Stuttering at School: Teacher Note, Class Talks and Teasing

Stuttering at school gets easier when three things happen early: the teacher knows, your child has a say in how roll call, reading aloud and class talks are handled, and any teasing is dealt with at once. The Australian Stuttering Research Centre advises teachers to ask the student privately what help they want, and advises parents to raise bullying with the school without delay.

This guide is written for parents and includes a note to the teacher that you can copy. If you are teaching a student who stutters, the classroom strategies below can be used as they are.

How does stuttering affect a child at school?

School asks a child to speak on demand, in front of others, many times a day, and those are conditions in which stuttering can be worse. The Australian Stuttering Research Centre’s resource for teachers lists them: talking in front of a group, talking with an authority figure, being put on the spot, and being tired or unwell.

The same resource says stuttering is not related to intelligence, but that students who stutter may not show how intelligent they are. They may stop volunteering answers, avoid talking in front of the class and say as little as possible when called on. A quiet student who stutters is not always a comfortable one.

What should I tell my child’s teacher about stuttering?

Tell the teacher early in the year, before the first speaking task, and talk with your child first about what they want shared. The Australian Stuttering Research Centre asks teachers to speak with the student privately and find out four things:

whether the student would like help, and how
whether they are comfortable answering questions or reading aloud in class
whether they would like stuttering discussed with the class
whether they are being teased or bullied about stuttering.

A written note gives the teacher something to keep and to pass on. Copy this one and change it to suit your child.

Dear [teacher’s name],

[Child’s name] stutters. Words sometimes repeat, stretch or get stuck, more so when [he or she] is put on the spot, speaking in front of the group, tired or unwell. Stuttering is a speech disorder. It is not caused by nerves and it has nothing to do with ability.

What helps in class:

Wait while [he or she] finishes, without filling in the word or suggesting [he or she] slow down.

Respond to what was said, not how it was said.

For roll call, reading aloud and class talks: [what you have agreed with your child].

Expect the same work as from any other student.

Tell me straight away if you see or hear of any teasing.

Could you find a private moment to ask [child’s name] how [he or she] would like you to help? [He or she] [is or is not] comfortable with classmates being told about the stutter.

Thank you, [your name]

What adjustments help with roll call, reading aloud and class talks?

Good adjustments change how a student who stutters takes part, not whether they take part. Each one is agreed with the child, because children who stutter want different things. Even the published advice differs. The Australian Stuttering Research Centre says a student is likely to prefer not to be called on first, while the Stuttering Foundation suggests an early turn so worry does not build while waiting. The way to find out is to ask.

Situation	Adjustments to offer	Why
Roll call	Agree how the student answers: aloud like everyone else, or with a raised hand. Pass the arrangement on to relief teachers	Being put on the spot is one of the situations in which stuttering is worse (Australian Stuttering Research Centre)
Answering questions	Ask whether the student wants to be called on or to volunteer. Give the whole class thinking time, and do not reward the fastest answer	The Stuttering Foundation advises telling the whole class they have as much time as they need to answer
Reading aloud	Read in pairs or in unison, with the whole class doing so at times. Let the student practise the passage at home first	Most children who stutter are fluent when reading in unison, and the Stuttering Foundation suggests reading in pairs at times. Pairing the whole class keeps one student from standing out
Class talks	Plan the talk together: the place in the order, how to practise, and the audience (the teacher alone, a small group or the whole class)	These are the choices the Stuttering Foundation’s handbook for teachers sets out for oral reports
Oral assessment that carries marks	Ask whether the time limit can be relaxed and how fluency is treated in the marking criteria, so the student is marked on content	Students who stutter may not show what they know when speaking under pressure (Australian Stuttering Research Centre)
A hard speaking day	Agree ahead of time what the student wants: to carry on as usual, or to answer only with a hand up that day	Stuttering can be worse when a student is tired or unwell (Australian Stuttering Research Centre), and children differ in what they want on those days (Stuttering Foundation)

In the moment of stuttering, the Australian Stuttering Research Centre’s guidance to teachers is short: do not interrupt a student who is stuck, wait, and do not finish the sentence. Expect the same quality and amount of work as from any other student. Reminding a student to use techniques from therapy is best left alone unless the student or their speech pathologist has asked for it.

Should the class be told about stuttering?

Only if your child wants that. It is one of the four questions the Australian Stuttering Research Centre asks teachers to put to the student in private, and the answer is sometimes no. Some children would rather keep it private. Others choose to give a class talk about stuttering themselves, which the Stuttering Foundation reports can reduce teasing when the child is ready for it.

What should I do if my child is teased or bullied about stuttering?

Act straight away. The Australian Stuttering Research Centre’s resource on bullying and stuttering says school-age children who stutter are at high risk of being teased and bullied about the way they speak, and that a single event can be enough to affect a child’s wellbeing. It also warns that bullying is easy to miss, and that children often play it down for fear of making it worse.

When your child tells you, they need to hear three things: thanks for telling, it is not their fault, and you will handle it together.

“Thank you for telling me. It is not your fault, and it is not okay. I am going to talk to your teacher, and we will sort this out together.”

The centre’s steps for parents are:

Be your child’s advocate.
Reassure your child that you and the school will deal with it together.
Raise it with the teacher without delay, in person and in writing.
Agree a plan of action with school staff.
Keep talking with your child and with the school about how things are going.

The same resource tells teachers to act immediately, since one reported event may mean there have been others, to follow the school’s bullying policy, and to keep watching how classmates treat the student in and out of the classroom. It states that any intervention must not have negative repercussions for the child. Ask the school how it will make sure of that.

How is stuttering at high school different from primary school?

In primary school one class teacher runs most of the day, so one good conversation covers a lot. Ask that teacher to pass your note to the music, sport and library teachers, to relief teachers and to before and after school care. The speaking tasks to plan for are news or show and tell, reading groups and assembly items. The page on stuttering in school-aged children covers treatment at this age.

In high school there are many teachers, and no single one sees the whole week. Ask the year adviser or wellbeing coordinator to share a short agreed summary with every teacher, so your teenager does not have to explain it lesson by lesson. Three things change:

Your teenager decides more. Ask what they want said, and to whom, before you contact the school.
Speaking carries marks. Presentations, debates and language orals count towards grades. At the start of each term, ask which assessments involve speaking. For the senior years, ask the school early how adjustments to formal assessments are arranged.
Worry about speaking can grow. The Australian Stuttering Research Centre notes that stuttering can lead to social anxiety. A speech pathologist treats the stuttering. For anxiety itself, a psychologist is the right person.

The page on stuttering in teenagers covers what therapy involves at that age.

Do schools have to make adjustments for a student who stutters?

Yes, where the stutter counts as a disability, and under Australian law it can. Under the Disability Standards for Education 2005, a school must consult the student and family and make reasonable adjustments so that a student with disability can take part on the same basis as other students. The definition of disability in Australian law is broad and does not depend on severity, so a stutter can fall within it, and the Australian Stuttering Research Centre notes that stuttering is recognised as a disability by the World Health Organization and by the Australian Human Rights Commission. A 2019 legal analysis concluded that Australian schools have an obligation to make reasonable adjustments for students with communication impairment. No Australian ruling that names stuttering was found for this guide.

The adjustments in the table above are the kind a school can be asked for. How to raise them, and what a school may decline, is set out in the guide to whether stuttering is a disability in Australia.

What can a speech pathologist provide for the school?

A speech pathologist can give the school advice that is about your child, not about stuttering in general. The Australian Stuttering Research Centre tells teachers it is important for a speech pathologist to be involved when they are helping a student who stutters, and Healthdirect says a speech pathologist can work with a child’s teacher. A parent can ask for:

a short written summary of the child’s stuttering and what helps in class
what the child is working on in therapy, and whether the teacher should do anything about it
advice on a particular task, such as an oral assessment
contact with the teacher, with your consent.

What is offered differs between speech pathologists, so ask at the start. At home, the guide to helping a child who stutters has the matching note for grandparents and carers.

Stuttering Therapy is the practice of Dr Lauren Crumlish (PhD), a Certified Practising Speech Pathologist who provides stuttering speech therapy for children and teenagers by video, Australia wide. School can be raised at the initial assessment. Dr Lauren works with a small number of families and has limited availability. A parent or guardian can apply to work with Dr Lauren.