Supporting overwhelmed school-based SLPs to use an educational model of service delivery, including inclusion, neurodiversity, a workload approach, multi-tiered systems of support, and true collaboration with teachers and other education colleagues - to increase a sense of belonging, creativity and to reduce stress and burnout.
https://sarahdowlingschoolslpcoaching.com
We explore how school-based SLPs can stop working in isolation and start building real MTSS change through shared responsibility for language across the school day. We unpack what makes innovation possible and what makes it sustainable so we are not relying on sheer determination to survive. • celebrating the second edition of a practical MTSS book grounded in real-world SLP stories • building Tier 1 language supports through school routines like drop-off and pick-up • using...
29 Jun 2026
Medical versus Educational Language
We challenge the medical-style language that keeps school-based SLPs stuck in isolation and overload, and we replace it with an educational, MTSS-aligned way of thinking. We lay out concrete language swaps and service design choices that help us build teacher capacity, reduce overwhelm, and create clear, doable work. • medical terms that shape unrealistic expectations, including client, wait list, referral, therapy, discharged • why medical-style prioritisation happens in isolatio...
15 Jun 2026
Moving from the Outside to the Inside
We rethink what it means to belong as a school-based SLP and why the pull-out, referral-driven cycle keeps us feeling like outsiders. We connect curriculum, embedded systems like MTSS, and day-to-day collaboration to bring back purpose, equity, and joy in our work. • reframing curriculum as an inclusive map for where to show up • using classroom texts, routines, and activities as shared therapy resources • partnering with teachers through questions about their goals and plan...
1 Jun 2026
Interview with Zoë Watt
We trade the pull-out fix-it model for a collaborative MTSS approach that makes communication support part of everyday classroom learning. We share what it takes to build inclusive, sustainable school-based SLP services that respect teachers, centre equity, and actually work with real time and real people. • shifting from a medical model to MTSS and tiered supports • treating communication as a human right and an access need • embedding AAC, language, and speech sound goals ...
18 May 2026
Interview with Pam Waterhouse
We unpack why school-based SLPs feel like they’re failing when the system is built for an impossible caseload and a pull-out “fix it” model. We explore a kinder, more inclusive way to work by building teacher capacity and shifting toward classroom impact that helps more students thrive. • moving from a medical model to an education-aligned mindset • accepting neurodiversity and focusing on strategies over “fixing” • noticing how pull-out therapy can send an unhelpful messag...
4 May 2026
From Pull-Out Therapy To Classroom Impact
I share a mindset shift for school-based SLPs when a teacher says, “I don’t know what to do with them”, and I show how that moment can point to classroom needs not just student needs. We move beyond the pull-out-only default and into a workload approach where collaboration, consultation, and Tier 1 support expand our reach and reduce the referral treadmill over time. • reframing the hallway conversation from instant referral to classroom signal • defining the “client” as the student plus the ...
20 Apr 2026
Moving Beyond Pull-Out Therapy Through True Classroom Collaboration
We ask where school-based SLPs truly belong and why that answer reshapes goals, service delivery, and impact in the classroom. I trace how the medical model became the default, then map a practical route toward collaborative, curriculum-connected support that fits inclusive education. • a mailbox story that reveals role confusion and broken systems • how the medical model shaped pull-out therapy in schools • why legislation changed placement faster than practice • the...
20 Apr 2026
Interview with Carl Anserello
We trace how a northern BC school district moved from isolated specialists and nonstop testing to true collaboration built on problem-solving and simple progress measures. We share practical ways to find your first opening for change so you can reduce referral overload and feel less alone at work. • Carl’s path from school psychology into district-wide systems change • Why early “area support teams” stalled without shared process • Shifting from a medical model to broader as...
8 Mar 2026
Reimagining School SLP: Collaboration, Tiers, And Sustainability
We trace a path from isolated pull-out therapy to a collaborative, tiered model that centres students and restores SLP sustainability. Through stories, strategies, and systems thinking, we show how shifting from caseload to workload builds capacity and real classroom impact. • redefining the SLP role from expert to partner • limits of pull-out therapy and missed authentic language • practical collaboration moves that stick in classrooms • MTSS tiers for universal, targeted, and intensive sup...
8 Mar 2026
Interview with Dr. Lesley Sylvan
We explore how SLPs can move from isolated caseloads to collaborative workload using a Multi-Tiered System of Support. Dr. Lesley Sylvan shares why prevention, data, and shared ownership at Tier One create clearer decisions, stronger inclusion, and more joy in our work. • what MTSS is and why it matters • the three tiers as a continuum of support • SLP impact at Tier One to shape instruction • collaboration, data use, and evidence-based choices • inclusion and least restrictive environment i...
8 Mar 2026
Introducing Myself
I introduce my professional journey whilst working in schools. • working more closely with class teachers • ideas and books that shaped a school-aligned lens • research training and university teaching influences • redesigning services with education partners • moving from Scotland to Canada and applying MTSS • building provincial forums and mentorship networks • why old models persist and how to move past them • a systems mindset for sustainable SLP impact If this episode resonated w...
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