Effects of Signs on Word Learning by Children With Developmental Language Disorder

2019 ◽  
Vol 62 (6) ◽  
pp. 1798-1812 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lian van Berkel-van Hoof ◽  
Daan Hermans ◽  
Harry Knoors ◽  
Ludo Verhoeven
Keyword(s):  
Word Learning ◽  
Language Disorder ◽  
Developmental Language Disorder

scholarly journals The Impact of Dose and Dose Frequency on Word Learning by Kindergarten Children With Developmental Language Disorder During Interactive Book Reading

2019 ◽  
Vol 50 (4) ◽  
pp. 518-539 ◽  
Author(s):  
Holly L. Storkel ◽  
Rouzana Komesidou ◽  
Mollee J. Pezold ◽  
Adrienne R. Pitt ◽  
Kandace K. Fleming ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Word Learning ◽  
Language Disorder ◽  
Intensity Variation ◽  
Kindergarten Children ◽  
Book Reading ◽  
Developmental Language Disorder ◽  
Dose Frequency ◽  
Response Variation ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Interactive Book

Purpose The goal was to determine whether interactive book reading outcomes for children with developmental language disorder (DLD) were affected by manipulation of dose (i.e., the number of exposures to the target word during a book reading session) and dose frequency (i.e., the number of repeated book reading sessions) and whether pretreatment factors predicted treatment response variation. Method Thirty-four kindergarten children with DLD (aged 5;0–6;2 [years;months]) were taught 1 set of words using the Dose 6 and Dose Frequency 6 format from a prior study ( Storkel, Voelmle, et al., 2017 ) and taught a different set of words using an alternative format, either Dose 4 × Dose Frequency 9 or Dose 9 × Dose Frequency 4, determined through random assignment. Word learning was tracked for each treatment via a definition task prior to, during, and after treatment. Results Results showed that children with DLD learned a significant number of words during treatment regardless of the dose and dose frequency format but that significant forgetting of newly learned words occurred in all formats once treatment was withdrawn. Individual differences in word learning were related to Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals Core Language and Understanding Spoken Paragraphs scores. Conclusion When administered at an adequate intensity, variation in the dose and dose frequency of interactive book reading does not appear to influence word learning by children with DLD. Although interactive book reading continues to show promise as an effective word learning intervention for children with DLD, further development is needed to enhance the effectiveness of this treatment approach. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.9745181

scholarly journals Spoken Word Learning in Children with Developmental Language Disorder or Dyslexia

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suzanne Adlof ◽  
Lauren Baron ◽  
Bethany A Bell ◽  
Joanna Scoggins
Keyword(s):  
Word Learning ◽  
Language Impairment ◽  
Specific Language Impairment ◽  
Retrieval Practice ◽  
Language Disorder ◽  
Learning Difficulties ◽  
Learning Task ◽  
Vocabulary Knowledge ◽  
Developmental Language Disorder ◽  
Learning Abilities

Purpose: Word learning difficulties have been documented in multiple studies involving children with dyslexia and developmental language disorder (DLD; see also specific language impairment (SLI)). However, no previous studies have directly contrasted word learning in these two frequently co-occurring disorders. We examined word learning in second grade students with DLD-only and dyslexia-only as compared to each other, peers with both disorders (DLD+dyslexia), and peers with typical development (TD). We hypothesized that children with dyslexia-only and DLD-only would show differences in word learning due to differences in phonological and semantic skills. Method: Children (N = 244) were taught eight novel pseudowords paired with unfamiliar objects. The teaching script included multiple exposures to the phonological form, the pictured object, a verbal semantic description of the object, and spaced retrieval practice opportunities. Word learning was assessed immediately after instruction with tasks requiring recall or recognition of the phonological and semantic information. Results: Children with dyslexia-only performed significantly better on existing vocabulary measures than their peers with DLD-only. On experimental word learning measures, children in the dyslexia-only and DLD+dyslexia groups showed significantly poorer performance than TD children on all word learning tasks. Children with DLD-only differed significantly from the TD group on a single word learning task assessing verbal semantic recall. Conclusions: Overall, results indicated that children with dyslexia display broad word learning difficulties extending beyond the phonological domain; however, this contrasted with their relatively strong performance on measures of existing vocabulary knowledge. More research is needed to understand relations between word learning abilities and overall vocabulary knowledge and how to close vocabulary gaps for children with both disorders.

scholarly journals Word learning and verbal working memory in children with developmental language disorder

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 239694152110041
Author(s):  
Emily Jackson ◽  
Suze Leitão ◽  
Mary Claessen ◽  
Mark Boyes
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Word Learning ◽  
Language Disorder ◽  
Verbal Working Memory ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Word Knowledge ◽  
Developmental Language Disorder ◽  
Significant Group ◽  
Impaired Ability ◽  
Word Forms

Background and aims Previous research into word learning in children with developmental language disorder (DLD) indicates that the learning of word forms and meanings, rather than form-referent links, is problematic. This difficulty appears to arise with impaired encoding, while retention of word knowledge remains intact. Evidence also suggests that word learning skills may be related to verbal working memory. We aimed to substantiate these findings in the current study by exploring word learning over a series of days. Methods Fifty children with DLD (mean age 6; 11, 72% male) and 54 age-matched typically developing (TD) children (mean age 6; 10, 56% male) were taught eight novel words across a four-day word learning protocol. Day 1 measured encoding, Days 2 and 3 measured re-encoding, and Day 4 assessed retention. At each day, word learning success was evaluated using Naming, Recognition, Description, and Identification tasks. Results Children with DLD showed comparable performance to the TD group on the Identification task, indicating an intact ability to learn the form-referent links. In contrast, children with DLD performed significantly worse for Naming and Recognition (signifying an impaired ability to learn novel word forms), and for Description, indicating problems establishing new word meanings. These deficits for the DLD group were apparent at Days 1, 2, and 3 of testing, indicating impairments with initial encoding and re-encoding; however, the DLD and TD groups demonstrated a similar rate of learning. All children found the retention assessments at Day 4 difficult, and there were no significant group differences. Finally, verbal working memory emerged as a significant moderator of performance on the Naming and Recognition tasks, such that children with DLD and poor verbal working memory had the lowest levels of accuracy. Conclusions This study demonstrates that children with DLD struggle with learning novel word forms and meanings, but are unimpaired in their ability to establish new form-referent links. The findings suggest that the word learning deficit may be attributed to problems with encoding, rather than with retention, of new word knowledge; however, further exploration is required given the poor performance of both groups for retention testing. Furthermore, we found evidence that an impaired ability to learn word forms may only be apparent in children who have DLD and low levels of verbal working memory. Implications When working with children with DLD, speech-language pathologists should assess word learning using tasks that evaluate the ability to learn word forms, meanings, and form-referent links to develop a profile of individual word learning strengths and weaknesses. Clinicians should also assess verbal working memory to identify children at particular risk of word learning deficits. Future research should explore the notion of optimal intervention intensity for facilitating word learning in children with poor language and verbal working memory.

scholarly journals The word learning profile of adults with developmental language disorder

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. 239694151989931 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karla K McGregor ◽  
Timothy Arbisi-Kelm ◽  
Nichole Eden ◽  
Jacob Oleson
Keyword(s):  
Word Learning ◽  
Language Disorder ◽  
Developmental Language Disorder

scholarly journals The Relationship Between Word Learning and Executive Function in Preschoolers With and Without Developmental Language Disorder

2020 ◽  
Vol 63 (7) ◽  
pp. 2293-2307
Author(s):  
Leah L. Kapa ◽  
Jessie A. Erikson
Keyword(s):  
Executive Function ◽  
Word Learning ◽  
Short Term Memory ◽  
Language Disorder ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Developmental Language Disorder ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Term Memory ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Familiar Objects

Purpose The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between executive functioning and word learning among preschoolers with and without developmental language disorder (DLD). Method Forty-one preschool-age children with DLD were matched to typically developing children on age and sex. Participants were exposed to 10 novel pseudowords, half of which referred to familiar objects and half of which referred to unfamiliar objects. Their ability to produce, recognize, and comprehend the novel words was tested, and they completed executive function tasks measuring sustained selective attention, short-term memory, working memory, inhibition, and shifting. Results Preschoolers with DLD performed worse compared to typically developing peers on all measures of executive function and novel word learning. Both groups showed a relative weakness in producing pseudowords that corresponded with familiar objects versus pseudowords for unknown objects. Executive function accounted for statistically significant variance in word learning beyond group membership, with inhibition as a significant predictor of all word learning outcomes and short-term memory as a significant predictor of novel word comprehension. Executive function explained significant variance in novel word production and recognition even after accounting for variance explained by group differences in IQ and receptive vocabulary. Conclusion Findings replicate previous research reporting deficits in word learning and executive function in children with DLD, indicate that preschoolers are disadvantaged in learning new words for familiar objects, and support a relationship between executive function and word learning for children with and without DLD. Future research should examine the directionality of the relationship between these variables.

scholarly journals Spoken Word Learning in Children With Developmental Language Disorder or Dyslexia

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-16
Author(s):  
Suzanne M. Adlof ◽  
Lauren S. Baron ◽  
Bethany A. Bell ◽  
Joanna Scoggins
Keyword(s):  
Word Learning ◽  
Language Impairment ◽  
Specific Language Impairment ◽  
Retrieval Practice ◽  
Language Disorder ◽  
Learning Difficulties ◽  
Learning Task ◽  
Vocabulary Knowledge ◽  
Developmental Language Disorder ◽  
Learning Abilities

Purpose Word learning difficulties have been documented in multiple studies involving children with dyslexia and developmental language disorder (DLD; see also specific language impairment). However, no previous studies have directly contrasted word learning in these two frequently co-occurring disorders. We examined word learning in second-grade students with DLD-only and dyslexia-only as compared to each other, peers with both disorders (DLD + dyslexia), and peers with typical development. We hypothesized that children with dyslexia-only and DLD-only would show differences in word learning due to differences in their core language strengths and weaknesses. Method Children ( N = 244) were taught eight novel pseudowords paired with unfamiliar objects. The teaching script included multiple exposures to the phonological form, the pictured object, a verbal semantic description of the object, and spaced retrieval practice opportunities. Word learning was assessed immediately after instruction with tasks requiring recall or recognition of the phonological and semantic information. Results Children with dyslexia-only performed significantly better on existing vocabulary measures than their peers with DLD-only. On experimental word learning measures, children in the dyslexia-only and DLD + dyslexia groups showed significantly poorer performance than typically developing children on all word learning tasks. Children with DLD-only differed significantly from the TD group on a single word learning task assessing verbal semantic recall. Conclusions Overall, results indicated that children with dyslexia display broad word learning difficulties extending beyond the phonological domain; however, this contrasted with their relatively strong performance on measures of existing vocabulary knowledge. More research is needed to understand relations between word learning abilities and overall vocabulary knowledge and how to close vocabulary gaps for children with both disorders. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.14832717

scholarly journals After Initial Retrieval Practice, More Retrieval Produces Better Retention Than More Study in the Word Learning of Children With Developmental Language Disorder

2020 ◽  
Vol 63 (8) ◽  
pp. 2763-2776
Author(s):  
Laurence B. Leonard ◽  
Patricia Deevy ◽  
Jeffrey D. Karpicke ◽  
Sharon L. Christ ◽  
Justin B. Kueser
Keyword(s):  
Word Learning ◽  
Retrieval Practice ◽  
Language Disorder ◽  
Developmental Language Disorder ◽  
Learning Session ◽  
Study Condition ◽  
Learning Procedure ◽  
Word Forms ◽  
Clinical Tools ◽  
Initial Retrieval

Purpose Children with developmental language disorder (DLD) often have difficulty with word learning. Recent studies have shown that incorporating retrieval practice provides a significant benefit to this learning. However, we have not yet discovered the best balance between the amount of retrieval and the amount of study (hearing the word in the presence of the referent) that is provided. In this investigation, we compared a word learning procedure using more retrieval and less study with a procedure that used more study and less retrieval. Method Participants were 13 children with DLD and 13 same-age peers with typical language development (TD). Both groups ranged in age from 4 to 6 years. The children learned two sets of novel words, with each set taught in two sessions. During an initial criterion period, the children had the opportunity to retrieve all of the words. Following this period, the words were either retrieved without further study or studied without additional retrieval. Recall and recognition testing immediately followed the second learning session and was repeated 1 week later. Testing assessed the children's retention of both the word forms and their meanings. Results Better recall both immediately after learning and after 1 week was seen for the more retrieval/less study condition. This was seen for both groups of children for word form recall and for children with DLD for meaning. Group differences were not found. Conclusion This study served as a stringent test of the benefits of retrieval to children's word learning. Continued retrieval after initial retrieval practice appeared to be helpful even when further study was discontinued and when the comparison study condition had also provided retrieval practice in the initial stages. Further refinement of retrieval procedures might lead to the development of useful clinical tools to promote word learning.

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