A comparison of linguistic profiles in subgroups of children with specific language impairment

Morphosyntactic profiles among preschoolers with and without speech sound disorders

The aim of the current study was to identify whether certain morphosyntactic constructs are more difficult for children with speech sound disorder than children with typical speech development. In this post-hoc study, we used chi-square analyses to identify group differences on individual questions on a standardised test of expressive morphosyntax. Participants included 80 preschool-age children, 40 with typical speech and language development (TD), and 40 with speech sound disorder and typical language development (SSD). A chi-square analysis revealed group (TD vs. SSD) differences in usage of subject pronouns, irregular past tense verbs, and yes/no interrogative formation. Ordinal logistic regression revealed that phonological awareness was related to irregular past tense verb use. Children with SSD may present with subclinical morphosyntax difficulties. Speech-language pathologists should consider incorporating morphosyntax assessment into test batteries for children with SSD.

Relaciones entre habilidades de percepción y producción de habla y el desarrollo morfosintáctico en niños con Trastorno Fonológico que hablan español

La investigación sobre el desarrollo gramatical y su posible relación con los déficits de procesamiento de habla en niños con Trastorno Fonológico (TF) es escasa, especialmente para la lengua española. El objetivo es analizar la influencia de las habilidades de percepción y producción de habla en el desarrollo morfosintáctico de los niños con TF sin Trastorno del Lenguaje (TL). Participaron 52 niños de habla española de 4 a 6 años: 26 con TF y 26 con desarrollo típico (DT) emparejados en edad cronológica, cociente de inteligencia no verbal y nivel de vocabulario receptivo. El desarrollo morfosintáctico se evaluó con el test de lenguaje CELF-Preschool-2-Spanish. Los niños realizaron una tarea de percepción de habla en concreto de discriminación y reconocimiento fonológico y la producción se analizó mediante un análisis fonológico a partir de una tarea de denominación de imágenes. Los niños con TF obtuvieron puntuaciones significativamente más pobres que los niños con DT en todas las variables. Un análisis de mediación mostró un efecto positivo entre la percepción del habla y el desarrollo gramatical con la mediación de la producción del habla. Los niños con TF presentan peor desarrollo morfosintáctico que los niños con DT. Parecen aprender el lenguaje de forma diferente porque son menos eficaces extrayendo, manipulando y produciendo las características del habla. En ellos, el desarrollo gramatical parece depender de varios factores incluyendo la percepción y producción de habla y del efecto sinérgico que estos dos procesos tienen el uno sobre el otro.

Use of Videos and Digital Media in Parent-implemented Interventions for Parents of Children with Primary Speech Sound And/or Language Disorders: A Scoping Review

No review to date has focused on evaluating the use of videos and digital media in parent-implemented interventions for parents of children with primary language or speech sound disorder (LD/SSD). Research objectives guiding this scoping review included an evaluation of (a) use of videos and/or other digital media in parent-implemented interventions; (b) use of videos and/or other digital media in asynchronous content; (c) the role of the parent as learner; and (d) the program impact on parents and children. This review followed a five-stage framework: (a) identify research questions; (b) identify relevant studies; (c) select studies; (d) chart the data; and (e) collate, summarize and report the results. Ten studies were included. No program included parents of children with speech disorders. One fully asynchronous program was identified, though many programs included videos concurrent with direct instruction. No study described the parent as learner and only four studies examined parent satisfaction and perceptions. These four studies directly measured specific parent behavior and results indicated that the programs had a positive impact on parents' interactions. Nine of the ten studies included child outcomes. This low volume of studies suggests limited work in this area. The review describes research gaps and future directions.

Phonology, morphology and speech processing development in Greek-speaking children

Α psycholinguistic framework for speech processing was adopted to investigate the development of phonological and morphological skills in children learning Greek. It was investigated whether morphological items pose specific challenges in terms of speech processing. Two groups of typically developing children aged 3.0-3.5 years (N = 16) and 4.6-5.0 years (N = 22), respectively, were assessed longitudinally at three assessment points 6 months apart. A range of phonologically based and morphologically based experimental speech processing tasks was administered to address the research question, along with language comprehension and production assessments to ensure that the children were developmentally typical. Stimuli of minimal phonological difference and minimal morphological difference, respectively, were used. Phonologically based experimental stimuli were used to assess performance differences across properties such as voicing, manner and place of articulation, in addition to variation in phonotactic structure. Morphologically based experimental stimuli were used to assess the impact of characteristics such as verb tense and possessive pronouns. Stimuli were incorporated into tasks of real word and nonword auditory discrimination and repetition, to assess input and output processing. Items were matched across tasks so that comparisons could be made. On most of the matched tasks, there was no significant difference in performance accuracy between morphological and phonological conditions. Moreover, a significant relationship was found between domains. It is suggested that morphological items, compared to phonological items, do not pose specific challenges in terms of speech processing. The clinical implications of these findings for assessment and intervention are discussed.

Treatment Targets for Co-Occurring Speech-Language Impairment: A Case Study

PURPOSE

The intersection of speech and language impairments is severely understudied. Despite repeatedly documented overlap and co-occurrence, treatment research for children with combined phonological and morphosyntactic deficits is limited. Especially little is known about optimal treatment targets for combined phonological-morphosyntactic intervention. We offer a clinically focused discussion of the existing literature pertaining to interventions for children with combined deficits and present a case study exploring the utility of a complex treatment target in word-final position for co-occurring speech and language impairment.

METHOD

Within a school setting, a kindergarten child (age 5;2) with co-occurring phonological disorder and developmental language disorder received treatment targeting a complex consonant cluster in word-final position inflected with third-person singular morphology.

RESULTS

For this child, training a complex consonant cluster in word-final position resulted in generalized learning to untreated consonants and clusters across word positions. However, morphological generalization was not demonstrated consistently across measures.

CONCLUSION

These preliminary findings suggest that training complex phonology in word-final position can result in generalized learning to untreated phonological targets. However, limited improvement in morphology and word-final phonology highlights the need for careful monitoring of cross-domain treatment outcomes and additional research to identify the characteristics of treatment approaches, techniques, and targets that induce cross-domain generalization learning in children with co-occurring speech-language impairment.

Realisation of grammatical morphemes by children with phonological impairment

The aim of this research was to explore how preschool-aged children with phonological impairment (PI) realise grammatical morphemes across different phonological contexts (i.e. singleton consonant, consonant cluster, syllable), conditions of finiteness and individual morpheme types. Factors accounting for children's realisation of grammatical morphemes were also examined. Eighty-seven Australian English-speaking preschoolers (aged 4-5 years) with PI completed the Children's Assessment of Morphophonology (CHAMP)-an elicited response task-in addition to standardised tests of speech and receptive language. The most challenging grammatical morphemes were finite morphemes (particularly past tense) and grammatical morphemes realised in consonant clusters. The ability to produce consonant clusters in single words significantly accounted for children's ability to realise grammatical morphemes, regardless of whether grammatical morphemes were realised in singleton, consonant cluster or syllable contexts. Realisation of grammatical morphemes by preschoolers with PI is influenced by phonological and morphological factors. The findings have implications regarding the assessment and differential diagnosis of preschoolers with concomitant phonological and language difficulties.

Effective intervention for expressive grammar in children with specific language impairment

BACKGROUND

Children with specific language impairment are known to struggle with expressive grammar. While some studies have shown successful intervention under laboratory conditions, there is a paucity of evidence for the effectiveness of grammar treatment in young children in community settings.

AIM

To evaluate the effectiveness of a school-based intervention programme for expressive grammar in 5-year-olds with specific language impairment.

METHOD & PROCEDURES

Thirty-four 5-year-old children attending a specialized school for children with language impairment participated in the study. Nineteen children received treatment for expressive grammar (experimental group) and 15 children received a control treatment. Treatment consisted of weekly 1-h sessions of small group activities in a classroom setting for 8 weeks. Techniques included direct instruction, focused stimulation, recasting and imitation.

OUTCOMES & RESULTS

Results were analysed at the group level and as a case series with each child as their own control in a single-subject design. There was a significant difference in grammatical performance pre- and post-treatment for children who received grammar treatment (Cohen's d = 1.24), but not for a group of children who received a control treatment. Further, no difference in performance was found in the equivalent time period prior to treatment, nor for an untreated target. Treatment success was more pronounced in children without articulation difficulties which interfered with their ability to produce the grammatical targets (Cohen's d = 1.66). Individual analyses indicated the treatment effect was significant for the majority of children.

CONCLUSIONS & IMPLICATIONS

Individually targeted intervention delivered in small groups in a classroom setting was effective in improving production of expressive grammatical targets in 5-year-old children with specific language impairment.

A longitudinal investigation of morpho-syntax in children with Speech Sound Disorders

PURPOSE

The intent of this study was to examine the longitudinal morpho-syntactic progression of children with Speech Sound Disorders (SSD) grouped according to Mean Length of Utterance (MLU) scores.

METHODS

Thirty-seven children separated into four clusters were assessed in their pre-kindergarten and Grade 1 years. Cluster 1 were children with typical development; the other clusters were children with SSD. Cluster 2 had good pre-kindergarten MLU; Clusters 3 and 4 had low MLU scores in pre-kindergarten, and (respectively) good and poor MLU outcomes.

RESULTS

Children with SSD in pre-kindergarten had lower Developmental Sentence Scores (DSS) and made fewer attempts at finite embedded clauses than children with typical development. All children with SSD, especially Cluster 4, had difficulty with finite verb morphology.

CONCLUSIONS

Children with SSD and typical MLU may be weak in some areas of syntax. Children with SSD who have low MLU scores and poor finite verb morphology skills in pre-kindergarten may be at risk for poor expressive language outcomes. However, these results need to be replicated with larger groups.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

The reader should (1) have a general understanding of findings from studies on morpho-syntax and SSD conducted over the last half century (2) be aware of some potential areas of morpho-syntactic weakness in young children with SSD who nonetheless have typical MLU, and (3) be aware of some potential longitudinal predictors of continued language difficulty in young children with SSD and poor MLU.