Why I’m passionate about developing communication across the lifespan?

We don't just use communication to survive the day - we use it to belong. From the way we hear the world to the way we express our place in it, our daily lives are built entirely on connection. My mission is to ensure no one is left out of that conversation.

The benefit of learning to speak confidently at the youngest possible age has been drilled into me regularly over my lifetime. All of us are called on at some time to deliver a speech, attend a job interview, present a project idea, lead a discussion, or talk in a meeting. Many people dread these situations and try everything to avoid them, but there comes a point when they can no longer be avoided. Over the past 15 years, I have grown an interested in learning the skills needed to succeed in these areas and the vital importance of teaching them to all generations.

Unfortunately, verbal communication in both primary and secondary education appears undertaught in New Zealand. This is surprising, given the shift in focus towards discussion-based lessons in classrooms, and makes the lack of willingness many students have to lead discussion with peers or ask the teacher questions all the more concerning. Consequently, many students continue to leave school with impressive qualifications, yet struggle to verbally express themselves clearly and confidently. Communication is not a skill that we should stop learning once we’ve learnt how to talk. There is so much more that should be explored, from telling a compelling story to confidently presenting an idea in front of an audience. These are skills that do not just appear, they need to be taught and shaped. It was this realisation that developed my interest in the communication process.

From this point, I discovered that communication is a complex skill and one that sets us up for success in so many other areas of life. The sooner it is mastered the easier it becomes. But learning to talk is a significant challenge. It requires skills in auditory processing, thinking, and precise muscle coordination all working simultaneously to produce recognisable speech. To complicate it further, students develop the skills at different rates and breakdowns can occurat any stage of the process. The crossover between the science of brain function and the art of teaching these skills inspired me to continue learning how our communication system develops as we age. However, I still had some questions unanswered. Particularly those related to our processing and understanding of speech. This led me to explore the field of hearing and the impact of varying degrees of deafness on communication.

By studying techniques across these fields I gradually learnt the art of speaking well, the methods for improving communication, and the tools that can achieve the most benefit in hearing and speaking. It is these methods and tools that I aim to share with you, because I have seen their effectiveness for those who struggle to communicate.

My hope is for you to be able to communicate clearly and meaningfully with those around you. So, if you or your child struggles to communicate, for whatever reason, don’t hesitate to reach out and contact me. Don’t just keep living with the difficulty, when the solution is likely closer than you think.