This study investigated the impact of language sample length on mean length of utterance (MLU) and aimed to determine the minimum number of utterances required for a reliable MLU. Conversations were collected from Mandar...This study investigated the impact of language sample length on mean length of utterance (MLU) and aimed to determine the minimum number of utterances required for a reliable MLU. Conversations were collected from Mandarin-speaking, hard-of-hearing and typical-hearing children aged 16-81 months. The MLUs were calculated using sample sizes ranging from 25 to 200 utterances. The results showed that for an MLU between 1.0 and 2.5, 25 and 50 utterances were sufficient for reliable MLU calculations for hard-of-hearing and typical-hearing children, respectively. For an MLU between 2.5 and 3.75, 125 utterances were required for both groups. For an MLU greater than 3.75, 150 and 125 utterances were required for hard-of-hearing and typical-hearing children, respectively. These findings suggest that a greater number of utterances are required for a reliable MLU as language complexity increases. Professionals working with hard-of-hearing children should consider collecting different numbers of utterances based on the children's language complexity levels.
Gustafson SJ, Newsome E, Pilling N
… +1 more, Segura E
J Deaf Stud Deaf Educ
· 2024 Sep · PMID 38409739
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Collaboration between teachers of students who are deaf and hard of hearing (TSDHH) and educational audiologists is essential when developing successful, comprehensive service delivery plans for students who are deaf and...Collaboration between teachers of students who are deaf and hard of hearing (TSDHH) and educational audiologists is essential when developing successful, comprehensive service delivery plans for students who are deaf and hard of hearing. Despite the importance, little is known about how these two professions work together. This study sought to describe the current state of collaboration between educational audiologists and TSDHH and to explore the barriers and facilitators to this collaboration. Anonymous survey responses from 752 educational audiologists and TSDHH showed that collaboration is considered valuable and is occurring frequently, via a variety of formats and despite significant barriers. More research is needed to understand how efforts to minimize barriers to collaboration might improve the quality of collaboration and ultimately impact the success of student support.
On average, deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) children have difficulty developing expressive spoken vocabulary comparable to hearing peers. Yet, there are no evidence-based practices to guide classroom instruction for teach...On average, deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) children have difficulty developing expressive spoken vocabulary comparable to hearing peers. Yet, there are no evidence-based practices to guide classroom instruction for teachers of the deaf. Retrieval practice-a robust learning strategy-has been shown to improve children's retention of vocabulary, but it has not been investigated with DHH children who use listening and spoken language. The present study examined whether DHH children benefit from using retrieval practice to learn new vocabulary. Sixteen DHH children (in the age range of 5.0-8.11 years) were taught a set of new vocabulary words using retrieval practice or repeated exposure. A recall test was administered two days later. Results showed that DHH children were twice as likely to recall a word taught through retrieval practice than exposure (OR = 2.01, p = .02). Presence of an additional diagnosis and number of practice trials were also significant predicting factors of vocabulary learning.
J Deaf Stud Deaf Educ
· 2024 Jun · PMID 38287681
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The deaf population of Martha's Vineyard has fascinated scholars for more than a century since Alexander Graham Bell's research on the frequent occurrence of deafness there and since Groce's book on the island's signing...The deaf population of Martha's Vineyard has fascinated scholars for more than a century since Alexander Graham Bell's research on the frequent occurrence of deafness there and since Groce's book on the island's signing community (Groce, N. E. (1985). Everyone here spoke sign language: Hereditary deafness on Martha's Vineyard. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.). In Groce's work, and in that of subsequent scholars, the Vineyard signing community has often been portrayed as remote and outlying, having developed independently of mainland signing communities for roughly 133 years until 1825. We re-examine that interpretation in light of historical, demographic, and genealogical evidence covering the period 1692-2008. We argue that the Vineyard signing community began in Chilmark in 1785, 93 years later than previously thought, and that it had had a brief period of independent development, roughly 40 years, before becoming well connected, through deaf education, to the nascent New England signing community. We consider the implications of the Vineyard community's history for our understanding of how village signing communities develop.
Warner-Czyz AD, Anderson SR, Graham S
… +1 more, Uhler K
J Deaf Stud Deaf Educ
· 2024 Jun · PMID 38240124
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This study investigated the acquisition of early expressive vocabulary among young children who are deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH; n = 68) using auditory technology (hearing aids and cochlear implants). Parents completed...This study investigated the acquisition of early expressive vocabulary among young children who are deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH; n = 68) using auditory technology (hearing aids and cochlear implants). Parents completed a standardized vocabulary checklist, which allowed analyses of (i) the size of their child's spoken vocabulary; (ii) composition of the expressive lexicon (e.g., parts of speech such as nouns and verbs; semantic categories such as routines and body parts); and (iii) demographic and audiologic factors (e.g., chronologic age, degree of hearing access) potentially associated with these metrics. Young children who are DHH and use auditory technology acquired fewer spoken words than peers with typical hearing (TH) matched for chronologic age but more spoken words than peers with TH matched for listening experience. Action verbs-not nouns-significantly increased the odds of a child who is DHH achieving a vocabulary quotient within the normative range. These findings support the exploration of early expressive vocabulary size and composition-especially the number of active verbs-to guide clinical management and decision-making for young children who are DHH.
Writing is an essential element of literacy development, and language plays a central role in the composing process, including developing, organizing, and refining ideas. Language and writing are interconnected, making i...Writing is an essential element of literacy development, and language plays a central role in the composing process, including developing, organizing, and refining ideas. Language and writing are interconnected, making it paramount for educators to attend to the development of deaf students' language skills. In this quasi-experimental study, we examined the impact of strategic and interactive pedagogical approaches, namely Strategic and Interactive Writing Instruction, implemented with deaf students in grades 3-6 to develop genre-specific traits in their expressive language (spoken or signed) and writing. In this study, a total of 16 teachers and their 69 students participated in the treatment and comparison groups. Expressive language and writing samples were collected at the beginning and end of the year for three different genres. Students in the treatment group showed statistically significant gains in their expressive and written language for recount and information genres when compared to students in the comparison group. There was not a significant treatment effect on persuasive expressive language or writing. In addition, there was a significant positive correlation between expressive language and writing at both time points across all three genres. This study provides evidence on the importance of attending to language skills during literacy instruction.
Öztürk H, Karabulut M, Baydan-Aran M
… +1 more, Tokgöz-Yılmaz S
J Deaf Stud Deaf Educ
· 2024 Mar · PMID 38215790
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This methodological study aimed to assess the validity and reliability of the Turkish version of the Evaluation of the Impact of Hearing Loss in Adults (ERSA) questionnaire for individuals with treated hearing loss. The...This methodological study aimed to assess the validity and reliability of the Turkish version of the Evaluation of the Impact of Hearing Loss in Adults (ERSA) questionnaire for individuals with treated hearing loss. The study involved 200 participants, and both exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis were used to examine structural validity. External validity was assessed by correlating ERSA scores with the Abbreviated Profile of Hearing Aid Benefit (APHAB). Internal consistency and test-retest reliability were evaluated using Cronbach's alpha and the intraclass correlation coefficient, respectively. The Turkish ERSA demonstrated strong psychometric properties, with significant correlations between APHAB and ERSA scores and excellent internal consistency and test-retest reliability. The findings suggest that the Turkish ERSA is a valid and reliable tool for evaluating the impact of hearing loss in individuals.
In the current study, we used a sequential explanatory design to examine secondary writing instruction for deaf students in various school settings. An examination of secondary writing instruction was carried out in two...In the current study, we used a sequential explanatory design to examine secondary writing instruction for deaf students in various school settings. An examination of secondary writing instruction was carried out in two cycles using a survey and subsequent focus group discussions. The first cycle (n = 222) presented an overview of secondary writing instruction for deaf students with diverse skill levels. The second cycle (n = 18) focused on writing instruction specific to grade-level or college-bound deaf students. We compared results from both cycles to investigate the similarities and differences in instructional practices and research needs between the two groups. We found that teachers are generally more prepared to instruct deaf students who are at grade level due to widely available curricula aligned with grade-level benchmarks. This contrasts with the challenges teachers face with creating or adapting materials for those who have experienced language deprivation. According to teachers, grade-level students receive 1.5 hr more weekly in writing instruction compared to the full sample. This study also indicates the importance of training teachers to teach skills in crafting arguments through writing, given its applicability to deaf students' future academic and personal goals.
Deaf patients who communicate in American Sign Language (ASL) experience communication challenges leading to medical errors, treatment delays, and health disparities. Research on Deaf patient communication preferences is...Deaf patients who communicate in American Sign Language (ASL) experience communication challenges leading to medical errors, treatment delays, and health disparities. Research on Deaf patient communication preferences is sparse. Researchers conducted focus groups based on the Health Belief Model with culturally Deaf patients and interpreters. The ASL focus groups were interpreted and transcribed into written English, verified by a third-party interpreting agency, and uploaded into NVivo. Deductive coding was used to identify communication methods and inductive coding was used to identify themes within each. Writing back-and-forth introduced challenges related to English proficiency, medical terminology, poor penmanship, and tendencies of providers to abbreviate. Participants had various speechreading abilities and described challenges with mask mandates. Multiple issues were identified with family and friends as proxy interpreters, including a lack of training, confidentiality issues, emotional support, and patient autonomy. Video remote interpreter challenges included technical, environmental, and interpreter qualification concerns. Participants overwhelmingly preferred on-site interpreters for communication clarity. While there was a preference for direct care, many acknowledged this is not always feasible due to lack of providers fluent in ASL. Access to on-site interpreters is vital for many Deaf patients to provide full access to critical medical information. Budget allocation for on-call interpreters is important in emergency settings.
Engaged communication between mother and a child in their early developmental stages is one of the predictors of children's development of higher-order thinking skills. For deaf children, this engaged communication betwe...Engaged communication between mother and a child in their early developmental stages is one of the predictors of children's development of higher-order thinking skills. For deaf children, this engaged communication between mother and child hinges on the home language environment (HLE) being fully accessible to the child. This research uses agogical phenomenology in exploring the lived experiences of participants' HLE where sign language is used, with particular focus on the opportunities for extended discourse. Data were collected via semistructured interviews with the deaf children and their parents and observations in the HLEs of five signing families with at least one deaf child in the southwestern United States. The aim of this study was to document and provide insights into how language use in deaf children's HLE can impact their knowledge development; these insights uncovered the essence of reciprocal and contingent family interactions as a central aspect of the deaf child's HLE. It is hoped that the qualitative phenomenological findings will frame subsequent quantitative investigations of the variability in language access to home language components.
This longitudinal multiple-case study research focused on the scaffolding strategies that two Israeli deaf mothers use to boost their young hearing children's engagement in reading interactions. Despite being significant...This longitudinal multiple-case study research focused on the scaffolding strategies that two Israeli deaf mothers use to boost their young hearing children's engagement in reading interactions. Despite being significant to language learning, few studies have examined the dialogic reading practices of deaf-signing mothers. The study shows that until the age of 22 months, the mothers shared picture books with their children. Between the ages of 12 to 24 months, the mothers used mostly low-demand cognitive prompts and responsive utterances. Between the ages of 24 to 36 months, they used more high-demand prompts (including open-ended questions) and expanded their responses. In line with previous studies, this research demonstrated that the Israeli deaf mothers used the books as a foundation for storytelling and reading conversations. The shared reading provided the mothers with opportunities to model the construction of ISL narratives and language functional behaviors, such as asking questions, describing things or expanding on the text.
The ability to associate different types of number representations referring to the same quantity (symbolic Arabic numerals, signed/spoken number words, and nonsymbolic quantities), is an important predictor of overall m...The ability to associate different types of number representations referring to the same quantity (symbolic Arabic numerals, signed/spoken number words, and nonsymbolic quantities), is an important predictor of overall mathematical success. This foundational skill-mapping-has not been examined in deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) children. To address this gap, we studied 188 4 1/2 to 9-year-old DHH and hearing children and systematically examined the relationship between their language experiences and mapping skills. We asked whether the timing of children's language exposure (early vs. later), the modality of their language (signed vs. spoken), and their rote counting abilities related to mapping performance. We found that language modality did not significantly relate to mapping performance, but timing of language exposure and counting skills did. These findings suggest that early access to language, whether spoken or signed, supports the development of age-typical mapping skills and that knowledge of number words is critical for this development.
The aim of this study was to explore the strategies that speech-language pathologists (SLPs) use during their linguistic interventions on children with cochlear implants (CIs). The sample comprised 7 SLPs in interactions...The aim of this study was to explore the strategies that speech-language pathologists (SLPs) use during their linguistic interventions on children with cochlear implants (CIs). The sample comprised 7 SLPs in interactions with 62 children, 31 with CIs and 31 with typical hearing (TH), from 5 to 7 years of age. Two linguistic activities were used: conversation and naming. With children with CIs, the SLPs used 3.8 times more adaptation strategies and 5 times more educational strategies in the conversation activity, and 1.4 times more educational strategies in the naming activity than with children with TH. Communication strategies were significantly more frequent in the conversation activity than in the naming activity while educational strategies were more frequent in the naming activity than in the conversation activity. The auditory age of children with CIs also influenced the use of these two types of strategies, increasing the use of communication strategies by 0.6% and decreasing the use of educational strategies by 1.2% for each month of increase in the auditory age. In order to foster linguistic development, the SLPs used a wide variety of strategies with the children with CIs, adjusting them to the activity and the auditory age.
Morere DA, Allen TE, Jaeger M
… +1 more, Winthrop D
J Deaf Stud Deaf Educ
· 2024 Mar · PMID 38079616
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Research has demonstrated that deaf children of deaf signing parents (DOD) are afforded developmental advantages. This can be misconstrued as indicating that no DOD children exhibit early language delays (ELDs) because o...Research has demonstrated that deaf children of deaf signing parents (DOD) are afforded developmental advantages. This can be misconstrued as indicating that no DOD children exhibit early language delays (ELDs) because of their early access to a visual language. Little research has studied this presumption. In this study, we examine 174 ratings of DOD 3- to 5-year-old children, for whom signing in the home was indicated, using archival data from the online database of the Visual Communication and Sign Language Checklist. Our goals were to (1) examine the incidence of ELDs in a cohort of DOD children; (2) compare alternative scaling strategies for identifying ELD children; (3) explore patterns among behavioral ratings with a view toward developing a greater understanding of the types of language behaviors that may lie at the root of language delays; and (4) suggest recommendations for parents and professionals working with language-delayed DOD children. The results indicated that a significant number of ratings suggested ELDs, with a subset significantly delayed. These children likely require further evaluation. Among the less delayed group, ASL skills, rather than communication or cognition, were seen as the major concern, suggesting that even DOD children may require support developing linguistically accurate ASL. Overall, these findings support the need for early and ongoing evaluation of visual language skills in young DOD children.
This paper discusses language use and identity patterns in ethnic minority/ethnically heterogeneous multigenerational deaf families in Romania, where at least one of the family members belongs to the ethnic Hungarian min...This paper discusses language use and identity patterns in ethnic minority/ethnically heterogeneous multigenerational deaf families in Romania, where at least one of the family members belongs to the ethnic Hungarian minority. Early childhood and school linguistic socialization, language use within the family, and cross-generational transmission of identity to children are explored. The research is based on five ethnic minority/ethnically heterogeneous multigenerational deaf family case studies. The research results show that within ethnic-national minority/ethnically heterogeneous multigenerational deaf families, complex identity patterns may develop and multifaceted linguistic communication models may prevail, including the use of national oral languages and national sign languages of the parties involved. At the same time, a kind of special linguistic and cultural enrichment, a striving for cultural-linguistic balance, may occur.
Stefánsdóttir H, Crowe K, Magnússon E
… +4 more, Guiberson M, Másdóttir T, Ágústsdóttir I, Baldursdóttir ÖV
J Deaf Stud Deaf Educ
· 2024 Mar · PMID 38079579
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There is great variability in the ways in which the speech intelligibility of d/Deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) children who use spoken language as part, or all, of their communication system is measured. This systematic...There is great variability in the ways in which the speech intelligibility of d/Deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) children who use spoken language as part, or all, of their communication system is measured. This systematic review examined the measures and methods that have been used when examining the speech intelligibility of children who are DHH and the characteristics of these measures and methods. A systematic database search was conducted of CENTRAL; CINAHL; Cochrane; ERIC; Joanna Briggs; Linguistics, Language and Behavior Abstracts; Medline; Scopus; and Web of Science databases, as well as supplemental searches. A total of 204 included studies reported the use of many different measures/methods which measured segmental aspects of speech, with the most common being Allen et al.'s (2001, The reliability of a rating scale for measuring speech intelligibility following pediatric cochlear implantation. Otology and Neurotology, 22(5), 631-633. https://doi.org/10.1097/00129492-200109000-00012) Speech Intelligibility Rating scale. Many studies included insufficient details to determine the measure that was used. Future research should utilize methods/measures with known psychometric validity, provide clear descriptions of the methods/measures used, and consider using more than one measure to account for limitations inherent in different methods of measuring the speech intelligibility of children who are DHH, and consider and discuss the rationale for the measure/method chosen.
In Sri Lanka, about 300,000 Sinhala speaking people are either deaf or hard of hearing (DHH) and would benefit from a common Sinhala sign language, technological resources such as captioning, and educational and social s...In Sri Lanka, about 300,000 Sinhala speaking people are either deaf or hard of hearing (DHH) and would benefit from a common Sinhala sign language, technological resources such as captioning, and educational and social support. There is no fully developed common sign language for members of the Sinhalese community, a severe shortage of sign language interpreters, and few resources for teachers. This exploratory study was undertaken in all nine provinces of Sri Lanka into the use of sign language, access to education for people with disabilities, and the availability of trained or qualified educators to work with the DHH people. Data were gathered via interviews and focus groups with Special Education Assistant Directors, Principals and Teachers in Deaf Schools, and Teachers of Special Education Deaf Units in mainstream schools. The DHH members of Sri Lankan society are marginalized, under-supported, and require urgent attention to their educational and social needs. This study provides a basis for much needed attention and reform.
This study addressed the critical gap in research on the academic English vocabulary knowledge of deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) students at the college level, with a specific focus on academic English verbs. An English...This study addressed the critical gap in research on the academic English vocabulary knowledge of deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) students at the college level, with a specific focus on academic English verbs. An English vocabulary test was developed to assess knowledge of academic verbs at three distinct corpus-defined lexical frequency ranges. The test was administered to the DHH students along with two comparison groups of college peers-students of English as an Additional Language (EAL)1 and hearing native-English-speaking students. Results revealed near-ceiling performance by hearing native speakers but significant vocabulary challenges in the DHH and EAL learner groups, who exhibited parallel lexical knowledge. Learner group performance increased as verb frequency range increased and as overall English proficiency level increased. The findings demonstrate that lexical frequency effects guide English verb acquisition in the targeted populations.2.
Classrooms are complex learning environments, with instruction, climate, and teacher-student interactions playing important roles in students' academic progress. To investigate the learning environments of deaf and hard-...Classrooms are complex learning environments, with instruction, climate, and teacher-student interactions playing important roles in students' academic progress. To investigate the learning environments of deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) students, we developed a new observational tool called the Quality of the Learning Environment-DHH rating scale (QLE-DHH) and rated 98 teachers of DHH students being educated in a range of classroom environments. The present study sought to (1) determine if the items on the QLE-DHH are good indicators of theoretically meaningful dimensions of classroom quality; (2) determine to what extent these dimensions predicted language and reading outcomes of DHH students; and (3) examine how teachers of DHH students were rated on the indicators of classroom quality. The findings suggested that the QLE-DHH has excellent structural validity. Ratings predicted student reading outcomes. Finally, the QLE-DHH was able to capture teachers' strengths and skills in need of improvement. The QLE-DHH appears to hold promise for use in both research and teacher preparation programs.