2023 Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Conference
March 5-7, 2023 • Cincinnati, OH
DUKE ENERGY CONVENTION CENTER
3/06/2023 | 11:30 AM - 12:00 PM | Considering the Impact of Diverse and Dynamic Language Access on Meeting ASL and English Language Milestones: Insights from the Language Assessment Program – Deaf/Hard of Hearing | DECC 233
Considering the Impact of Diverse and Dynamic Language Access on Meeting ASL and English Language Milestones: Insights from the Language Assessment Program – Deaf/Hard of Hearing
Given marked heterogeneity in language experiences and language skills of deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) children, we need thoughtful, effective assessment for progress monitoring and intervention. We explain how to combine results from a language assessment in American Sign Language (ASL) and/or spoken English in the context of the child’s language access before age 3. For the language assessment, we focus on the ASL/English Language Milestones. This recently developed checklist measure for children from birth through age 8 uses direct observation and caregiver report.
We evaluate the degree to which participants meet ASL and spoken English milestones and identify areas of relative strength and need across the sample. Preliminary findings show that the participants as a group (ASL n = 42; English n = 75; mean age = 49 months) show notable gaps between their current skills and age expected skills in both languages with substantial variation across participants. For ASL, participants overall exhibited relative strengths in expressive vocabulary size initially and understanding basic concepts. Relative weaknesses included use of mouth morphemes, use of classifiers, and asking questions. For English, participants overall exhibited relative strengths in vocabulary size, understanding basic concepts, and utterance length. Relative weaknesses included asking questions and using more complex syntactic structures. We also present subgroup analyses based on whether children met the 1-3-6 and 1-2-3 guidelines.
We then consider how to interpret those results in light of the child’s access to language input that they could perceive (i.e., language access). We use the Language Access Profile Tool (LAPT) to capture the diverse, dynamic nature of early language access in DHH children. We present these results at the group level and at the child level through multiple case examples. The LAPT helps clinicians determine whether a given child’s language growth is reasonable given their language access.
- The participant will be able to identify areas of relative strength and need for deaf and hard of hearing children.
- The participant will be able to apply the research findings regarding American Sign Language and spoken English to serving deaf and hard of hearing children.
- The participant will be able to describe how a child’s language access may influence their language development.
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Presenters/Authors
Jena McDaniel
(), Vanderbilt University, jena.mcdaniel@vumc.org;
Jena McDaniel, PhD, CCC-SLP is an assistant professor in the Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Her research interests include language intervention effectiveness and efficiency for deaf and hard of hearing children and children with autism spectrum disorder. She earned her PhD from Vanderbilt University and then completed her postdoctoral training at the University of Kansas. She previously worked at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, including serving on their specialized teams for deaf and hard of hearing children.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
No relevant financial relationship exists.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
AAA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
No relevant financial relationship exists.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
Matthew Hall
(), Temple University, matthall@temple.edu;
The overarching goal of Matt Hall’s research program is to maximize all d/Deaf children’s developmental potential. As an assistant professor of Communication Sciences & Disorders at Temple University, he applies knowledge from cognitive/developmental psychology and linguistics to questions that concern DHH children, their families, the professionals who serve them, and other stakeholders. He is particularly concerned with the paucity of evidence regarding language acquisition and psychological development in DHH children whose hearing parents have chosen to include ASL as part of their child’s access to language. In his reading of the literature, strong and contradictory claims have been made without sufficient empirical support. He is therefore committed to increasing the quality of the empirical evidence so that clinicians and families can make better-informed decisions.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
No relevant financial relationship exists.
Nonfinancial -
• Has a Professional (The popularization of this concept and these tools may benefit my research career)
relationship for Other volunteer activities.
AAA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
Financial relationship with Temple University, University of Oregon.
Nature: We are the creators of the D-LEAT; as such, we have a professional interest in its uptake in clinical and public health settings. .
Nonfinancial -
Non-Financial relationship with Temple University, University of Oregon.
Nature: We are the creators of the D-LEAT; as such, we have a professional interest in its uptake in clinical and public health settings. .
Amy Esplund
(), Kansas School for the Deaf, aesplund@kssdb.org;
Amy Esplund, M.A., CCC-SLP is a speech-language pathologist and team leader for the Kansas School for the Deaf Outreach Team. She received Bachelor’s degrees in Linguistics, Speech-Language-Hearing, and English and her Master’s in Speech-Language Pathology from the University of Kansas. She is certified in Kansas, holds a Certificate of Clinical Competence from ASHA, is a member of the Kansas Speech and Hearing Association, and has her certification in teaching English as a foreign language.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
• Receives Salary for Employment from Kansas School for the Deaf.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
AAA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
Financial relationship with Kansas School for the Deaf.
Nature: I receive a salary for my employment at KSD.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
Leah Geer
(), California State University, Sacramento, leah.geer@csus.edu;
Leah Geer is a deaf American linguist, professor, and program coordinator for ASL at Deaf Studies at Sacramento State. Her work has examined first and second language acquisition, with emphasis on the latter. Her most recent scholarship and creative works are related to an ASL curriculum she co-developed for hearing families of young deaf children called “ASL at Home.”
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
No relevant financial relationship exists.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
AAA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
No relevant financial relationship exists.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
Angie Walker
(), Kansas School for the Deaf, awalker@kssdb.org;
Angie Walker is the coordinator of the Kansas School for the Deaf Language Assessment Program-Deaf/Hard of Hearing (LAP-DHH). Ms. Walker is responsible for coordinating the evaluation, collection, and dissemination of aggregated data to key stakeholders as well as providing training and guidance to LAP-DHH specialists. Ms. Walker received her Master of Education degree from Lewis and Clark College in 1998, and she is licensed by the State of Kansas as a teacher of the deaf/hard of hearing and reading specialist. She has worked in deaf education since 1998 and as an educational diagnostician since 2004.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
• Receives Salary for Employment from Kansas School for the Deaf.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
AAA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
Financial relationship with Kansas School for the Deaf.
Nature: salary.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.