Language Development in English
Section Editor: | School of Audiology and Speech Sciences University of British Columbia 208-5804 Fairview Avenue, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z3 Canada |
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Key Messages
What do we know?
Although there are differences in the rate of learning language, most children will learn to speak English in the following stages:
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Babbling (i.e., combining consonants and vowels such as in ‘baba,’ 7-10 months)
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Intentional communication (i.e., using eye gaze, gesture, and babble for communicative purposes, 8 months)
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First words (90% of children say their first word by 14 months)
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Short word combinations (i.e., 2- or 3-word combinations, such as “Mummy up” or “More juice please,” 16-30 months)
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Noun and verb inflections (i.e., using ‘s’ to indicate plural in ‘cat-s’ or ‘ed’ in ‘play-ed’ to indicate past tense, 16-30 months)
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Complex sentences (i.e., among the earliest complex sentences are multiple parts connected with and, because, so, when and if; 28-45 months)
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Including the listener in conversation (i.e., turn-taking exchanges, 36-72 months)
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Telling simple action oriented stories (narrative abilities predict later language growth, reading comprehension, and other aspects of school success, 6-7 years)
Parents, teachers, and healthcare professionals can use this information to track the progress of a child in their care.Language assessment is an important tool and has three main goals:
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to determine if a child is meeting developmental milestones outlined above;
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to describe a child’s current speech and language skills to individualize language therapy and school programming; and
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to measure progress of an individual child as a result of language intervention.
There are two main types of language assessment:
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language tests (traditional tools for assessment) – using standardized measures
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language sample analysis (an alternative to tests) – a child’s spontaneous conversation is recorded, transcribed, and analyzed.
When assessing a child, a tester should use the full array of measures and understand their appropriate contexts of use. The results of assessment are important as they help to choose the most appropriate therapy strategies for a child.
A variety of intervention methods are available for at-risk children. Some therapy programs are carried out by a parent, while others are administered by a speech-language pathologist (SLP) or related professional. Current research suggests that there is significant benefit to parent-administered programs for short-term progress; however, little is known about the effectiveness of these programs in the long term. Some approaches, particularly ones in which a child’s treatment plan is based upon carrying out the treatment in the child’s mainstream environment (i.e., home, school, etc.), may be most useful for children who have some words but in limited combinations. When parents or caregivers are assigned the task of carrying out the prescribed intervention, the child must be carefully monitored to ensure that the program is appropriately followed, and adjustments are provided where necessary.
What can be done?
Parents and Educators
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Use the developmental milestones for spoken English outlined above as a guide in tracking the progress of a child in your care; a delay in developing language skills can sometimes be an indicator of developmental disorders, social delays, or behavioural difficulties.
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If you suspect that a child in your care may be behind in developing spoken English, it is important to have the child assessed by a professional to determine if there is a need for therapy.
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If a child has undergone a language assessment, speak to the child’s SLP to understand the results of the assessment. It is important that you and the child’s SLP are on the same page to ensure that the language assessment results are accurate.
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Speak with the child’s SLP and find out what you can do to help the child to improve his/her speech or language skills.
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Parent-administered programs are sometimes recommended by SLPs. Your child’s SLP may choose to design an intervention program that you, as the parent, or another caregiver, can carry out at home. The SLP will determine how often you will need to participate in the program, how often you will need to meet with the SLP to have your child re-assessed, and what can be expected from a parent-administered program.
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Many different cultures are often represented in a Canadian classroom. Different cultures will have differing expectations of language development and social interaction. An awareness of differing cultural values and expectations are important for children suspected of having a language disorder, as what may be thought to be a disorder may be only a cultural difference.
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As a teacher, if your student is following a parent or caregiver-administered treatment model, ensure that you follow the same programming techniques as the child follows at home and with his/her SLP. Involve the child, parents, and healthcare professionals in your administration of the prescribed intervention in order to ensure consistency.
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Create a stimulating language learning environment for a child in your care and encourage him/her to engage in interactions by:
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creating communicating opportunities (e.g., keeping food out of reach, changing plotlines in books to have the child correct it, requesting communication from the child);
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following the child's lead by providing activities of interest to child; and
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building and establishing social routines (e.g., rituals such as peek-a-boo or pat-a-cake).
Policymakers
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Where short-term progress is targeted, parent-administered intervention programs are considered to be a sustainable model for encouraging language development in preschoolers. Not only is the child exposed to language in a more natural setting, but parent-administered programs require less of the SLP’s time and are far more cost-effective.
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When parents are unable to take part in more formal programs, such as those run by provincial Public Health departments or preschool speech and language initiatives, language-promoting games or communication ideas should be made available to parents via online resources or hard copy materials, such as pamphlets. This availability will enable interested parents to participate in positive communication activities to begin to help their child.
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Given that there is little information about the effectiveness of parent-administered programs as a means of intervention for the long term, more evidence-based data would be beneficial to determine whether this is a useful method for specific populations (e.g., families from diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds).
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Some existing studies are beginning to explore the effectiveness of parent-administered treatment programs. Further research is needed to explore the efficacy of these programs for different age groups, disorders, and delivery models in order to better reach affected individuals.
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The development of an appropriate bilingual assessment would be extremely beneficial to children speaking multiple languages.
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Few assessments exist to identify the language difficulties of young infants and toddlers.
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Widespread training is needed for individuals who are providing treatment and for parents in order to effectively use responsive interaction styles and other treatment strategies in various settings.
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Additional research studies that examine varying levels of intensities for different treatments, agree on common definitions for 'intensity,' and governmental funding of treatment intensity research should be undertaken. It would be particularly beneficial to further examine the intensity dose and/or length of treatment required to maintain communication progress and improve language outcomes.
