Online Speech And Language Assessment

Online Speech Assessment

Every child who works with Dr Lauren Crumlish (PhD), Certified Practising Speech Pathologist, starts with an online speech assessment: a speech and language assessment by video. It is the first step and the first cost: $590, $890 or $1,290, depending on what needs to be looked at.

It runs by video, like every session after it, so check what you need at home for a session before the day. The page on how online speech therapy works shows where the assessment fits, from applying to home practice.

One clinician: the person who assesses your child runs every session after
Speech, language, stuttering, literacy and social communication
Children and teenagers up to 18, anywhere in Australia

Apply Now See the fee

A mother with dark hair in an orange shirt sits at a wooden table with a laptop, her young daughter on her lap looking at the screen.

What It Covers

What Dr Lauren Can Assess By Video, And What Is Harder

A video call shows a great deal: how your child talks, understands, reads and joins in a conversation, at home where they are most themselves. It shows some things less well, and those are named here too.

Speech sounds and lisps

Dr Lauren listens to each sound in words and in conversation and watches your child's mouth on screen. A good microphone and a quiet room matter most here, because a clear sound depends on clear audio.
Language

How your child understands instructions and questions, the words they know and how they build sentences and tell a story. Language can be tested by video too. In one University of Queensland study, children's language test scores given by video agreed closely with scores given in the same room at the same time.
Stuttering

Stuttering often changes from place to place. Seeing a child talk at home, with family, gives Dr Lauren a view a clinic room cannot, and you can tell her how the day compares with a usual one.
Literacy and the language underneath

Reading aloud, spelling and the sound and language skills reading rests on. A page can be shared on screen for your child to read, and written work can be held up to the camera.
Social communication

How your child takes turns, follows a conversation and reads other people. Some of this shows best in ordinary moments at home, so Dr Lauren may ask you about what you see day to day as well.
What is harder by video

Close-up checks of the mouth and its movements are less reliable on a screen than in person. Very young or unsettled children can be hard to see and hear clearly. If something cannot be seen well enough, Dr Lauren says so and works out with you what to do about it.
Your part, by age

For a toddler, you play and talk while Dr Lauren watches and guides you. For a school-age child, you set up the room, stay close by and help with the screen. A teenager can usually work with Dr Lauren on their own.
What an assessment can and cannot tell you

A speech pathology assessment describes your child's speech, language and literacy skills and what is getting in the way. A formal dyslexia diagnosis is usually made by a psychologist, and autism is diagnosed by a paediatrician, psychiatrist or psychologist-led team. Dr Lauren does not diagnose either.

Fee

Online Speech Assessment Fees

Every family starts with an initial assessment. Which length applies depends on what needs to be looked at, and therapy sessions follow only if they are recommended and your family decides to go ahead.

Assessment

Short Assessment

Usually for late talkers, stuttering and speech clarity

$590

Also available

$890

Mid-Length Assessment

Usually for school-age language, literacy or social communication
$1,290

Long Assessment

Usually for both language and literacy in a school-age child
$193

Therapy Session

One hour of service: 45 minutes of therapy by video, and 15 minutes of preparation and notes

Medicare rebates are available with a doctor's referral, and private health cover may apply. Self-managed and plan-managed NDIS participants are welcome; NDIA-managed funding cannot be used. See fees in full

After The Assessment

Once The Assessment Is Done

What Dr Lauren found

She talks you through what the assessment showed, in plain words, and answers your questions.
How assessment by video compares with in person
A plan

She sets out what she recommends and whether therapy by video suits your child.
The kinds of work Dr Lauren does online
Therapy, if it is recommended

Sessions are $193 each, with Dr Lauren every time. An assessment does not commit your family to therapy.
How a session by video runs
Paying for it

A doctor's referral can bring Medicare rebates, and private health cover may apply.
How Medicare, the NDIS and private health apply to video sessions

A girl and her mother sit together on a sofa, the girl pointing at a line in an open book while they read.

Questions Parents Ask

Before You Book An Assessment By Video

Can a speech assessment be done online?

Yes, for most of what a speech pathologist looks at in a child: speech sounds, language, stuttering, reading and spelling, and social communication. Dr Lauren assesses by video with your child at home. Close-up checks of the mouth are harder on a screen, and if anything cannot be assessed well enough by video, she tells you.

How much does an online speech assessment cost?

$590 for a Short Assessment, $890 for a Mid-Length Assessment and $1,290 for a Long Assessment. The length depends on what needs to be looked at. If therapy follows, each session is $193.

Is an online assessment as accurate as one in a clinic?

For the parts that have been studied, it compares well. In a University of Queensland study of 25 children aged 5 to 9, language test scores given by video agreed closely with scores given in the same room at the same time. A second study by the same group found ratings of how clear children's speech was also agreed closely. The research is set out on the page on whether online speech therapy works.

What happens in a speech pathology assessment by video?

Your child talks, listens, looks at pictures, answers questions and, if they are at school, reads and writes. Younger children are assessed largely through play with you. Your child needs a quiet room, a device with a camera and microphone, and a steady internet connection.

What does a parent do during an online assessment?

It depends on age: you play alongside a toddler, help a school-age child with the screen, and a teenager can usually work with Dr Lauren alone. Have anything she asks for ready before the call.

Can a speech pathologist diagnose dyslexia or autism?

No. A speech pathologist assesses the speech, language and literacy skills involved. A formal dyslexia diagnosis is usually made by a psychologist, and autism is diagnosed by a paediatrician, psychiatrist or psychologist-led team. Dr Lauren's assessment can sit alongside theirs.

Will we get a written report?

Dr Lauren talks you through what she found and the plan. If you need something in writing for a school, a doctor or a funding body, say so in your application.