ERIC Number: ED606619
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2020
Pages: 15
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0885-2006
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Evaluating Socioeconomic Gaps in Preschoolers' Vocabulary, Syntax, and Language Process Skills with the Quick Interactive Language Screener (QUILS)
Levine, Dani; Pace, Amy; Luo, Rufan; Hirsh-Pasek, Kathy; Golinkoff, Roberta Michnick; de Villiers, Jill; Igesias, Aquiles; Wilson, Mary Sweig
Grantee Submission, Early Childhood Research Quarterly v50 p114-128 2020
Early language competence is a reliable and powerful predictor of children's success in school, and word gaps linked to socioeconomic status disparities have cascading effects on academic outcomes. While early research -- such as the work of Hart and Risley (1995) -- focused on gaps in vocabulary, growing evidence reveals wide gaps in syntax as well. Language is an interdependent developing system of vocabulary, syntax, and language processes, yet existing research has not evaluated how SES gaps compare for these language components or how these components are linked for children from lower- and higher-SES families. Such a profile is sorely needed to understand the course of language development in all children.A new language measure, the Quick Interactive Language Screener (QUILS), expands on other measures by evaluating preschoolers' vocabulary and syntax knowledge, along with their language-learning process skills. This screener was administered to a large, diverse sample of English-speaking children ages 3 through 5. Results indicated that the effect of SES was significant and comparable for all three language components, at all ages tested. Additionally, correlations among syntax, vocabulary and process were robust for low- and mid-SES children. These findings highlight the importance of looking beyond vocabulary to language syntax and process to better understand the SES gap in language.
Descriptors: Language Skills, Socioeconomic Status, Screening Tests, Social Differences, Profiles, Preschool Children, Academic Achievement, Syntax, Vocabulary Development, Comparative Analysis, Language Processing, Language Acquisition, Language Tests, Correlation, Learning Processes, English, Case Studies, Low Income Groups, Advantaged
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: Institute of Education Sciences (ED)
Authoring Institution: N/A
IES Funded: Yes
Grant or Contract Numbers: R305A110284; R324A160241
Author Affiliations: N/A