Auditory Processing Delay

A neurological condition where the brain has difficulty processing sounds, including speech, in noisy environments.

Auditory Processing Disorder (APD) can cause difficulties in interpreting auditory information, even if a person's hearing is within the normal range. This may result in problems with following instructions or understanding spoken language. Even though a child with APD can hear sounds at normal levels, their brain processes the sounds as if there is a delay or distortion. This can affect the child's ability to understand and remember what has been said. Someone says, "Please raise your hand," and they hear something like "Please haze your plan." "Look at the cows over there" may sound like, "Look at the clown on the chair."

Students with Auditory Processing Delay may show one or more of the following — patterns vary widely and rarely look the same in any two learners.

• may have difficulty telling where sound is coming from
• may struggle understanding words that are spoken quickly or in a noisy room
• may have a hard time paying attention
• may struggle with reading and spelling
• may have a hard time following oral directions unless they are short and simple
• may struggle learning a new language
• may have difficulty singing or enjoying music
• may have a hard time understanding and remembering spoken information

• Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust — "Auditory Processing Delay"
• WebMD — "What is Auditory Processing Disorder?"
• Mayo Clinic — "Auditory processing disorder (APD)"