By John Gallagher
Face masks and their mandates have been a source of fierce debate, particularly in schools. In our own backyard, Gov. Phil Murphy ended a school-wide mask mandate this week, although some districts will still require them and they’re optional in all districts.
A recent concern against mask-wearing is captured by a January 2022 headline from The National Pulse: “REPORT: Mask Mandate Causing Over 350% Surge in Childhood Speech Delays.” As a nationally certified speech-language pathologist who worked in the school system in the height of the pandemic, I want to demonstrate that this headline is false and equip you with resources to support your child’s development.
In fact, let’s be unequivocal: there is no evidence that face masks cause communication delays in children.
The gold standard of care in any clinical profession — be it medicine, speech-language pathology, or any others — is an evidence-based practice, which stresses the integration of research evidence. From an evidence-based perspective, The National Pulse’s headline is negligent at best.
The article itself even quotes its primary source, a Florida-based speech-language pathologist, as saying “there’s no research... that [mask-wearing] could be causing speech and language delays.” The headline should reflect what is actually reported in the article: that one clinic reports that the percentage of infants and toddlers grew from 5% of their clientele to 20% over the past two years.
It is completely rational and ethical to think of our children’s best interests. However, our debates should be scientifically-informed. You may recall from introductory psychology that correlation is not causation.
In other words: Yes, it is a fact that many states and municipalities have issued face mask mandates over the past two years. Yes, this Florida clinic may have started serving more children under the age of 3 in the past two years. Did one cause the other? We can’t say. These are simply two anecdotal observations that have occurred at the same time — at one clinic. There is no study that connects these two observations in a conclusive way; nor have we necessarily seen this same pattern reported in other clinics, cities, states, or the rest of the country.
I believe it is valid to wonder if a mask covering others’ faces might make it hard for a child to develop speech. I believe it is also valid to ask how most children with visual impairment (i.e., who may not see others’ mouths) manage to develop speech skills on par with their peers.
There are several possible explanations of the fluctuation in caseload at this Florida clinic. Wearing face masks is one of many changes we have survived in the past two years, such as child care insecurity, reduced social interaction, increased screen time, fewer and/or delayed in-person events, and numerous other changes.
Or, perhaps, this trend is not related to the pandemic but rather was hidden by the pandemic. How many of us have found it much more challenging to make medical or pediatrician appointments in the past two years? It’s quite possible that there was a backlog of young children who had preexisting communication delays and the early stages of the pandemic simply prevented them from being referred to, or provided care by, a speech-language pathologist.
My point? While it might be tempting to blame face masks, simply put, we do not know what the explanation is.
We do know, however, that research shows that wearing a face mask reduces your risk of contracting and spreading COVID-19. We also know that no research shows that face masks cause communication delays. If we act upon the evidence and wear masks, we save lives. If we search for reasons not to wear a mask, we may find more cycles of variants, surges and restrictions.
While the pandemic has forced us to find new ways of doing things, when it comes to our young ones, let’s stick with evidence-based practices and let knowledge — not fear — guide us.
If you are concerned with your little one’s communication, know that you can: 1) support your child’s development in many ways, including reading books together and commenting on their actions and interests; 2) check your child’s development yourself by answering some screening questions and 3) get free help from a professional if you suspect your child has a communication problem. If your child is under the age of 3, contact the New Jersey Early Intervention System. If your child is 3 years or older, contact your school district and request your child be screened by a speech-language pathologist.
John Gallagher is a visiting assistant professor in the Department of Special Education, Language, and Literacy at The College of New Jersey. He is also an American Speech-Language-Hearing Association certified speech-language pathologist.
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