Editor's comments

Glue Ear affects young children at a time critical for developing speech and language.  If a child is unable to convey their needs they can become frustrated and this will impact on their behaviour and social skills.  Despite the prevalence of Glue Ear in the early years, staff training to work in nurseries and pre-schools are not provided with information about the symptoms of Glue Ear and strategies that can be used to help.   

A greater awareness of the impact of Glue Ear on learning is needed to encourage early years practitioners to improve nursery and pre-school listening environments and to put strategies in place that will improve access to the spoken word.