Moving Through the Pipeline: Ethnic and Linguistic Disparities in Special Education from Birth Through Age Five

Early intervention speech-language pathologists' beliefs and practices related to assessing dual language learners

INTRODUCTION

Early intervention (EI) speech-language pathologists (SLPs) are required to provide culturally and linguistically responsive assessments for dual language learners (DLLs). However, SLPs consistently report feeling underprepared to assess DLLs and research demonstrates gaps in implementation of best practices in pediatric outpatient and school-based settings. This study was designed to understand EI SLPs' beliefs and practices related to assessing DLLs referred to early intervention programs.

METHODS

A total of 132 EI SLPs completed a survey in which they were asked to describe their assessment procedures for a DLL case scenario and were further asked to identify the degree to which they agreed with a variety of assessment practices for assessing DLLs.

RESULTS

Results revealed that EI SLPs' beliefs aligned with best practices for assessing DLLs. However, substantial gaps exist between EI SLPs' beliefs and their self-reported practices for assessing DLLs.

CONCLUSIONS

These results suggest DLLs may not be receiving evidence-based EI assessments, leading to the potential perpetuation of both over- and under-diagnosis of speech and language delays within this population. Implications include the need to increase the quality of EI SLPs assessment practices through additional training, the removal of systems-level barriers, and the continued need for increased training within preprofessional training programs.

Sentence Diversity in Spanish-English Bilingual Toddlers

PURPOSE

There remain few available tools to assess language development in Spanish-English dual language learner (DLL) toddlers in the United States. Of interest is the development of early sentences as children move from producing single words to producing multiword utterances. This study is the first to extend sentence diversity to the context of Spanish-English DLLs by describing development from 24 to 30 months of age in children with and without language delays (LDs).

METHOD

Spontaneous language samples were collected from Spanish-dominant DLL children and their mothers as they were observed during a free-play interaction. Existing sentence diversity protocols were adapted for the DLL context to describe children's flexibility in combining subjects and verbs to form utterances in Spanish and English.

RESULTS

Children maintained an accurate separation in their grammars for subject-verb combinations in Spanish versus English. There was an overwhelming preference for Spanish subject-verb combinations with null subjects. The emergence of sentence diversity distinguished children with and without early LD unlike the emergence of word combinations.

CONCLUSIONS

Consistent with prior research, findings showed that DLLs did not confuse grammatical structures across languages. Instead, they showed a differential pattern of results in each language, such that the strongest grammatical skills were evinced first in the dominant language. Sentence diversity shows promise for assessment and progress monitoring in Spanish-English DLLs in the United States.

An Intervention to Increase Detection of Developmental Delays in Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children

BACKGROUND

Low-income children are at risk for under-detection of developmental disabilities (DDs). Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) clinics see low-income children regularly in early childhood and could be an important source of referrals to developmental services.

METHODS

This was a site-randomized trial of an intervention to train WIC staff in early identification of DDs, using Center for Disease Control and Prevention's Learn the Signs Act Early (LTSAE) developmental monitoring materials. Seven county WIC agencies in Oregon enrolled: 4 intervention agencies and 3 control agencies. The intervention consisted of an on-site, half-day training regarding signs of developmental delays, use of LTSAE materials, and referral to Early Intervention and Early Childhood Special Education (EI/ECSE). Control sites received no training and continued their usual care and referral processes. Primary study outcome was number of children referred from WIC to EI/ECSE in control versus experimental counties as well as % of referrals evaluated, using data obtained from Oregon's EI/ECSE program. Data for 46 children referred to EI/ECSE were obtained.

RESULTS

Overall, 3 of 4 intervention sites increased their referrals to EI/ECSE, and 0 of 3 control sites increased referrals. Total referrals in the intervention arm increased from 5 to 33 in the intervention arm, but decreased from 6 to 2 in the control arm. In the intervention arm, referrals increased for both boys and girls and for all ages.

CONCLUSIONS

This brief intervention with WIC staff led to short-term increases in EI referrals and evaluations. Such interventions may hold promise for reducing disparities.