm:  

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kylietheslp

Study: https://pubs.asha.org/doi/abs/10.1044/2024_PERSP-23-00299 

Developing Cross-Cultural Competence

Learn more about Hallie Sherman and SLP Elevate:  

📝 Website: https://speechtimefun.com/

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