Language Disorder or Difference? Assessing the Language Skills of Hispanic Students

1989 ◽  
Vol 56 (2) ◽  
pp. 160-167 ◽  
Author(s):  
Henriette W. Langdon

Results from a study on current practices of Spanish-speaking speech and language specialists are reported. Analyses of the data indicate that a heavy diagnostic emphasis continues to be placed on the results of discrete-point tests. A protocol to assess limited-English-speaking students suspected of a language or learning disability is offered.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Freudenthal ◽  
Fernand Gobet ◽  
Julian Pine

This study extends an existing cross-linguistic model of verb-marking error in children’s early multi-word speech (MOSAIC) by adding a novel mechanism that defaults to the most frequent form of the verb where this accounts for a high proportion of forms in the input. Our simulations show that the resulting dual-factor model not only provides a better explanation of the data on typically developing (TD) children, but also captures the cross-linguistic pattern of verb-marking error in children with Developmental Language Disorder (DLD), including the tendency of English-speaking children to show higher rates of Optional Infinitive (OI) errors and the tendency of Dutch-, German- and Spanish-speaking children to show higher rates of agreement errors. The new version of MOSAIC thus provides a unified cross-linguistic model of the pattern of verb-marking error in TD children and children with DLD.


2020 ◽  
Vol 63 (12) ◽  
pp. 3961-3973
Author(s):  
Françoise Brosseau-Lapré ◽  
Jennifer Schumaker

Purpose The purpose of this study was to examine the perception of correctly and incorrectly produced words in children with and without phonological speech sound disorder (SSD) with similar vocabulary and language skills. Method Thirty-six monolingual English-speaking children aged 4 and 5 years, half with SSD and half with typical speech and language skills, participated in this study. Participants completed standardized speech and language tests as well as a mispronunciation detection task targeting omissions and substitutions of the phonemes /k, s, ɹ/ in five word positions/shapes. Results The children with SSD obtained significantly lower perceptual accuracy than the children with typical development. There was no statistically significant effect for phoneme. Omissions were more likely to be detected by both groups of participants compared with substitutions, and children with SSD had greater difficulty identifying substitutions as incorrectly produced words. Conclusions Speech perception difficulties may be a distinguishing feature of children with phonological SSD and without concomitant language difficulties. Further research is needed to investigate specific speech contexts in which perception predicts accurate production in children with SSD.


2019 ◽  
Vol 34 (7) ◽  
pp. 1236-1236
Author(s):  
J Arias ◽  
R Mendoza ◽  
A Levine ◽  
S Mojena ◽  
A Wilsey

Abstract Objective As the U.S. Spanish-speaking population grows, neuropsychologists provide assessment services to an increasingly diverse group of individuals. In response to the need for a centralized resource, NeuroShare, a no-cost website that collects and organizes cross-cultural neuropsychological normative data was created. The purpose of this study was to gather information on the current practices of cross-cultural neuropsychology, the utility of NeuroShare, and potential improvements that could be made to the platform. Participants and Method An anonymous survey was distributed to neuropsychologists and trainees through national and regional professional listservs. Participants’ demographics, clinical experience, and current practices (e.g. use of language specific normative data, assessment of acculturation/bilingualism) when providing neuropsychological services to Spanish-speaking populations were collected. The survey examined feedback on the NeuroShare database. Results 60 participants completed the survey, and they were primarily White/ Caucasian (62%), along with Hispanic/ Latino (36%), Black/African American (1%), and biracial/multiracial (1%). About 66% reported that they often search for Spanish language normative data depending on the patient’s demographics. 70% of respondents reported administering tests developed primarily for English-speaking populations, that are then adapted, when testing Spanish-speaking individuals. Some recommendations for improving Neuroshare included the incorporation of pediatric normative data and a normative data calculator tool. Conclusions This study highlights the needs and benefits of a comprehensive, easy to use system in collecting and organizing normative information for diverse populations. NeuroShare serves as a tool to facilitate the practice of cross-cultural neuropsychology, as well as a catalyst to improve neuropsychological services through the provision of improved access to appropriate normative measures for use with diverse populations.


2020 ◽  
Vol 63 (12) ◽  
pp. 4193-4207
Author(s):  
Amy S. Pratt ◽  
John A. Grinstead ◽  
Rebecca J. McCauley

Purpose This exploratory study describes the emergent literacy skills of children with developmental language disorder (DLD) who speak Spanish, a language with a simple phonological structure and transparent orthography. We examine differences between children with DLD and their typically developing (TD) peers on a battery of emergent literacy measures. Method Participants included 15 monolingual Spanish-speaking children with DLD (who did not present with cognitive difficulties) and 15 TD controls matched for age, gender, and socioeconomic status, ranging in age from 3;10 to 6;6 (years;months; M age = 4;11). All children completed a battery of comprehension-related emergent literacy tasks (narrative retell, print concept knowledge) and code-related emergent literacy tasks (beginning sound, rhyming awareness, alphabet knowledge, and name-writing ability). Results On average, children with DLD performed significantly worse than TD controls on a battery of comprehension- and code-related emergent literacy measures. On all code-related skills except rhyming, children with DLD were more likely than their TD peers to score “at risk.” Conclusions The results suggest some universality in the effect of DLD on reading development. Difficulties with emergent literacy that are widely documented in English-speaking children with DLD were similarly observed in Spanish-speaking children with DLD. Future research should explore long-term reading outcomes in Spanish for children with DLD.


2008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricia H. Manz ◽  
Ageliki Nicolopoulou ◽  
Catherine B. Bracaliello ◽  
Allison N. Ash

BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. e044240
Author(s):  
Abraham Bohadana ◽  
Hava Azulai ◽  
Amir Jarjoui ◽  
George Kalak ◽  
Ariel Rokach ◽  
...  

IntroductionThe value of chest auscultation would be enhanced by the use of a standardised terminology. To that end, the recommended English terminology must be transferred to a language other than English (LOTE) without distortion.ObjectiveTo examine the transfer to Hebrew—taken as a model of LOTE—of the recommended terminology in English.Design/settingCross-sectional study; university-based hospital.Participants143 caregivers, including 31 staff physicians, 65 residents and 47 medical students.MethodsObservers provided uninstructed descriptions in Hebrew and English of audio recordings of five common sounds, namely, normal breath sound (NBS), wheezes, crackles, stridor and pleural friction rub (PFR).Outcomes(a) Rates of correct/incorrect classification; (b) correspondence between Hebrew and recommended English terms; c) language and auscultation skills, assessed by crossing the responses in the two languages with each other and with the classification of the audio recordings validated by computer analysis.ResultsRange (%) of correct rating was as follows: NBS=11.3–20, wheezes=79.7–87.2, crackles=58.6–69.8, stridor=67.4–96.3 and PFR=2.7–28.6. Of 60 Hebrew terms, 11 were correct, and 5 matched the recommended English terms. Many Hebrew terms were adaptations or transliterations of inadequate English terms. Of 687 evaluations, good dual-language and single-language skills were found in 586 (85.3%) and 41 (6%), respectively. However, in 325 (47.3%) evaluations, good language skills were associated with poor auscultation skills.ConclusionPoor auscultation skills surpassed poor language skills as a factor hampering the transfer to Hebrew (LOTE) of the recommended English terminology. Improved education in auscultation emerged as the main factor to promote the use of standardised lung sound terminology. Using our data, a strategy was devised to encourage the use of standardised terminology in non-native English-speaking countries.


2021 ◽  
pp. 193229682110292
Author(s):  
David Tsai ◽  
Jaquelin Flores Garcia ◽  
Jennifer L. Fogel ◽  
Choo Phei Wee ◽  
Mark W. Reid ◽  
...  

Background: Diabetes technologies, such as insulin pumps and continuous glucose monitors (CGM), have been associated with improved glycemic control and increased quality of life for young people with type 1 diabetes (T1D); however, few young people use these devices, especially those from minority ethnic groups. Current literature predominantly focuses on white patients with private insurance and does not report experiences of diverse pediatric patients with limited resources. Methods: To explore potential differences between Latinx and non-Latinx patients, English- and Spanish-speaking young people with T1D ( n = 173, ages 11-25 years) were surveyed to assess attitudes about and barriers to diabetes technologies using the Technology Use Attitudes and Barriers to Device Use questionnaires. Results: Both English- and Spanish-speaking participants who identified as Latinx were more likely to have public insurance ( P = .0001). English-speaking Latinx participants reported higher Hemoglobin A1c values ( P = .003), less CGM use ( P = .002), and more negative attitudes about technology (generally, P = .003; and diabetes-specific, P < .001) than either non-Latinx or Spanish-speaking Latinx participants. Barriers were encountered with equivalent frequency across groups. Conclusions: Latinx English-speaking participants had less positive attitudes toward general and diabetes technology than Latinx Spanish-speaking and non-Latinx English-speaking peers, and differences in CGM use were associated with socioeconomic status. Additional work is needed to design and deliver diabetes interventions that are of interest to and supportive of patients from diverse ethnic and language backgrounds.


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