ERIC Number: EJ1370657
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2022
Pages: 22
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1464-3154
EISSN: EISSN-1557-069X
Available Date: N/A
Technology Assisted Language Intervention (TALI) for Children Who Are Deaf/Hard of Hearing: Promising Impact on Pragmatic Skills
Mood, Deborah; Sheldon, Rose; Tabangin, Meredith; Wiley, Susan; Meinzen-Derr, Jareen
Deafness & Education International, v24 n4 p334-355 2022
Children who are deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) often demonstrate pragmatic language difficulties which can impact academic and social outcomes. This randomized control trial for DHH children, ages 3-12 years, explored the Technology-Assisted Language Intervention (TALI), incorporating augmentative and alternative communication technology (AAC) into traditional speech/language therapy, compared to treatment-as-usual (TAU) to determine impact on pragmatics. Pragmatic outcome measures included parent reported Pragmatics Profile of the CELF-5 (for children age [greater than or equal to]5 years) and CELF-P Descriptive Pragmatics Profile (for children <5 years) in addition to parent reported Social and Communication domains of the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales, Third Edition (VABS). Over 24 weeks, children [greater than or equal to]5 years in the TALI made significantly more progress (increase in raw scores) on the Pragmatics Profile compared to children in TAU (12.7 points vs. -6.0 points; p = 0.04) and also showed significant gains on two of the three subscales. For children [greater than or equal to]5 years, no significant VABS changes were seen in either intervention group. For children <5 years, there were no statistically significant differences in growth on the CELF-P total pragmatics raw score or on any subdomain. However, children in TALI had significant increases in the mean VABS Communication (86.7-99.1) and Social domain standard scores (91.8-97.4; p = 0.01), while gains for children in TAU on the Communication and Social domain standard scores were not statistically significant. These promising results support the need for additional research exploring the effectiveness of AAC supported speech/language therapy to enhance DHH children's pragmatic language skills.
Descriptors: Deafness, Hearing Impairments, Children, Pragmatics, Language Skills, Intervention, Augmentative and Alternative Communication, Speech Therapy, Program Effectiveness, Age Differences
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 530 Walnut Street Suite 850, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Tel: 215-625-8900; Fax: 215-207-0050; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR) (DHHS/ACL); National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) (DHHS/NIH); National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) (NIH), Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSA) Program
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Assessments and Surveys: Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals; Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales
Grant or Contract Numbers: 90IF0122; 1R01DC018550; UL1TR001425
Author Affiliations: N/A