An exploratory study of verbal interaction between children with different profiles of DLD and their classroom teachers in educational dialogues

2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (3) ◽  
pp. 189-201
Author(s):  
Barbro Bruce ◽  
Kristina Hansson

Children with a history of developmental language disorder (DLD) entering school are a challenge for classroom teachers. Teachers are often not very familiar with DLD, and language difficulties in school age children are often not obvious in context-supported everyday language. However, their language is still vulnerable. The teachers’ way of talking with four children with DLD, two with predominantly production difficulties and stronger language comprehension and two with language comprehension difficulties were studied in two types of context, differing in their degree of structure. Variables for a quantitative analysis were number of words per minute and mean length of utterance (MLU) in words for both teachers and children, and the number of questions asked by the teacher. A qualitative analysis focused on identifying typical characteristics depending on context and the child’s type of difficulties. In both contexts the teachers talked more than the children, but the difference was smaller in the less structured context, mainly because the children talked more. The two children with predominantly production difficulties seemed to take advantage of the opportunities to take initiatives offered in the less structured context. The children with comprehension difficulties function better in the more structured context, where their comprehension difficulties were less obvious. Studies with more rigorous design analysing more aspects of teacher’s interactive behavior in different contexts and with children with different linguistic profiles are needed to provide teachers with information to raise their awareness of how to provide support adapted to the linguistic profiles of children with DLD.

2020 ◽  
Vol 63 (11) ◽  
pp. 3700-3713
Author(s):  
Saleh Shaalan

Purpose This study examined the performance of Gulf Arabic–speaking children with developmental language disorder (DLD) on a Gulf Arabic nonword repetition (GA-NWR) test and compared it to their age- and language-matched groups. We also investigated the role of syllable length, wordlikeness, and phonological complexity in light of NWR theories. Method A new GA-NWR test was conducted with three groups of Gulf Arabic–speaking children: school-age children with DLD, language-matched controls (LCs), and age-matched controls (ACs). The test consisted of two- and three-syllable words that either had no clusters, medial clusters, final clusters, or medial + final clusters. Results The GA-NWR distinguished between the performance of children with DLD and the LC and AC groups. Results showed significant syllable length, wordlikeness, and phonological complexity effects. Differences between the DLD and typically developing groups were seen in two- and three-syllable nonwords; however, when compared on nonwords with no clusters, children with DLD were not significantly different from the LC group. Conclusions The GA-NWR test differentiated between children with DLD and their ACs and LCs. Findings, therefore, support its clinical utility in this variety of Arabic. Results showed that phonological processing factors, such as phonological complexity, may have stronger effects when compared to syllable length effects. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.12996812


2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 6-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laurence B. Leonard

Purpose The current “specific language impairment” and “developmental language disorder” discussion might lead to important changes in how we refer to children with language disorders of unknown origin. The field has seen other changes in terminology. This article reviews many of these changes. Method A literature review of previous clinical labels was conducted, and possible reasons for the changes in labels were identified. Results References to children with significant yet unexplained deficits in language ability have been part of the scientific literature since, at least, the early 1800s. Terms have changed from those with a neurological emphasis to those that do not imply a cause for the language disorder. Diagnostic criteria have become more explicit but have become, at certain points, too narrow to represent the wider range of children with language disorders of unknown origin. Conclusions The field was not well served by the many changes in terminology that have transpired in the past. A new label at this point must be accompanied by strong efforts to recruit its adoption by clinical speech-language pathologists and the general public.


Author(s):  
Samuel D. Calder ◽  
Mary Claessen ◽  
Susan Ebbels ◽  
Suze Leitão

Purpose The aim of the study was to evaluate the efficacy of a theoretically motivated explicit intervention approach to improve regular past tense marking for early school-age children with developmental language disorder (DLD). Method Twenty-one children with DLD (ages 5;9–6;9 [years;months]) were included in a crossover randomized controlled trial (intervention, n = 10; waiting control, n = 11). Intervention included once-weekly sessions over 10 weeks using the SHAPE CODING system, in combination with a systematic cueing hierarchy to teach past tense marking. Once the first group completed intervention, the waiting control group crossed over to the intervention condition. The primary outcome was criterion-referenced measures of past tense marking with standardized measures of expressive and receptive grammar as the secondary outcome. Ancillary analyses on extension and behavioral control measures of morphosyntax were also conducted. Results There was a significant Time × Group interaction ( p < .001) with a significant difference in pre–post intervention improvement in favor of the intervention group ( p < .001, d = 3.03). Further analysis once both groups had received the intervention revealed no improvement for either group on past tense production during the 5-week pre-intervention period, significant improvement pre–post intervention ( p < . 001, d = 1.22), with gains maintained for 5 weeks postintervention. No significant differences were found on pre- to postintervention standardized measures of grammar, or on extension or control measures. Conclusions The efficacy of the theoretically motivated explicit grammar intervention was demonstrated. Results contribute to the evidence base supporting this intervention to improve past tense production in early school-age children with DLD, suggesting it is a viable option for clinicians to select when treating morphosyntactic difficulties for this population. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.13345202


2005 ◽  
Vol 48 (01) ◽  
pp. 33 ◽  
Author(s):  
David E Mandelbaum ◽  
Michael Stevens ◽  
Eric Rosenberg ◽  
Max Wiznitzer ◽  
Mitchell Steinschneider ◽  
...  

2020 ◽  
Vol 63 (4) ◽  
pp. 1165-1180
Author(s):  
Justin B. Kueser ◽  
Laurence B. Leonard

Purpose Studies have shown that children with typical development (TD) respond to frequency and predictability when repeating nonidiomatic multiword sequences (e.g., go wash your hands ). We extended these findings by explicitly examining the interaction between frequency and predictability in a repetition task for children with developmental language disorder (DLD) and children with TD. Method We created 48 four-word phrases, manipulating two factors: the frequency of occurrence of the entire four-word phrase (e.g., look in the mirror vs. look in the basket ) and the predictability of the fourth word in the phrase given the preceding three words (e.g., corn on the ___ vs. look in the ___ ). These phrases were presented in a repetition task to 17 children with DLD ( M age = 58.89 months), 19 same-age children with TD ( M age = 59.79 months), and 17 younger children with TD matched to the DLD group on nonword repetition and mean length of utterance ( M age = 38.94 months). Children's repetitions were judged for the presence or absence of word and morphological errors. Only the first three words of the sequence were scored (e.g., look in the ). Results We found a main effect of sequence frequency, with high-frequency sequences being repeated more accurately than low-frequency sequences, modulated by a significant interaction with predictability, where the effect of sequence frequency was larger for sequences with high-predictability contexts than for sequences with low-predictability contexts. We also found a significant effect of group, with children with DLD demonstrating poorer overall performance, particularly when compared to the same-age group with TD. Conclusions Frequency and predictability are strong predictors of language production in children with TD. These factors also have effects for children with DLD, raising important clinical questions about the design of facilitative contexts for the teaching of difficult linguistic forms.


2019 ◽  
Vol 62 (5) ◽  
pp. 1452-1467 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giang T. Pham ◽  
Sonja Pruitt-Lord ◽  
Catherine E. Snow ◽  
Yen Hoang Thi Nguyen ◽  
Ben Phạm ◽  
...  

Purpose Developmental language disorder (DLD), defined by low language performance despite otherwise normal development, can negatively impact children's social and academic outcomes. This study is the 1st to examine DLD in Vietnamese. To lay the foundation, we identified cases of DLD in Vietnam and explored language-specific characteristics of the disorder. Method Teacher ratings of 1,250 kindergarteners living in Hanoi, Vietnam, were used to recruit children with and without risk for DLD. One hundred four children completed direct measures of vocabulary and language sampling, and their parents completed in-depth surveys. We examined convergence and divergence across tasks to identify measures that could serve as reliable indicators of risk. Then, we compared performance on direct language measures across ability levels. Results There were positive associations between teacher and parent report and between report and direct language measures. Three groups were identified based on convergence across measures: DLD, some risk for DLD, and no risk. The DLD group performed lowest on measures of receptive and expressive vocabulary, mean length of utterance, and grammaticality. Although children with DLD exhibited a greater number of errors, the types of errors found were similar across DLD and No Risk groups. Conclusions Similar to rates found globally, 7% of the kindergarten population in Vietnam exhibited risk for DLD. Results highlight the importance of parent and teacher report and the value of multiple measures to identify DLD. We discuss potential clinical markers for DLD in the Vietnamese language and outline future directions.


Author(s):  
Lucie Broc ◽  
Nelly Joye ◽  
Julie E. Dockrell ◽  
Thierry Olive

Purpose This scoping review aims to identify and analyze the nature of the spelling errors produced by children with developmental language disorder (DLD) across different orthographies. Building on a previous meta-analysis identifying the extent of the spelling difficulties of children with DLD, the review extends our understanding of the nature of the spelling errors produced by children with DLD. Three questions are addressed: Do spelling difficulties in children with DLD stem from weak phonological, orthographic, or morphological representations? What are the patterns of spelling performance in DLD depending on orthographic depth? Do comorbid difficulties with DLD impact spelling? Method The scoping review followed the five phases outlined by Arksey and O'Malley (2005) and extended by Levac et al. (2010) : (a) specifying the research question; (b) identifying relevant studies; (c) selecting studies; (d) charting the data; and (e) collating, summarizing, and reporting the results. Results Eighteen studies that provided a qualitative description of the nature of spelling errors produced by children and adolescents with DLD were identified. Spelling performance was examined in relation to control groups that were matched on age, on language features (language, spelling, or reading age), or on co-occurring difficulties. Conclusions This review article highlights the key elements that need to be considered when practitioners examine spelling difficulties and provides benchmarks for assessment in a range of alphabetic languages for school-age children. The qualitative analyses indicated that when practitioners evaluate spelling performance in children or adolescents with DLD, three factors should be considered: phonological representations, morphological awareness, and reading skills.


2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 345-354
Author(s):  
Toktam Maleki ShahMahmood ◽  
◽  
Zahra Ghayoumi-Anaraki ◽  
Abbas Ebadi ◽  
Fatemeh Haresabadi ◽  
...  

Objectives: Accurate diagnosis of Persian children with Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) is regarded as a challenge for Speech and Language Pathologists (SLPs) in Iran because of the lack of formal linguistic tests that can reliably distinguish language-impaired children from Typically-Developing (TD) children. This study aimed to investigate the diagnostic accuracy of the photographic expressive Persian Grammar Test (PEGT). Methods: The participants were forty 4-6 years old monolingual Persian speakers who were categorized into two groups of DLD (n=20) and TD (n=20) children based on the MLU (mean length of utterance) scores as the reference standard and clinical judgment of an experienced speech-language pathologist. PEGT was administered to all participants, and the results were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney test and Rock Chart (ROC) to estimate the ability of the PEGT to differentiate between children with DLD and TD and to determine its sensitivity, specificity, and the optimal cutoff point. Results: The results revealed that children with DLD performed significantly lower than their TD peers in the PEGT (P<0.05). Both sensitivity and specificity measures of PEGT were estimated as 100% at the optimal cut-off point of 12.5. Discussion: The data provide empirical support for the use of the PEGT for accurate diagnosis of preschool children with DLD from their TD peers.


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