The Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals (CELF) is a comprehensive diagnostic that measures the oral skills of children. Primarily used or learning-disabled students, the CELF evaluates the semantics, syntax and memory abilities of children while speaking. The test essentially analyzes the flow of conversation between the child and another person. The CELF can be a good articulation test because children with speech problems will be unable to verbally convey a complete sentence that is sensible to another person.
The Arizona Articulation Proficiency Scale measures the ability of children to blend consonants, vowels and diphthongs in their speech. Intended for persons from one to 18 years of age, the proficiency test is administered by having children identify images. The pathologist rates the child on a scale from 1-100 based on test performance. Children scoring closest to 100 are deemed proficient; lower scores indicate increasing degrees of articulation difficulty.
Similar to the Proficiency Scale, the Comprehensive Test of Phonological Processing (CTOPP) evaluates a child's ability to detect the different sounds in words. The test is used to identify persons who perform below average in phonological awareness and provide tools that will help them excel in this area of language. The test also provides insight into the strengths and weaknesses of the phonological process so that researchers may improve the overall learning experience in this area. Individuals found to have articulation difficulties by CTOPP are placed in special intervention programs and monitored for progress.
The TOPA ,or Test of Phonological Awareness, identifies children in kindergarten through second grade with articulation problems. The TOPA has two versions which may be given to a group of children in approximately 20 minutes. While the kindergarten version of TOPA identifies children needing special attention during the reading segment of class, the elementary version determines if children already having reading difficulties may benefit from additional phonological sessions. The Elementary version of TOPA should only be administered to first and second grade students.