An Analysis of the Role of Teacher and Peer Interactions in Stimuling Speech Development in Children with Speech Delay

Abstract

Speech delay in early childhood requires special attention as it affects children’s language development, communication skills, and self-confidence. Two children aged 5–6 years were identified with speech delay, characterized by difficulties in forming simple sentences and low confidence in verbal interaction. This study aims to describe the role of teacher and peer interactions and to identify supporting and inhibiting factors in stimulating speech development. This research employed a qualitative descriptive approach involving children with speech delay, classroom teachers, and school administrators as informants. Data were collected through observation, interviews, and documentation, and analyzed using data condensation, data presentation, and conclusion drawing with source triangulation. The findings indicate that teachers play an important role in stimulating speech through simple questioning, word repetition, facial expressions, hand gestures, storytelling, and singing activities using a patient and face-to-face approach. Peers serve as natural language models by imitating actions, repeating words, and engaging in simple communication. Supporting factors include participatory learning methods and communicative play environments, while inhibiting factors include limited availability of special education teachers, noisy classroom conditions, and lack of family support.