Childhood Hearing Screening

The scope of this page is hearing screening for toddlers, preschoolers, and school-age children. For information on screening children ages 0–6 months, see the ASHA Practice Portal page on Newborn Hearing Screening.

See the Screening section of the Hearing Loss (Early Childhood) Evidence Map and the Hearing Loss (School-Age) Evidence Map for pertinent scientific evidence, expert opinion, and client/care partner perspective.

Hearing-related terminology may vary depending upon context and a range of factors. See the ASHA resource on hearing-related topics: terminology guidance for more information.

A hearing screening is used to identify individuals who may require a more comprehensive hearing assessment and/or medical management. Hearing screenings for children may take place in early childhood settings, school settings, community settings, audiology clinics, medical settings, and/or home settings.

As of 2020, 98.2% of babies born in the United States were screened for hearing loss shortly after birth (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2023). Minimal, frequency-specific, late-onset, or progressive hearing loss may not be identified during newborn hearing screenings (see Newborn Hearing Screening). By school age, close to 15% of children in the United States exhibit some type of hearing loss of at least 16 dB HL (Niskar et al., 1998). In 2020, 1% of students who received an individualized education plan qualified under the disability category of “hearing impairment” (Office of Special Education Programs, 2023).

Hearing screenings during childhood are vital for early identification and management of hearing loss. “Failure to detect congenital or acquired hearing loss in children may result in lifelong deficits in speech and language acquisition, poor academic performance, personal-social maladjustments, and emotional difficulties” (Harlor et al., 2009, p. 1253). Any level of hearing loss may impact a student’s access to auditory-based classroom instruction. Educationally significant hearing loss can be unilateral, bilateral, minimal in degree, high frequency, or long-standing conductive. See the ASHA Practice Portal page on Hearing Loss in Children for more information.

Other relevant ASHA Practice Portal pages include Central Auditory Processing Disorder, Counseling in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology, Cultural Responsiveness, and Documentation in Schools.

Content Disclaimer: The Practice Portal, ASHA policy documents, and guidelines contain information for use in all settings; however, members must consider all applicable local, state and federal requirements when applying the information in their specific work setting.

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