The Teaching of Literature.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

O Cuilleanain, Cormac

Literature is authentic language, written with unusual care, skill, and language awareness. It is useful for teaching culture and civilization, but equally useful for teaching basic elements of language: grammar, vocabulary, rhythms, and registers. Literary skills are also widely used in everyday situations, with sophisticated literary techniques…

The Basic/Essential Skills Taxonomy. Second Edition--Revised.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Snyder, Lester M., Jr.

This revision of the "Basic/Essential Skills Taxonomy" exhibits changes based on use of the original taxonomy in the field. It features more precise definitions of the levels of key words and phrases, the deletion of some science items that ranged above basic skills, the combination of the language arts sections from the original two parts, and…

Interpreting Mathematics Scores on the New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Test.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dass, Jane; Pine, Charles

The New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Test (NJCBSPT) is designed to measure certain basic language and mathematics skills of students entering New Jersey colleges. The primary purpose of the two mathematics sections is to determine whether students are prepared to begin certain college-level work without a handicap in computation or…

A Comparison of the Language Features of Basic and HyperCard.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Henry, M. J.; Southerly, T. W.

This paper examines the structure of the Applesoft BASIC programming language and the Macintosh authoring language, HyperCard, and scrutinizes the language structures as the building blocks for moving along a chain of cognitive outcomes that culminates in the acquisition of problem solving skills which allow the programmer to learn new formal…

Serious Use of a Serious Game for Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, W. Lewis

2010-01-01

The Tactical Language and Culture Training System (TLCTS) helps learners acquire basic communicative skills in foreign languages and cultures. Learners acquire communication skills through a combination of interactive lessons and serious games. Artificial intelligence plays multiple roles in this learning environment: to process the learner's…

The role of early language abilities on math skills among Chinese children.

PubMed

Zhang, Juan; Fan, Xitao; Cheung, Sum Kwing; Meng, Yaxuan; Cai, Zhihui; Hu, Bi Ying

2017-01-01

The present study investigated the role of early language abilities in the development of math skills among Chinese K-3 students. About 2000 children in China, who were on average aged 6 years, were assessed for both informal math (e.g., basic number concepts such as counting objects) and formal math (calculations including addition and subtraction) skills, language abilities and nonverbal intelligence. Correlation analysis showed that language abilities were more strongly associated with informal than formal math skills, and regression analyses revealed that children's language abilities could uniquely predict both informal and formal math skills with age, gender, and nonverbal intelligence controlled. Mediation analyses demonstrated that the relationship between children's language abilities and formal math skills was partially mediated by informal math skills. The current findings indicate 1) Children's language abilities are of strong predictive values for both informal and formal math skills; 2) Language abilities impacts formal math skills partially through the mediation of informal math skills.

The role of early language abilities on math skills among Chinese children

PubMed Central

Fan, Xitao; Cheung, Sum Kwing; Cai, Zhihui; Hu, Bi Ying

2017-01-01

Background The present study investigated the role of early language abilities in the development of math skills among Chinese K-3 students. About 2000 children in China, who were on average aged 6 years, were assessed for both informal math (e.g., basic number concepts such as counting objects) and formal math (calculations including addition and subtraction) skills, language abilities and nonverbal intelligence. Methodology Correlation analysis showed that language abilities were more strongly associated with informal than formal math skills, and regression analyses revealed that children’s language abilities could uniquely predict both informal and formal math skills with age, gender, and nonverbal intelligence controlled. Mediation analyses demonstrated that the relationship between children’s language abilities and formal math skills was partially mediated by informal math skills. Results The current findings indicate 1) Children’s language abilities are of strong predictive values for both informal and formal math skills; 2) Language abilities impacts formal math skills partially through the mediation of informal math skills. PMID:28749950

Mathematical Language Skills of Mathematics Prospective Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gürefe, Nejla

2018-01-01

Effective mathematics teaching can be actualized only with correct use of the mathematical content language which comprises mathematical rules, concepts, symbols and terms. In this research, it was aimed to examine the mathematics prospective teachers' content language skills in some basic geometric concepts which are ray, angle, polygon,…

Severity of specific language impairment predicts delayed development in number skills

PubMed Central

Durkin, Kevin; Mok, Pearl L. H.; Conti-Ramsden, Gina

2013-01-01

The extent to which mathematical development is dependent upon language is controversial. This longitudinal study investigates the role of language ability in children's development of number skills. Participants were 229 children with specific language impairment (SLI) who were assessed initially at age 7 and again 1 year later. All participants completed measures of psycholinguistic development (expressive and receptive), performance IQ, and the Basic Number Skills subtest of the British Ability Scales. Number skills data for this sample were compared with normative population data. Consistent with predictions that language impairment would impact on numerical development, average standard scores were more than 1 SD below the population mean at both ages. Although the children showed improvements in raw scores at the second wave of the study, the discrepancy between their scores and the population data nonetheless increased over time. Regression analyses showed that, after controlling for the effect of PIQ, language skills explained an additional 19 and 17% of the variance in number skills for ages 7 and 8, respectively. Furthermore, logistic regression analyses revealed that less improvement in the child's language ability over the course of the year was associated with a greater odds of a drop in performance in basic number skills from 7 to 8 years. The results are discussed in relation to the interaction of linguistic and cognitive factors in numerical development and the implications for mathematical education. PMID:24027548

AI Tools for Foreign Language Training

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-07-01

certain of the four basic language skills (reading, writing, speak- ing, hearing ) are supported in this envircnmnnt. hile this argument is valid, we... skills . While this paper will not review the psycholinguistic parameters pertaining to foreign language learning, we mention it as cne of the essential...Institute Technologies for Skill Acquisition and Retention Technical Area Zita M. Simutis, Chief Training Research Laboratory Jack H. HiJler, Director U.S

Chinese EFL teachers' knowledge of basic language constructs and their self-perceived teaching abilities.

PubMed

Zhao, Jing; Joshi, R Malatesha; Dixon, L Quentin; Huang, Liyan

2016-04-01

The present study examined the knowledge and skills of basic language constructs among elementary school teachers who were teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL) in China. Six hundred and thirty in-service teachers completed the adapted Reading Teacher Knowledge Survey. Survey results showed that English teachers' self-perceived ability to teach vocabulary was the highest and self-perceived ability to teach reading to struggling readers was the lowest. Morphological knowledge was positively correlated with teachers' self-perceived teaching abilities, and it contributed unique variance even after controlling for the effects of ultimate educational attainment and years of teaching. Findings suggest that elementary school EFL teachers in China, on average, were able to display implicit skills related to certain basic language constructs, but less able to demonstrate explicit knowledge of other skills, especially sub-lexical units (e.g., phonemic awareness and morphemes). The high self-perceived ability of teaching vocabulary and high scores on syllable counting reflected the focus on larger units in the English reading curriculum.

A Growth Curve Analysis of Literacy Performance among Second-Grade, Spanish-Speaking, English-Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gutiierrez, Gabriel; Vanderwood, Mike L.

2013-01-01

The literacy growth of 260 second-grade English learners (ELs) with varying degrees of English language proficiency (e.g., Beginning, Early Intermediate, Intermediate, Early Advanced and Advanced English language proficiency) was assessed with English literacy skill assessments. Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills measures were…

Bridging Authentic Experiences and Literacy Skills through the Language Experience Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Huang, Jiuhan

2013-01-01

Although the research base is small on adult English language learners (ELLs) who are learning English while also acquiring basic literacy, this research can still guide instructional practices. The essential components of reading skills suggests that the Language Experience Approach has the potential to integrate relevant meaning-focused reading…

Speech-Language Pathologists' Knowledge and Skills Regarding Hearing Aids.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Woodford, Charles M.

1987-01-01

Speech-language pathologists (n=49) and speech-language pathology graduate students (n=53) were administered a written examination on hearing aids and a practical examination concerning the functioning of two types of hearing aids. The majority lacked basic knowledge and skills necessary to assist hearing-impaired students with their hearing aids.…

Adult Literacy, Numeracy and Language: Policy, Practice and Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tett, Lyn, Ed.; Hamilton, Mary, Ed.; Hillier, Yvonne, Ed.

2006-01-01

This book explores the social practice of literacy, numeracy and language and its implications for teaching and learning adult basic skills. Leading international experts argue that literacy, numeracy and language are more than just a set of skills or techniques, but are shaped by the social and cultural context within which they are taking place;…

Communication for the Workplace: An Integrated Language Approach. Second Edition. Job Skills. Net Effect Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ettinger, Blanche; Perfetto, Edda

Using a developmental, hands-on approach, this text/workbook helps students master the basic English skills that are essential to write effective business correspondence, to recognize language errors, and to develop decision-making and problem-solving skills. Its step-by-step focus and industry-specific format encourages students to review,…

A Summary of an Assessment of Fourth and Sixth Grade Basic Skills.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

CTB / McGraw-Hill, Monterey, CA.

A comprehensive assessment was made of the status of elementary education in Missouri in reading, mathematics, language, and study skills. The Comprehensive Tests of Basic Skills (CTBS) and the Short Form Test of Academic Aptitude (SFTAA) were administered to a sample of Missouri fourth and sixth graders. For each curricular area, Missouri…

The Effects of Intertextual Reading Approach on the Development of Creative Writing Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Akdal, Deniz; Sahin, Ayfer

2014-01-01

Problem Statement: The aim of the first five years of primary school is to teach and help the students develop basic skills as stated in the Primary School Language Program and Guide. Creative thinking and intertextual reading are among these skills, and it is important to give these to the students during language courses. Purpose of Study: The…

Exploring the role of auditory analysis in atypical compared to typical language development.

PubMed

Grube, Manon; Cooper, Freya E; Kumar, Sukhbinder; Kelly, Tom; Griffiths, Timothy D

2014-02-01

The relationship between auditory processing and language skills has been debated for decades. Previous findings have been inconsistent, both in typically developing and impaired subjects, including those with dyslexia or specific language impairment. Whether correlations between auditory and language skills are consistent between different populations has hardly been addressed at all. The present work presents an exploratory approach of testing for patterns of correlations in a range of measures of auditory processing. In a recent study, we reported findings from a large cohort of eleven-year olds on a range of auditory measures and the data supported a specific role for the processing of short sequences in pitch and time in typical language development. Here we tested whether a group of individuals with dyslexic traits (DT group; n = 28) from the same year group would show the same pattern of correlations between auditory and language skills as the typically developing group (TD group; n = 173). Regarding the raw scores, the DT group showed a significantly poorer performance on the language but not the auditory measures, including measures of pitch, time and rhythm, and timbre (modulation). In terms of correlations, there was a tendency to decrease in correlations between short-sequence processing and language skills, contrasted by a significant increase in correlation for basic, single-sound processing, in particular in the domain of modulation. The data support the notion that the fundamental relationship between auditory and language skills might differ in atypical compared to typical language development, with the implication that merging data or drawing inference between populations might be problematic. Further examination of the relationship between both basic sound feature analysis and music-like sound analysis and language skills in impaired populations might allow the development of appropriate training strategies. These might include types of musical training to augment language skills via their common bases in sound sequence analysis. Copyright © 2013 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Readers in Adult Basic Education.

PubMed

Barnes, Adrienne E; Kim, Young-Suk; Tighe, Elizabeth L; Vorstius, Christian

The present study explored the reading skills of a sample of 48 adults enrolled in a basic education program in northern Florida, United States. Previous research has reported on reading component skills for students in adult education settings, but little is known about eye movement patterns or their relation to reading skills for this population. In this study, reading component skills including decoding, language comprehension, and reading fluency are reported, as are eye movement variables for connected-text oral reading. Eye movement comparisons between individuals with higher and lower oral reading fluency revealed within- and between-subject effects for word frequency and word length as well as group and word frequency interactions. Bivariate correlations indicated strong relations between component skills of reading, eye movement measures, and both the Test of Adult Basic Education ( Reading subtest) and the Woodcock-Johnson III Diagnostic Reading Battery Passage Comprehension assessments. Regression analyses revealed the utility of decoding, language comprehension, and lexical activation time for predicting achievement on both the Woodcock Johnson III Passage Comprehension and the Test of Adult Basic Education Reading Comprehension.

Defense Language Institute French Basic Course. Volume II, Lessons 16-25. Volume III, Lessons 26-35.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Defense Language Inst., Washington, DC.

The 20 lessons included in these two volumes are intended for the first four weeks of the intermediate phase of a 68-lesson intensive audiolingual basic French course developed recently by the Defense Language Institute to train native speakers of English to a Level 3 second language skill proficiency. Designed primarily to enable students to…

Multisensory Teaching of Basic Language Skills. Third Edition

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Birsh, Judith R., Ed.

2011-01-01

As new research shows how effective systematic and explicit teaching of language-based skills is for students with learning disabilities--along with the added benefits of multisensory techniques--discover the latest on this popular teaching approach with the third edition of this bestselling textbook. Adopted by colleges and universities across…

Educational Environment and Cultural Transmission in Foreign Language Teaching

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Memis, Muhammet Rasit

2016-01-01

Foreign language teaching is not to teach grammar and vocabulary of the target language and to gain basic language skills only. Foreign language teaching is teaching of the language's culture at the same time. Because of language and community develop and shape together, learning, understanding and speaking a foreign language literally requires…

Monitoring Indicators of Scholarly Language: A Progress-Monitoring Instrument for Measuring Narrative Discourse Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gillam, Sandra Laing; Gillam, Ronald B.; Fargo, Jamison D.; Olszewski, Abbie; Segura, Hugo

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to assess the basic psychometric properties of a progress-monitoring tool designed to measure narrative discourse skills in school-age children with language impairments (LI). A sample of 109 children with LI between the ages of 5 years 7 months and 9 years 9 months completed the "Test of Narrative Language"…

An Exploratory Study of Selected Aspects of the Relationship Between Family Interaction and Language Development in Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hubbell, Robert Denton

Sixteen middle class, four-person families were used in a study comparing communicative behavior of parents interacting with a younger child (3 or 4 years old) whose language skills were developing, and with an older child (6 or 7 years old) whose basic language skills were established. Combinations of sex of siblings and sibling position were…

Suggestions for Problems Faced in Basic Language Skills by University Students Learning Turkish in Kazakhstan

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Özdemir, Cemal; Özdemir, Elif Derya

2018-01-01

This study reveals suggestions of Kazakh students for solving the problems in learning Turkish as a foreign language in the Turkish language skills in universities in Kazakhstan. The research has been prepared in order to assist in the search for solutions to the problems by way of these suggestions. The study group of this work consists of 25…

Language Arts.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arkansas State Dept. of Education, Little Rock.

The language arts course content guides presented in this manual cover English, oral communications, and journalism in grades 9-12 and provide a framework from which a curriculum can be built. Within each subject area and at each grade level, skills are identified at three instructional levels: basic, developmental, and extension. The basic skills…

Basic Writers as Critical Thinkers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Anstendig, Linda; Kimmel, Isabel

Teachers of a basic writing course broadened their theme approach from growth and change in adolescence to the theme of language and identity, developed sequenced writing assignments, and worked toward the culminating unit--a mini-research project through which all the language and thinking skills developed throughout the semester could be…

Unions: Bread, Butter & Basic Skills.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

BCEL Newsletter for the Business Community, 1987

1987-01-01

Unions are natural providers of basic skills instruction. They are in daily workplace contact with their membership, are trusted to work on members' behalf, and speak the language of the worker. Unions are trying to address the needs of illiterate workers through collective bargaining arrangements in which employers contribute a percentage of…

Multisensory Teaching of Basic Language Skills. Second Edition

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Birsh, Judith R., Ed.

2005-01-01

For students with dyslexia and other learning disabilities--and for their peers--creative teaching methods that use two or more senses can dramatically improve language skills and academic outcomes. That is why every current and future educator needs the second edition of this definitive guide to multisensory teaching. A core text for a variety of…

The Language of Mathematics: Learning to Read Mathematics for Understanding and Success

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Im, Yang Ok

2013-01-01

The intention of this project was to explore the effect of utilizing basic reading skills to promote student growth in mathematical literacy among middle school students. Mathematics was approached as a linquistical language and teachers utilized decoding skills as the treatment. This study used a nonequivalent control group quasi-experimental…

Skills and Content: Coordinating the Classroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Erlich, Howard; Kennedy, Mary Lynch

1983-01-01

Describes Ithaca College's project incorporating basic skills development in traditional liberal arts courses. Explains the techniques used to develop skills in reading and studying, writing, speaking and listening, and language and reasoning in courses from nine disciplines. (DMM)

Occupational Safety: Orientation to the World of Work.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Evans, Clarence; Wills, Richard

The guide is one of a series of 10 units composing an orientation to the world of work course designed especially for disadvantaged and handicapped students in the ninth and tenth grades. It is designed to provide basic and remedial instruction in personal development, math, and language skills while providing information and skills basic or…

Grades 1-3: Arkansas Public School Course Content Guide.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arkansas State Dept. of Education, Little Rock.

Provided as a framework for use in curriculum development are Arkansas' course content guides for the primary grades one, two, and three. At each grade level, language arts, mathematics, and reading skills have been identified at three instructional levels: basic, developmental, and extensional. Basic skills are those which all students must…

Improving Learning in Science and Basic Skills among Diverse Student Populations.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sutman, Francis X.; Guzman, Ana

This monograph is a rich resource of information designed to strengthen science and basic skills teaching, and improve learning for limited English proficient (LEP) minority student populations. It proposes the use of hands-on science investigations as the driving force for mathematics and English language development. The materials included in…

Personal Development: Orientation to the World of Work.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nordloh, Mary J.

The guide is one of a series of 10 units composing an orientation to the world of work course designed especially for disadvantaged and handicapped students in the ninth and tenth grades. It is designed to provide basic and remedial instruction in personal development, math, and language skills while providing information and skills basic or…

Reading Readiness Deficiency in Children: Causes and Ways of Improvement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Akubuilo, Francis; Okorie, Eugene U.; Onwuka, Gloria; Uloh-Bethels, Annah Chinyeaka

2015-01-01

Reading is one of the important skills of language. It is a basic tool of education whether formal or informal. Reading is a receptive skill, which involves the ability to meaningfully interpret or decode written or graphic symbols of language. Through reading, the hidden treasure of knowledge is unfolded; knowledge is gained thereby empowering…

Ideas Para Fortalecer Las Destrezas en Matematicas. Ideas for Strengthening Mathematics Skills. Spanish Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

New York State Education Dept., Albany. Bureau of Bilingual Education.

Presented is an overview of some specific schemes that have been used successfully by teachers throughout New York State to strengthen basic mathematics skills. Components offer ideas that have been successful with primary, intermediate, and secondary students. The contents of this Spanish language edition are identical to the English language and…

Idee Per Consolidare Le Abilita In Matematica. Ideas for Strengthening Mathematics Skills. Italian Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

New York State Education Dept., Albany. Bureau of Bilingual Education.

Presented is an overview of some specific schemes that have been used successfully by teachers throughout New York State to strengthen basic mathematics skills. Components offer ideas that have been successful with primary, intermediate, and secondary students. The contents of this Italian language edition are identical to the English language and…

Six-Year Ukrainian as a Second Language Program, Grade 11 Teaching Unit.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Boruszczak, Bohdan

The teaching unit provides materials for the fifth year of the six-year secondary school curriculum in Ukrainian as a second language. It focuses on basic vocabulary and communications skills related to the theme of "the restaurant" including: the development of listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills; specific elements of grammar (verb…

The Special Education Core Curriculum Manual, Basic Level. Learning Skills, Oral Language, Reading, Mathematics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Margolis, Leonard

The manual is designed to serve as a guideline for teachers and child study teams who have the primary responsibility for the education of handicapped children in four areas--learning skills, oral language, reading, and mathematics. Sections for each of the above areas are subdivided into the following objectives and activities: gross motor…

Comparison of Language Skills of Adjudicated and Nonadjudicated Adolescent Males and Females

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blanton, Debra J.; Dagenais, Paul A.

2007-01-01

Purpose: This study attempted to determine whether there were any differences or similarities in the basic cognitive and language skills of 4 groups of adolescents: adjudicated (a judge's decision to establish responsibility for a delinquent act) and nonadjudicated male and females. Method: The 4 groups of adolescents were 18 adjudicated females,…

Whole Language: Beliefs and Practices, K-8. Aspects of Learning Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Manning, Gary, Ed.; Manning, Maryann, Ed.

This 25-chapter anthology includes the ideas of many of the leading authorities on whole language and contains chapters on the meaning of whole language, the skills movement, reading and writing development, and teacher autonomy. Chapters are: "Whole Language: What's New?" (Bess Altwerger and others); "Language Arts Basics: Advocacy…

At-risk elementary school children with one year of classroom music instruction are better at keeping a beat.

PubMed

Slater, Jessica; Tierney, Adam; Kraus, Nina

2013-01-01

Temporal processing underlies both music and language skills. There is increasing evidence that rhythm abilities track with reading performance and that language disorders such as dyslexia are associated with poor rhythm abilities. However, little is known about how basic time-keeping skills can be shaped by musical training, particularly during critical literacy development years. This study was carried out in collaboration with Harmony Project, a non-profit organization providing free music education to children in the gang reduction zones of Los Angeles. Our findings reveal that elementary school children with just one year of classroom music instruction perform more accurately in a basic finger-tapping task than their untrained peers, providing important evidence that fundamental time-keeping skills may be strengthened by short-term music training. This sets the stage for further examination of how music programs may be used to support the development of basic skills underlying learning and literacy, particularly in at-risk populations which may benefit the most.

Maintaining Basic Skills through Summer Thematic Tutoring with Exceptional Students in Residential Foster Care.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Colombey, Hanna

A thematic teaching program and portfolio assessment were used to maintain basic academic language arts and mathematics skills during the summer for 21 elementary students placed in residential foster care settings as victims of physical and/or sexual abuse. All activities were designed around the selected theme of a safari. Students listened to…

A Nongraded Phase Elective Senior High English Curriculum.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

South Bend Community School Corp., IN.

The course content in this nongraded phase elective curriculum is classified into Phase 1, designed for students who find reading, writing, and speaking difficult, Phase 2 for students who need to improve and refine basic skills at a somewhat slower pace, Phase 3 for those who have an average command of basic language skills and want to advance at…

The Bilingual Academic Services and Integrated Career Systems Program, BASICS 1988-1989. OREA Evaluation Section Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berney, Tomi D.; Barrera, Marbella

In its second year, the Bilingual Academic Services and Integrated Career Systems (BASICS) Program served 104 limited-English-proficient students at Bayside High School in Queens (New York City). Project goals were to develop English literacy skills, produce an organizing framework of thinking and language skills across the curriculum, generate a…

Microcomputers and Preschoolers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Evans, Dina

Preschool children can benefit by working with microcomputers. Thinking skills are enhanced by software games that focus on logic, memory, problem solving, and pattern recognition. Counting, sequencing, and matching games develop mathematics skills, and word games focusing on basic letter symbol and word recognition develop language skills.…

English-as-a-Second-Language Programs in Basic Skills Education Program 1

DTIC Science & Technology

1984-01-01

languages and English as a second language . These theories and findings have led, in turn, to the development of new methods for teaching languages ...INTRODUCTION TO TEACHING TECHNIQUES FOR ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Introduction ............................. 9 Traditional Methods ...instruments. q8 . _. ,’,..8 4% .’ II. A BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO TEACHING TECHNIQUES FOR ENGLISH

An Examination of the Quality of Literacy Skill Assessments across Levels of Second-Grade, Spanish-Speaking, English-Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gutierrez, Gabriel

2010-01-01

The current study examined the quality of the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) across a sample of second-grade English Language (EL) learners with varying degrees of English proficiency (e.g., students with beginning, early intermediate, intermediate, early advanced, and advanced levels). DIBELS Oral Reading Fluency…

Measuring Language Dominance and Bilingual Proficiency Development of Tarahumara Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Paciotto, Carla

This paper examines the language dominance and oral bilingual proficiency of Tarahumara-Spanish speaking students from Chihuahua, Mexico, within the framework of Cummins' model of bilingual proficiency development. Cummins' model distinguishes between basic interpersonal communicative skills (BICS) and cognitive academic language proficiency…

Taxes Affecting the Worker: Orientation to the World of Work.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rankin, Lila T.

The guide is one of a series of 10 units composing an orientation to the world of work course designed especially for disadvantaged and handicapped students in the 9th and 10th grades. It is designed to provide basic and remedial instruction in personal development, math, and language skills while providing information and skills basic or common…

The Need for and Uses of Foreign Languages in a Business Career.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Piper, Esther F.

The overall goal of the 3M company in terms of the language training of its employees is to prepare individuals to be able to carry on everyday business on an international level and to develop employees who have both language skills and awareness of other cultures. The 3M Language Society consists basically of conversational language courses for…

Developmental Diversity in the Academic Language-Learning Experiences of Adult English as a Second or Other Language Learners: A Constructive-Developmental Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ouellette-Schramm, Jennifer R.

2016-01-01

Academic language is a challenging yet increasingly important skill for Adult Basic Education/English as a Second or Other Language learners. Related to academic language learning is an adult's developmental perspective. Developmental perspectives have been shown to vary in adulthood and shape qualitatively distinct ways of reasoning and learning…

Shifting Gears. Hands-on Activities for Learning Workplace Skills and English as a Second Language. A Teacher's Handbook.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

World Education, Inc., New York, NY.

This curriculum handbook uses a hands-on approach to teaching basic skills and language for the U.S. workplace to students who are not familiar with many common tools and procedures. Although designed for Southeast Asian refugees, the curriculum can be adapted for use with other groups, including older adults or young people. The handbook consists…

THE LANGUAGE LABORATORY. A HANDBOOK FOR TEACHERS OF FOREIGN LANGUAGE.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

New Orleans Public Schools, LA.

THE PURPOSE OF THE LABORATORIES IS TO DEVELOP FOUR BASIC SKILLS IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE STUDY--AURAL UNDERSTANDING, SPEAKING, READING, WRITING, AND TO SUPPORT AN UNDERSTANDING AND APPRECIATION OF THE CULTURE OF THE COUNTRY STUDIED. THE LABORATORY PROVIDES INDIVIDUAL SEMI-SOUNDPROOF BOOTHS EQUIPPED WITH HEADPHONES, MICROPHONES AND TAPE RECORDING…

John Bowne High School Basic Bilingual Program. E.S.E.A. Title VII. Final Evaluation Report, 1980-1981.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

New York City Board of Education, Brooklyn, NY. Office of Educational Evaluation.

Presented in this report are a program description and the results of evaluation of the Basic Bilingual Program implemented at John Bowne High School in New York City during 1980-81. The program provided instruction in English as a Second Language, instruction in Spanish language skills, and bilingual instruction to high school students of limited…

Investigation of Turkish Teacher Candidates Listening Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Karagöz, Beytullah; Iscan, Adem; Baskin, Sami; Irsi, Aysegül

2017-01-01

As a basic skill of language, listening is an essential process at interpretation surroundings. Today listening is necessary in many cases such as school life, interfamilial communication, etc. Thanks to listening, people acquire comprehension skills and expressing themselves in all areas. 2005 and 2015 Turkish Course Syllabus include special…

PALS: Parent Activities for Learning Basic Skills.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

South Carolina State Dept. of Education, Columbia.

Developed for K-3 teachers to send home with their students, this collection of learning activities and games is offered to help reinforce students' language arts and mathematics skills and to enhance parental involvement. Suggestions to the teacher include sending home only those pages containing activities for skills currently being studied and…

Relationships Between School District Level Inputs and the Output Performance of Students on the Missouri Basic Essential Skills Test.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Freeman, Vera E.; Hatley, Richard V.

Missouri requires the testing of all eighth grade students on their competence in reading and language arts, mathematics, and government and economics. This statewide assessment is referred to as the Missouri Basic Essential Skills Test (BEST) and has been given in the spring of each year since 1978. A study was undertaken to determine which…

EMH Curriculum Guide.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gwinnett County Schools, GA.

The guide consists of behaviorally stated, developmentally sequenced curriculum objectives for mentally retarded students from preprimary through high school levels. Five major sections present detailed skill objectives in the following areas: (1) basic academic skills (motor development, perceptual development, language development, reading,…

Establishing a Framework for the Study of English.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Woolf, Leonard; Velder, Milton

1970-01-01

This 2-week unit uses visuals of a recent space walk as the basis for an introductory study of the nature of language. The aims of the unit are (1) to show pupils how language operates, (2) to stimulate awareness of the importance of basic language skills, (3) to develop an increased desire in using language effectively, and (4) to acquaint…

Forming Well Organized Writing Activities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tosuncuoglu, Irfan

2018-01-01

English has been widely spoken in the world and seen as the language of education, communication, economics and etc., for a long time and it can be accepted as lingua franca. Knowledge of a language includes four basic language skills, these are listening, reading, speaking, and writing. In this study writing was investigated in detail and it was…

Knowledge Intensive Programming: A New Educational Computing Environment.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Seidman, Robert H.

1990-01-01

Comparison of the process of problem solving using a conventional procedural computer programing language (e.g., BASIC, Logo, Pascal), with the process when using a logic programing language (i.e., Prolog), focuses on the potential of the two types of programing languages to facilitate the transfer of problem-solving skills, cognitive development,…

Implementing software based on relation frame theory to develop and increase relational cognitive skills

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Presti, Giovambattista; Messina, Concetta; Mongelli, Francesca; Sireci, Maria Josè; Collotta, Mario

2017-11-01

Relational Frame Theory is a post-skinnerian theory of language and cognition based on more than thirty years of basic and applied research. It defines language and cognitive skills as an operant repertoire of responses to arbitrarily related stimuli specific, as far as is now known, of the human species. RFT has been proved useful in addressing cognitive barriers to human action in psychotherapy and also improving children skills in reading, IQ testing, and in metaphoric and categorical repertoires. We present a frame of action where RFT can be used in programming software to help autistic children to develop cognitive skills within a developmental vision.

The Perspectives of Students in the College of Basic Education on the Characteristics of Effective English Language Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Taqi, Hanan A.; Al-Nouh, Nowreyah A.; Akbar, Rahima S.

2014-01-01

This paper presents a research study designed to investigate the characteristics of effective teachers of English and the uniqueness of Teachers of English as a Foreign Language (EFL). The research is based on four general categories: English language proficiency, educational perception, organization and communication skills, social and emotional…

"Languagizing" Their World: Why Talking, Reading, and Singing Are So Important

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hirsh-Pasek, Kathryn; Golinkoff, Roberta Michnick

2018-01-01

Language is the single best predictor of later success in school and beyond. Using new findings in the science of learning, this article outlines 6 basic principles that will help parents and caregivers interact with children in ways that grow important language skills. Creating environments that nurture these principles gives every child a chance…

The Need To Improve Language Arts Education by Means of Esperanto.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, R. Kent

Education helps children select and progress toward appropriate goals. One of the impediments to education for American students is their lack of skill in English. Clear insight into the essentials of language comes from observing how the variables function in a model language such as Esperanto. Once children understand the basic anatomy of…

An Examination of Job Skills Posted on Internet Databases: Implications for Information Systems Degree Programs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Liu, Xia; Liu, Lai C.; Koong, Kai S.; Lu, June

2003-01-01

Analysis of 300 information technology job postings in two Internet databases identified the following skill categories: programming languages (Java, C/C++, and Visual Basic were most frequent); website development (57% sought SQL and HTML skills); databases (nearly 50% required Oracle); networks (only Windows NT or wide-area/local-area networks);…

Executive Functions Contribute Uniquely to Reading Competence in Minority Youth

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jacobson, Lisa A.; Koriakin, Taylor; Lipkin, Paul; Boada, Richard; Frijters, Jan C.; Lovett, Maureen W.; Hill, Dina; Willcutt, Erik; Gottwald, Stephanie; Wolf, Maryanne; Bosson-Heenan, Joan; Gruen, Jeffrey R.; Mahone, E. Mark

2017-01-01

Competent reading requires various skills beyond those for basic word reading (i.e., core language skills, rapid naming, phonological processing). Contributing "higher-level" or domain-general processes include information processing speed and executive functions (working memory, strategic problem solving, attentional switching).…

10 CFR Appendix B to Part 73 - General Criteria for Security Personnel

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... or pass an equivalent performance examination designed to measure basic job-related mathematical... equivalent performance examination designed to measure basic mathematical, language, and reasoning skills... administered by a licensed physician. The examination shall be designed to measure the individual's physical...

Language Arts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fisher, Carol J.

1978-01-01

Presents ideas and activities for teaching basic skills including vocabulary building, learning science from the microclimates, using tape recorders to teach reading, and using monsters to teach metrics. (JMB)

Teacher knowledge of basic language concepts and dyslexia.

PubMed

Washburn, Erin K; Joshi, R Malatesha; Binks-Cantrell, Emily S

2011-05-01

Roughly one-fifth of the US population displays one or more symptoms of dyslexia: a specific learning disability that affects an individual's ability to process written language. Consequently, elementary school teachers are teaching students who struggle with inaccurate or slow reading, poor spelling, poor writing, and other language processing difficulties. Findings from studies have indicated that teachers lack essential knowledge needed to teach struggling readers, particularly children with dyslexia. However, few studies have sought to assess teachers' knowledge and perceptions about dyslexia in conjunction with knowledge of basic language concepts related to reading instruction. Thus, the purpose of the present study was to examine elementary school teachers' knowledge of basic language concepts and their knowledge and perceptions about dyslexia. Findings from the present study indicated that teachers, on average, were able to display implicit skills related to certain basic language concepts (i.e. syllable counting), but failed to demonstrate explicit knowledge of others (i.e. phonics principles). Also, teachers seemed to hold the common misconception that dyslexia is a visual processing deficit rather than phonological processing deficit. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Integrating Communication and Skills Training.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bean, Robert

1994-01-01

Discusses the need for effective basic language, literacy, numeracy and other communication skills to support all workforce development programs. The general cultural bias towards these programs has marginalized them and is reflected in policy, curriculum and practice. Adjustments are needed in the approaches to the new climate of workplace…

Adult Basic Skills Instructor Training and Experiential Learning Theory.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marlowe, Mike; And Others

1991-01-01

Competency-based training workshops based on Kolb's experiential learning theory were held for North Carolina adult basic education teachers; 251 attended 1-day sessions and 91 a week-long summer institute. Topics included interpersonal communication, reading, numeracy, language arts, math, assessment, and program evaluation. (SK)

Simulations in Foreign Languages.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nebraska State Dept. of Education, Lincoln. Div. of Instructional Services.

The purpose of this publication is to define minimal competencies for foreign language classes. The term "simulation" refers to role playing. The simulations are stated in terms of practical communication performance objectives. The intent is to have the student direct his learning in the basic skills toward an immediate objective rather than a…

A Not so Trivial Pursuit.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Magahay-Johnson, Wendy

1985-01-01

Describes procedures for designing trivia games to be used in teaching English as a second language. The students participate in designing the games, thereby gaining practice in the four basic language skills and the formation of yes-no questions, information questions, and statements. Provides examples for young intermediate ESL students. (SED)

Optimizing Basic French Skills Utilizing Multiple Teaching Techniques.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Skala, Carol

This action research project examined the impact of foreign language teaching techniques on the language acquisition and retention of 19 secondary level French I students, focusing on student perceptions of the effectiveness and ease of four teaching techniques: total physical response, total physical response storytelling, literature approach,…

Basic Skills Resource Center: The Effects of Learning Strategies; Training on the Development of Skills in English as a Second Language

DTIC Science & Technology

1985-05-01

Teachers interested in helping students to become more effective learners * should be aware of strategies which can be embedded in curricul1a and...taught *to students with only modest extra effort. Teachers can expand their * instructional role to include a variety of learning strategies which... can be used with specific types of language tasks. Future research should be * directed to refining strategy training approaches, and determining

Hotel & Food Service Industries. Workforce & Workplace Literacy Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

BCL Brief, 1992

1992-01-01

This brief gives an overview of the topic of workplace literacy for the hotel and food service industries and lists program contacts. The following organizations operate employee basic skills programs for hotel and food service employees, provide technical assistance, or operate grant programs: Essential Skills Resource Center; Language Training…

Automobile Maintenance. Reading and Language Activities.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kessman, William A.

Designed primarily for special needs students in a vocational program in automobile maintenance, this book was written to refine the basic skills of following directions, reading comprehension, vocabulary building, spelling, word usage, and word recognition, while relating these skills to some of the tasks a beginning student in the program must…

English Language for the Chemical Plant.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mercer County Community Coll., Trenton, NJ.

This document is one of a series of student workbooks developed for workplace skill development courses or workshops by Mercer County Community College (New Jersey) and its partners. Designed for chemical plant employees, the course covers basic English speaking and writing skills needed to communicate effectively at work and outside the…

Homepages: Built-in Motivation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McKenzie, Cheryl

2000-01-01

Describes a Web-building class aimed at motivating English-as-a-Foreign-Language students to improve their English writing and editing skills while building a homepage. All students had a basic or better knowledge of keyboarding and Internet search techniques, two had advanced computer skills, but none had ever created a homepage. (Author/VWL)

Progress Report, June 1974: Reaching Out...

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Research for Better Schools, Inc., Philadelphia, PA.

This report reviews programs of individualized instruction in the basic skills of mathematics, language arts, science, and social education as well as in new curriculums which foster the skills needed for social education as well and emotional growth. The development and operation of an experience-based model for career education is described, and…

Algorithm Building and Learning Programming Languages Using a New Educational Paradigm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jain, Anshul K.; Singhal, Manik; Gupta, Manu Sheel

2011-08-01

This research paper presents a new concept of using a single tool to associate syntax of various programming languages, algorithms and basic coding techniques. A simple framework has been programmed in Python that helps students learn skills to develop algorithms, and implement them in various programming languages. The tool provides an innovative and a unified graphical user interface for development of multimedia objects, educational games and applications. It also aids collaborative learning amongst students and teachers through an integrated mechanism based on Remote Procedure Calls. The paper also elucidates an innovative method for code generation to enable students to learn the basics of programming languages using drag-n-drop methods for image objects.

Bilingual Adult Basic Education Project. Final Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Graham, Janet Roth

The Bilingual Adult Basic Education Project provided bilingual life skills instruction, counseling, and informational services to approximately 150 non-English-dominant adults across Pennsylvania by means of contracts to local education agencies. Students were pre- and post-tested in English and/or their native language to measure their growth in…

Using Electronic Technology in Adult Literacy Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rosen, David J.

1999-01-01

Students in adult literacy education, including basic and secondary education and English for speakers of other languages (ESOL), are increasingly using computers to write, find information, publish their writings, communicate by e-mail, learn basic skills, and for other purposes. In this chapter the focus is on computers, the Internet (including…

Homemaking. A Reading & Language Workbook.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mankoski, Linda C.

Developed for use in the academic communication classroom of a middle school for the deaf, this student workbook is designed to reinforce the vocabulary and skills presented by the pre-vocational teacher in three areas of home economics: basic cooking, home care, and basic sewing. Each section contains new word lists, short stories, comprehension…

The improvement of reading skills of L1 and ESL children using a Response to Intervention (RtI) Model.

PubMed

Lipka, Orly; Siegel, Linda S

2010-11-01

This study examined the development of literacy skills in children in a district that used a Response to Intervention (RTI) model. The district included children whose first language was English and children who were learning English as a second language (ESL). Tasks measuring phonological awareness, lexical access, and syntactic awareness were administered when the children entered school in kindergarten at age 5. Reading, phonological processing, syntactic awareness, memory, and spelling were administered in grade 7. When the children entered school, significant numbers of them were at risk for literacy difficulties. After systematic instruction and annual monitoring of skills, their reading abilities improved to the extent that only a very small percentage had reading difficulties. The results demonstrated that early identification and intervention and frequent monitoring of basic skills can significantly reduce the incidence of reading problems in both the ESL and language majority children.

Cognitive and linguistic predictors of reading comprehension in children with intellectual disabilities.

PubMed

van Wingerden, Evelien; Segers, Eliane; van Balkom, Hans; Verhoeven, Ludo

2014-11-01

A considerable number of children with intellectual disabilities (ID) are able to acquire basic word reading skills. However, not much is known about their achievements in more advanced reading comprehension skills. In the present study, a group of 49 children with ID and a control group of 21 typically developing children with word decoding skills in the normal ranges of first grade were compared in lower level (explicit meaning) and higher level (implicit meaning) reading comprehension abilities. Moreover, in the group of children with ID it was examined to what extent their levels of lower level and higher level reading comprehension could be predicted from their linguistic skills (word decoding, vocabulary, language comprehension) and cognitive skill (nonverbal reasoning). It was found that children with ID were weaker than typically developing children in higher level reading comprehension but not in lower level reading comprehension. Children with ID also performed below the control group on nonverbal reasoning and language comprehension. After controlling for nonverbal reasoning, linguistic skills predicted lower level reading comprehension but not higher level reading comprehension. It can be concluded that children with ID who have basic decoding skill do reasonably well on lower level reading comprehension but continue to have problems with higher level reading comprehension. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Auditory sequence analysis and phonological skill

PubMed Central

Grube, Manon; Kumar, Sukhbinder; Cooper, Freya E.; Turton, Stuart; Griffiths, Timothy D.

2012-01-01

This work tests the relationship between auditory and phonological skill in a non-selected cohort of 238 school students (age 11) with the specific hypothesis that sound-sequence analysis would be more relevant to phonological skill than the analysis of basic, single sounds. Auditory processing was assessed across the domains of pitch, time and timbre; a combination of six standard tests of literacy and language ability was used to assess phonological skill. A significant correlation between general auditory and phonological skill was demonstrated, plus a significant, specific correlation between measures of phonological skill and the auditory analysis of short sequences in pitch and time. The data support a limited but significant link between auditory and phonological ability with a specific role for sound-sequence analysis, and provide a possible new focus for auditory training strategies to aid language development in early adolescence. PMID:22951739

Orthographic learning and self-teaching in a bilingual and biliterate context.

PubMed

Schwartz, Mila; Kahn-Horwitz, Janina; Share, David L

2014-01-01

The aim of this study was to examine self-teaching in the context of English as a foreign language literacy acquisition. Three groups comprising 88 sixth-grade children participated. The first group consisted of Russian-Hebrew-speaking bilinguals who had acquired basic reading skills in Russian as their first language (L1) and literacy and who were literate in Hebrew as a second language. The second group consisted of Russian-Hebrew-speaking bilinguals who had not learned to read in their native Russian but had acquired Hebrew as their first literate language. The third group consisted of Hebrew-speaking monolingual children who were literate in Hebrew. This design facilitated examining the effect of biliteracy and bilingualism on basic English reading skills. We hypothesized that due to the proximity between the Russian and English orthographies as opposed to the Hebrew-English "distance," the Russian-Hebrew-speaking biliterate group who acquired basic reading and spelling skills in L1 Russian would have superior self-teaching in English as opposed to the two other groups. The standard two-session self-teaching paradigm was employed with naming (speed and accuracy) and orthographic choice as posttest measures of orthographic learning. Results showed that after 4 years of English instruction, all three groups showed evidence of self-teaching on naming speed and orthographic recognition. The Russian-Hebrew-speaking biliterate group, moreover, showed a partial advantage over the comparison groups for initial decoding of target pseudowords and clear-cut superiority for measures of later orthographic learning, thereby showing self-teaching while supporting the script dependence hypothesis. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Predictive Validity of Early Literacy Measures for Korean English Language Learners in the United States

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Han, Jeanie Nam; Vanderwood, Michael L.; Lee, Catherine Y.

2015-01-01

This study examined the predictive validity of early literacy measures with first-grade Korean English language learners (ELLs) in the United States at varying levels of English proficiency. Participants were screened using Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) Phoneme Segmentation Fluency (PSF), DIBELS Nonsense Word Fluency…

Communicative Syllabus Design--The Topic and Task Approach.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reynolds, Michael J.

An English for Special Purposes (ESP) program, devised for students of the School of Environmental Design at the English Language Centre of King Abdul Aziz University, Jeddah, is described. The course is intended to be of direct relevance to students by developing their English language skills and giving them a basic professional vocabulary. A…

The Language of Teaching Mathematics: Implications for Training ITAs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Byrd, Patricia; Constantinides, Janet C.

1992-01-01

Because of national concern about the effect of having basic college mathematics courses taught by so many international teaching assistants whose English skills may be limited, this paper reports on the use of language in teaching by regular college faculty, rather than teaching assistants, at Georgia State University. (eight references)…

Astra's Magic Math. Teacher's Manual, Manipulatives, and Student Worksheets.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brown, Judith; And Others

Astra's Magic Math is a beginning multi-sensory program that attempts to teach basic math skills through 22 sequentially developed self-contained units designed to combine manipulation, writing, and language activities. The units are first introduced to the large group to stimulate interest and develop concepts through oral language. Children then…

CAI and English Composition for the Multi-Cultural/Lingual Student.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dunbar, Shirley

Bunker Hill Community College in Boston, Massachusetts, supports a prodigious English as a Second Language (ESL) program, which attracts large numbers of Hispanics, Asian Americans, and other minority language groups. They are accepted in the program only after they have learned the basic "survival" skills in the various pre-ESL programs…

The Working Experience. Teacher's Manual.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smith, Jeanne H.; Ringel, Harry

A teacher's manual is presented for "The Working Experience," a series of three texts for English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) students. The series builds on oral skills to develop reading and writing ability while still expanding oral English-language proficiency. Because one of the basic principles underlying the series is the idea that students…

Language Learning Motivation, Self and Identity: Current Theoretical Perspectives

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ushioda, Ema

2011-01-01

Recently, the impact of globalization and the dominant status of English have provoked critical discussion in the L2 motivation field. Traditional concepts such as integrative motivation lose their explanatory power when English is becoming a "must-have" basic educational skill and when there is no clearly defined target language community. In…

Focus: Film in the English and Language Arts Classroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mullican, James S., Ed.

1976-01-01

The articles collected in this issue are devoted to the topic of film in the English and language arts classroom. Titles include "Film Study: Some Problems and Approaches" (Judd Chesler), "The New Basic Skill: Film" (Harold M. Foster), "Caveat Viewer: Developing Viewing Perceptions" (Edward S. Dermon), "Shreds and Patches: Improvised Textbook"…

Use of an Automatic Problem Generator to Teach Basic Skills in a First Course in Assembly Language.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Benander, Alan; And Others

1989-01-01

Discussion of the use of computer aided instruction (CAI) and instructional software in college level courses highlights an automatic problem generator, AUTOGEN, that was written for computer science students learning assembly language. Design of the software is explained, and student responses are reported. (nine references) (LRW)

Literature Opens Doors for All Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Miller, Donna L.

2012-01-01

Problems with language and communication are among the most basic characteristics of children with autism. Oddly, literature may hold one of the keys to helping children build their language and communication skills as well as help the child with autism and those without autism to develop social connections with each other. Authors have responded…

An Expedient Study on Back-Propagation (BPN) Neural Networks for Modeling Automated Evaluation of the Answers and Progress of Deaf Students' That Possess Basic Knowledge of the English Language and Computer Skills

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vrettaros, John; Vouros, George; Drigas, Athanasios S.

This article studies the expediency of using neural networks technology and the development of back-propagation networks (BPN) models for modeling automated evaluation of the answers and progress of deaf students' that possess basic knowledge of the English language and computer skills, within a virtual e-learning environment. The performance of the developed neural models is evaluated with the correlation factor between the neural networks' response values and the real value data as well as the percentage measurement of the error between the neural networks' estimate values and the real value data during its training process and afterwards with unknown data that weren't used in the training process.

English Spelling Errors Made by Arabic-Speaking Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Al-Busaidi, Saleh; Al-Saqqaf, Abdullah H.

2015-01-01

Spelling is a basic literacy skill in any language as it is crucial in communication. EFL students are often unable to spell or pronounce very simple monosyllabic words even after several years of English instruction. Similarly, teachers and researchers usually focus on the larger skills such as speaking and reading and ignore the smaller…

Changing Channels: A Guide to Functional Literacy for the Automated Workplace.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Conklin, Nancy Faires; Reder, Stephen

This paper was designed to assist educators and employers as they plan curricula in language and communication skills for students and employees entering, or experiencing a transition to, automated work settings. The strategies presented in this paper may be adaptable to secondary school business skills and basic English courses, pre-employment…

Project Kanpe, 1981-1982. O.E.E. Evaluation Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Keane, Demetra N.; And Others

Project Kanpe was a bilingual program intended to help older, talented Haitian students at three New York City high schools acquire English language proficiency while developing their academic skills. According to this evaluation, the project instead served students in critical need of basic skills and remediation. The following points are made:…

Learning from the Land: Teaching Ecology through Stories and Activities.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ellis, Brian Fox

This book strives to combine creative writing, the whole language approach, thinking skills, and problem-solving strategies with an introduction to ecological concepts. It aims to bring scientific facts to life by creating empathy for wild creatures and teach basic science skills by using creative writing and storytelling. This book contains nine…

Motor Education: Educational Development Programs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tansley, A. E.

This booklet presents educational programs and activities focusing on motor skills for 5- to 9-year-old children and older children with learning problems. The premise of the activities is that the acquisition of motor skills is essential to basic learning. The role of language as a mediator and controller of motor development is emphasized. The…

Learning in Context: Preparing Latino Workers for Careers and Continuing Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moore, Elizabeth; Oppenheim, Emma

2010-01-01

Adult education services, including education for those lacking basic literacy and numeracy, preparation for the high school equivalency diploma, and English-as-a-second-language courses, play a crucial role in bridging the basic skills gap for Latinos and other workers with limited formal education and training. With recent policy and program…

Everyday Everywhere Materials as Teaching Resources in Adult Basic Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shaw, Marilyn B.; Roark, Mary

This book of instructional materials for adult basic education teachers is a collection of exercises and activities which involve the use of resources found in the everyday environment of adults, relate to adult coping skills, and provide students with practice in language and computation. Following a brief introduction and discussion of adult…

Oral motor deficits in speech-impaired children with autism

PubMed Central

Belmonte, Matthew K.; Saxena-Chandhok, Tanushree; Cherian, Ruth; Muneer, Reema; George, Lisa; Karanth, Prathibha

2013-01-01

Absence of communicative speech in autism has been presumed to reflect a fundamental deficit in the use of language, but at least in a subpopulation may instead stem from motor and oral motor issues. Clinical reports of disparity between receptive vs. expressive speech/language abilities reinforce this hypothesis. Our early-intervention clinic develops skills prerequisite to learning and communication, including sitting, attending, and pointing or reference, in children below 6 years of age. In a cohort of 31 children, gross and fine motor skills and activities of daily living as well as receptive and expressive speech were assessed at intake and after 6 and 10 months of intervention. Oral motor skills were evaluated separately within the first 5 months of the child's enrolment in the intervention programme and again at 10 months of intervention. Assessment used a clinician-rated structured report, normed against samples of 360 (for motor and speech skills) and 90 (for oral motor skills) typically developing children matched for age, cultural environment and socio-economic status. In the full sample, oral and other motor skills correlated with receptive and expressive language both in terms of pre-intervention measures and in terms of learning rates during the intervention. A motor-impaired group comprising a third of the sample was discriminated by an uneven profile of skills with oral motor and expressive language deficits out of proportion to the receptive language deficit. This group learnt language more slowly, and ended intervention lagging in oral motor skills. In individuals incapable of the degree of motor sequencing and timing necessary for speech movements, receptive language may outstrip expressive speech. Our data suggest that autistic motor difficulties could range from more basic skills such as pointing to more refined skills such as articulation, and need to be assessed and addressed across this entire range in each individual. PMID:23847480

Building freeways: piloting communication skills in additional languages to health service personnel in Cape Town, South Africa.

PubMed

Claassen, Joel; Jama, Zukile; Manga, Nayna; Lewis, Minnie; Hellenberg, Derek

2017-06-07

This study reflects on the development and teaching of communication skills courses in additional national languages to health care staff within two primary health care facilities in Cape Town, South Africa. These courses were aimed at addressing the language disparities that recent research has identified globally between patients and health care staff. Communication skills courses were offered to staff at two Metropolitan District Health Services clinics to strengthen patient access to health care services. This study reflects on the communicative proficiency in the additional languages that were offered to health care staff. A mixed-method approach was utilised during this case study with quantitative data-gathering through surveys and qualitative analysis of assessment results. The language profiles of the respective communities were assessed through data obtained from the South African National census, while staff language profiles were obtained at the health care centres. Quantitative measuring, by means of a patient survey at the centres, occurred on a randomly chosen day to ascertain the language profile of the patient population. Participating staff performed assessments at different phases of the training courses to determine their skill levels by the end of the course. The performances of the participating staff during the Xhosa and Afrikaans language courses were assessed, and the development of the staff communicative competencies was measured. Health care staff learning the additional languages could develop Basic or Intermediate Xhosa and Afrikaans that enables communication with patients. In multilingual countries such as South Africa, language has been recognised as a health care barrier preventing patients from receiving quality care. Equipping health care staff with communication skills in the additional languages, represents an attempt to bridge a vital barrier in the South African health care system. The study proves that offering communication skills courses in additional languages, begins to equip health care staff to be multilingual, that allows patients to communicate about their illnesses within their mother tongues.

Profile of language and cognitive functions in children with dyslexia in speakers of Brazilian Portuguese.

PubMed

Barbosa, Thais; Rodrigues, Camila Cruz; Toledo-Piza, Carolina Mattar; Navas, Ana Luiza Gomes Pinto; Bueno, Orlando Francisco Amodeu

2015-01-01

To verify the language and cognitive profile of children with dyslexia, contributing to the diagnosis of this condition in readers of a regular orthography, such as Brazilian Portuguese. In this study, 47 children with dyslexia (GD) and two controlled groups, one composed of 41 age controls (GCI) and the other with 31 reading controls (GCL), participated. All children were submitted to a battery involving the above-mentioned abilities. GD demonstrated predominant deficits in phonological processing, which were not compatible with a delay in the development of such abilities, indicating an atypical development. The GD also obtained lower scores in both basic and more complex reading and writing skills (i.e., letters, words, pseudowords, and texts, respectively), as well as in other domains, such as language (syntactic processing and oral sentence comprehension), which may be a result of a deficit in phonological skills, that interfered with higher complexity linguistic skills. Phonological abilities demonstrated to be the main difficulty observed in children with dyslexia investigated in this study, corroborating previous studies in other languages. This demonstrates that, independently of the language regularity, phonological skills are fundamental to the diagnosis of developmental dyslexia.

Performance-Based Curriculum for Language Arts: From Knowing to Showing.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Burz, Helen L.; Marshall, Kit

This book is intended to be used as a guide to develop a performance-based curriculum based on language arts standards recommended by the National Council of Teachers of English and the International Reading Association. The book helps teachers take their students beyond knowledge and basic skills by teaching them to be accountable for showing…

Grover Cleveland High School. Basic Bilingual Program. O.E.E. Evaluation Report, 1981-1982.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Di Martino, Vincent James; And Others

This paper evaluates the bilingual educational program at Grover Cleveland High School, Queens, New York City. The program offered instruction in English as a second language (ESL) and native language skills in Italian and Spanish as well as courses in science, mathematics, and social studies to 142 students with limited English proficiency. The…

Breaking Down Barriers: Certificate in Workplace Language, Literacy and Numeracy Training. Second Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Holland, Chris, Ed.; Frank, Fiona, Ed.; Caunt, Jaine Chisholm, Ed.

This document is the course book of an accredited 3-day professional development course for qualified basic skills tutors in the United Kingdom who are interested in working in workplace settings. The course materials are organized into 17 sections grouped into 4 units as follows: (1) general concepts of workplace language, literacy, and numeracy…

The Working Experience Books 1, 2, and 3.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smith, Jeanne H.; Ringel, Harry

Books 1, 2, and 3 of "The Working Experience," a series of texts for English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) students, are contained in this document. The series builds on oral skills to develop reading and writing ability while still expanding oral English-language proficiency. Since one of the basic principles underlying the series is the idea that…

Integrating Book, Digital Content and Robot for Enhancing Elementary School Students' Learning of English

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chen, Nian-Shing; Quadir, Benazir; Teng, Daniel C.

2011-01-01

Early school years are an important period to lay out the foundation for learning a second language. In addition to mastering the basic language skills and keeping the learning process fun, promoting a lifelong learning habit should also be emphasised. Motivating elementary school students to learn English and avoiding misconceptions associated…

Language Minority Crossover Students: A Program To Address a New Challenge at Bergen Community College.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Altano, Brian

In response to the conflicting needs of English as a Second Language (ESL) students in English Basic Skills (EBS) courses at Bergen Community College, a project has been proposed to provide a more comprehensive program. The plan of operation is divided into five components: (1) identification, testing, and placement; (2) orientation and…

Innovative Teaching Practice: Traditional and Alternative Methods (Challenges and Implications)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nurutdinova, Aida R.; Perchatkina, Veronika G.; Zinatullina, Liliya M.; Zubkova, Guzel I.; Galeeva, Farida T.

2016-01-01

The relevance of the present issue is caused be the strong need in alternative methods of learning foreign language and the need in language training and retraining for the modern professionals. The aim of the article is to identify the basic techniques and skills in using various modern techniques in the context of modern educational tasks. The…

Test Review: Schrank, F. A., Mather, N., & McGrew, K. S. (2014). Woodcock-Johnson IV Tests of Achievement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Villarreal, Victor

2015-01-01

The Woodcock-Johnson IV Tests of Achievement (WJ IV ACH; Schrank, Mather, & McGrew, 2014a) is an individually administered measure containing tests of reading, mathematics, written language, and academic knowledge. Areas of reading, mathematics, and written language each include tests of basic skills, fluency, and application. Academic…

Primary School Curriculum for Educable Mentally Retarded Children: A Turkish Case

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Demirel, Melek

2010-01-01

Educable mental retardation is a delay in acquiring basic reading, writing and counting skills emerging through late speaking and linguistic development along with social, emotional or behavioral problems. It is pointed out that such children have intelligence in the 45-74 range, and that they are incompetent in terms of language skills,…

The Meanings Attributed to Writing Skills in English by Turkish Children: A Concept Map Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Erginer, Ergin; Yar, Veda

2013-01-01

One of the four basic language skills of children, writing, is central to expressing themselves and to developing high level thinking capabilities. Competence in writing is a rather complex learning structure in which cognitive and, especially, psycho-motor learning processes are intensively employed and it further needs to be fed by perceptive…

Adult Education and Literacy: Program Year 2017. Annual Report, (July 1, 2016 to June 30, 2017)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Division of Community Colleges and Workforce Preparation, Iowa Department of Education, 2018

2018-01-01

Adult education has a rich history in Iowa of providing services that assist adults in improving their skills, achieving their educational goals, and transitioning to further education or employment. Instruction is designed for adults functioning at the lowest levels of basic skills and/or needing English language instruction to advance their…

Influence of Previous Knowledge, Language Skills and Domain-Specific Interest on Observation Competency

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kohlhauf, Lucia; Rutke, Ulrike; Neuhaus, Birgit

2011-01-01

Many epoch-making biological discoveries (e.g. Darwinian Theory) were based upon observations. Nevertheless, observation is often regarded as "just looking" rather than a basic scientific skill. As observation is one of the main research methods in biological sciences, it must be considered as an independent research method and systematic practice…

Basic reading skills in Swedish children with late developing language and with or without autism spectrum disorder or ADHD.

PubMed

Miniscalco, Carmela; Dahlgren Sandberg, Annika

2010-01-01

Reading skills at age 7-8 years were examined in a community-representative sample of 21 screened and clinically examined children with language delay (LD) followed prospectively from 2.5 years of age. The present study aimed to (1) determine whether these children with a history of LD had deficits in basic reading skills, i.e. decoding and comprehension, compared to the age norms of standardized tests, (2) analyze if there was a relationship between reading outcome and neuropsychiatric diagnosis by comparing three subgroups of children, LD pure, LD+ASD (autism spectrum disorder) and LD+ADHD, and, (3) determine what language measures at age 6 years were associated with the 7-8-year reading outcome. Both decoding and comprehension of single word reading were significantly below the norm for the whole LD group, where children with LD+ASD scored lowest, and children with LD highest. However, the differences between the three groups did not reach significance. Two reader groups were identified according to the results of word decoding and comprehension, respectively, resulting in the same 7 children. ANOVA revealed that the only differences on the 6-year language tests between the two groups were found on color naming and word memory. This study has shown that children with LD and subsequently identified neurodevelopmental problems such as ASD and ADHD experience continued deficits, demonstrated also in reading skills and that the picture of the reading problems seemed to resemble those of typically developing children. Copyright (c) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Instructional Strategies and Resource Utility in Language Teaching among Basic Educators in 21st Century Nigeria

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ofodu, Graceful Onovughe

2012-01-01

Learning in the twenty-first century demands learning skills, strategies and utilizing resources which learners can deploy when they leave the school environment. The paper investigates the instructional strategies and resources employed by teachers in teaching and learning English Studies at the basic level of Nigeria's educational system. It…

Are preservice teachers prepared to teach struggling readers?

PubMed

Washburn, Erin K; Joshi, R Malatesha; Binks Cantrell, Emily

2011-06-01

Reading disabilities such as dyslexia, a specific learning disability that affects an individual's ability to process written language, are estimated to affect 15-20% of the general population. Consequently, elementary school teachers encounter students who struggle with inaccurate or slow reading, poor spelling, poor writing, and other language processing difficulties. However, recent evidence may suggest that teacher preparation programs are not providing preservice teachers with information about basic language constructs and other components related to scientifically based reading instruction. As a consequence preservice teachers have not exhibited explicit knowledge of such concepts in previous studies. Few studies have sought to assess preservice teachers' knowledge about dyslexia in conjunction with knowledge of basic language concepts. The purpose of the present study was to examine elementary school preservice teachers' knowledge of basic language constructs and their perceptions and knowledge about dyslexia. Findings from the present study suggest that preservice teachers, on average, are able to display implicit skills related to certain basic language constructs (i.e., syllable counting), but fail to demonstrate explicit knowledge of others (i.e., phonics principles). Also, preservice teachers seem to hold the common misconception that dyslexia is a visual perception deficit rather than a problem with phonological processing. Implications for future research as well as teacher preparation are discussed.

Exploration: An Important Middle Level Curriculum.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brewer, Warren W.

1985-01-01

Describes a middle school program in Wisconsin that has a curriculum based on basic skills and provides exposure to special areas such as art, business, education, foreign language, music, home economics, physical education, and industrial education. (MD)

Workforce Education. Hotel and Motel Workers. A Section 353 Demonstration Project.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Polk County Public Schools, Bartow, FL.

This guide provides an overall view of a program designed to educate adult basic education (ABE) and English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) students in job-related, language-oriented skills vital to their positions in the hotel/motel industry. The program was designed for the employees of Grenelefe Resort and Conference Center in Haines City, Florida,…

Walton High School Bilingual Basic Skills Through Interdisciplinary Career Orientation. O.E.E. Evaluation Report, 1981-1982.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Torres, Judith A.; And Others

The program discussed in this evaluation provided instruction in English as a second language and native language arts, as well as bilingual instruction in numerous subject fields and career education to approximately 200 Spanish-speaking students of limited English proficiency in grades 9 through 12. The philosophy of the program, which was…

Effects of Targeted Test Preparation on Scores of Two Tests of Oral English as a Second Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Farnsworth, Tim

2013-01-01

This study investigated the effect of targeted test preparation, or coaching, on oral English as a second language test scores. The tests in question were the Basic English Skills Test Plus (BEST Plus), a scripted oral interview published by the Center for Applied Linguistics, and the Versant English Test (VET), a computer-administered and…

Basic Auditory Processing Skills and Specific Language Impairment: A New Look at an Old Hypothesis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Corriveau, Kathleen; Pasquini, Elizabeth; Goswami, Usha

2007-01-01

Purpose: To explore the sensitivity of children with specific language impairment (SLI) to amplitude-modulated and durational cues that are important for perceiving suprasegmental speech rhythm and stress patterns. Method: Sixty-three children between 7 and 11 years of age were tested, 21 of whom had a diagnosis of SLI, 21 of whom were matched for…

A Comparison of the Effectiveness of EFL Students' Use of Dictionaries and an Online Corpus for the Enhancement of Revision Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mueller, Charles M.; Jacobsen, Natalia D.

2016-01-01

Qualitative research focusing primarily on advanced-proficiency second language (L2) learners suggests that online corpora can function as useful reference tools for language learners, especially when addressing phraseological issues. However, the feasibility and effectiveness of online corpus consultation for learners at a basic level of L2…

Farther, Faster: Six Promising Programs Show How Career Pathway Bridges Help Basic Skills Students Earn Credentials That Matter

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Strawn, Julie

2011-01-01

Students forced to complete a long sequence of remedial or English language classes before they can begin their postsecondary program rarely earn college certificates or degrees. This brief highlights six promising programs that show how career pathway bridges help lower-skilled students move farther and faster along college and career paths…

Linea abierta -- Comunicacion en espanol. Nivel Uno (Open Line -- Communication in Spanish. Level One).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dissemination and Assessment Center for Bilingual Education, Austin, TX.

This text is the first of a series of four units concerning language skills for Spanish speakers of limited English-speaking ability in grades 6-9. The text includes a variety of learning experiences designed to develop competence in the student's cognitive and affective skills derived from the following basic areas: listening, speaking, reading,…

Developing the Oral Skill in Online English Courses Framed by the Community of Inquiry

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Herrera Díaz, Luz Edith; González Miy, Darlene

2017-01-01

Over the last decade, the community of inquiry framework has proved successful for online learning experiences in diverse disciplines, although studies in the teaching of English as a foreign language arena are still scarce. In this vein, this article reports a preliminary study about the development of the oral skill in a Basic English online…

Evaluation Report: Miccosukee Day School, Southeast Agencies, June 1973. Research and Evaluation Report Series No. 06-A.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Monsen, Marie

The Day School operated Head Start, Title I and VII, and Adult Education programs in addition to the basic K-6 curricula. The programs and curriculum emphasized attracting and retaining students. Of the 45 students enrolled during Fiscal Year 1973, 3 were "dropouts". Emphasizing language skill development, the basic curriculum consisted…

Basic Education for Adults: Pathways to College and Careers for Washington's Emerging Workforce. Washington's Community and Technical Colleges

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges, 2015

2015-01-01

This brief describes the Basic Education for Adults (BEdA) programs that bridge the gap between school and work, thereby creating pathways to college and careers for Washington's emerging workforce. BEdA programs teach foundational skills--reading, writing, math, technology and English language--so adults can move through college and into…

Imitation (rather than core language) predicts pragmatic development in young children with ASD: a preliminary longitudinal study using CDI parental reports.

PubMed

Miniscalco, Carmela; Rudling, Maja; Råstam, Maria; Gillberg, Christopher; Johnels, Jakob Åsberg

2014-01-01

Research in the last decades has clearly pointed to the important role of language and communicative level when trying to understand developmental trajectories in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). The purpose of this longitudinal study was to investigate whether (1) core language skills, measured as expressive vocabulary and grammar, and/or (2) pre-linguistic social-communicative skills, including gestures and imitation abilities, drive pragmatic language development in young children with ASD. We examined correlates and longitudinal predictors of pragmatic growth in a sample of 34 children with Autism spectrum disorder (ASD), whose parents were given parts of two MacArthur Communicative Developmental Inventories (CDI: Words & Gestures and CDI: Words & Sentences) for completion at two time points (at time 1 the mean child age was 41 months, and at time 2 it was 54 months). A novel feature in this study is that the relevant parts from both CDI forms were included at both time points, allowing us to examine whether pre-linguistic social-communication skills (e.g. imitation and gesturing) and/or core language skills (i.e. grammar and vocabulary) predict pragmatic language growth. The results show that basically all pre-linguistic, linguistic and pragmatic skills were associated concurrently. When controlling for possible confounders and for the autoregressive effect, imitation skills predicted pragmatic growth over time, whereas core language did not. This could only have been shown by the use of both CDI forms. This preliminary study may be of both conceptual and methodological importance for research in the field of language and communication development in ASD. Imitation may play a pivotal role in the development of subsequent conversational pragmatic abilities in young children with ASD. Future research should be directed at unravelling the mechanisms underlying this association. © 2014 Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists.

Why talk with children matters: clinical implications of infant- and child-directed speech research.

PubMed

Ratner, Nan Bernstein

2013-11-01

This article reviews basic features of infant- or child-directed speech, with particular attention to those aspects of the register that have been shown to impact profiles of child language development. It then discusses concerns that arise when describing adult input to children with language delay or disorder, or children at risk for depressed language skills. The article concludes with some recommendations for parent counseling in such cases, as well as methods that speech-language pathologists can use to improve the quality and quantity of language input to language-learning children. Thieme Medical Publishers 333 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10001, USA.

The Predictive Utility of DIBELS Reading Assessment for Reading Comprehension among Third Grade English Language Learners and English Speaking Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scheffel, Debora; Lefly, Dianne; Houser, Janet

2012-01-01

The study addresses the extent to which subtests on the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills Reading Assessment (DIBELS; Good & Kaminski, 2002) predict student success on a measure of reading comprehension and if prediction is consistent for native and second English Language Learners. 2,649 elementary students were assessed on a…

Towards Developing a Language Course for Hajj Guides in Al-Madinah Al-Munawwarah, a Needs Assessment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Abdellah, Antar; Ibrahim, Mahdi

2013-01-01

Hajj guides in the second holy city in Islam deal with some million visitors and pilgrims to the holy Prophet's mosque. Although they are well trained in terms of hospitality and guidance, they seem to lack the basic communication skills in English. As most of the visitors and pilgrims resort to English as an international language, the need…

Think about It: Volume III, Part I. A Collection of Articles on Higher Order Thinking Skills. REACH: Realistic Educational Achievement Can Happen.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Texas Education Agency, Austin.

Twenty-three papers on the use of higher order thinking approaches to improve basic skills education are presented. The key note article is (1) "A Case for Higher Order Thinking" (G. Garcia, Jr.). Under the heading "English Language Arts" are: (2) "Developing an Elementary Writing Program" (K. Contreras); (3)…

A Review on Reading-Supported Values Education of 7th Grade Students (Case of Kars Province, Turkey)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Karahan, Berna Ürün; Atalay, Tazegül Demir

2017-01-01

As is known, reading is a skill the individual faces throughout his/her life. Reading, which is also one of the four basic language skills, allows an individual to establish a connection with life. So that, self-improvement of the individual, the process of understanding and interpreting what is happening around him/her, expressing himself/herself…

Sleep and Nutritional Deprivation and Performance of House Officers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hawkins, Michael R.; And Others

1985-01-01

A study to compare cognitive functioning in acutely and chronically sleep-deprived house officers is described. A multivariate analysis of variance revealed significant deficits in primary mental tasks involving basic rote memory, language, and numeric skills. (Author/MLW)

Education within Sustainable Development: Critical Thinking Formation on ESL Class

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pevneva, Inna; Gavrishina, Olga; Smirnova, Anna; Rozhneva, Elena; Yakimova, Nataliya

2017-11-01

The article is devoted to consideration of the critical thinking formation in course of foreign language teaching within the education for sustainable development as a crucial skill of perspective employee and a future leader of Russian employment market. The necessity to include the component of problem education and critical thinking methodology in course of the foreign language class is justified along with analysis of the basic principles of critical thinking and certain strategies that can be implied in class. This model targets communicative language competences of students as well as critical thinking due to interconnection of various types of cognitive activities in class. The role in personality development of the students is considered along with the formation and enhancing of critical thinking skills within the modern personality-oriented approach.

Remedial early numeracy education: can children identified as having a language deficiency benefit?

PubMed

Van Luit, Johannes E H; Toll, Sylke W M

2015-01-01

Growing attention has been paid to the possibility of supporting early numeracy in at-risk kindergartners. Furthermore, it is assumed that language proficiency is an important prerequisite in early maths skills. To examine whether remedial early numeracy education in kindergarten, which has been proven to be effective in general, is also beneficial for children with a language deficiency. Based on intensive selection, four different conditions were included: two groups received remedial education, one consisting of children being language proficient (N = 86) and one of children with a language deficiency (N = 26), and two groups followed the regular curriculum, one consisting of children being language proficient (N = 51) and one of children with a language deficiency (N = 24). Remedial education was for 1.5 school years (90 sessions, 30 min per session, twice per week), following the programme 'The Road to Mathematics'. During this period, the children receiving remedial education did not attend the regular maths lessons in the classroom, which were offered for at least 1 h per week. Effects were assessed for early numeracy and mathematical skills (operationalized as basic calculation fluency) in kindergarten and first grade. Three analyses of covariance (ANCOVAs) revealed that, when accounting for achievement at pre-test, children with a language deficiency who received remedial numeracy education performed better on early numeracy skills in kindergarten and first grade than kindergartners with a language deficiency that followed the regular curriculum. Furthermore, they were able to catch up with their language proficient peers in early numeracy. However, children with a language deficiency who received remedial numeracy education did not differ from children who followed the regular curriculum on mathematical skills, suggesting that benefits for numeracy did not generalize to more advanced skills of addition and subtraction. Since, in general, it can be concluded that early numeracy education is indeed effective for kindergartners with a language deficiency, this study finds evidence that intensive support is desirable for children with delayed or impaired language development. © 2015 Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists.

Three treatments for bilingual children with primary language impairment: Examining cross-linguistic and cross-domain effects

PubMed Central

Ebert, Kerry Danahy; Kohnert, Kathryn; Pham, Giang; Disher, Jill Rentmeester; Payesteh, Bita

2014-01-01

Purpose This study examines the absolute and relative effects of three different treatment programs for school-aged bilingual children with primary or specific language impairment (PLI). It serves to expand the evidence base on which service providers can base treatment decisions. It also explores hypothesized relations between languages and cognition in bilinguals with PLI. Method Fifty-nine school-aged Spanish-English bilingual children with PLI were assigned to receive nonlinguistic cognitive processing, English, bilingual (Spanish-English), or deferred treatment. Participants in each of the three active treatments received treatment administered by nationally certified speech-language pathologists. Pre- and post-treatment assessments measured change in nonlinguistic cognitive processing, English, and Spanish skills, and analyses examined change within and across both treatment groups and skill domains. Results All active treatment groups made significant pre- to post-treatment improvement on multiple outcome measures. There were fewer significant changes in Spanish than in English across groups. Between group comparisons indicate that the active treatment groups generally outperformed the deferred treatment control, reaching statistical significance for two tasks. Conclusions Results provide insight into cross-language transfer in bilingual children and advance understanding of the general PLI profile with respect to relationships between basic cognitive processing and higher level language skills. PMID:23900032

A RESOURCE GUIDE FOR THIRD GRADE SUMMER SCHOOL ACCELERATION CLASSES. THE AMERICAN INDIAN--A STUDY OF LIFE IN A PRIMITIVE CULTURE.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

TRAINOR, LOIS M.; AND OTHERS

THE SUMMER PROGRAM IS PART OF A PROGRAM IN WHICH SECOND-GRADE GIFTED STUDENTS ARE GIVEN INSTRUCTION IN BASIC THIRD-GRADE SKILLS IN LANGUAGE AND ARITHMETIC DURING THE SPRING SEMESTER. THE SUMMER SESSION PROVIDES FOR IMPROVEMENT IN THESE SKILLS ON AN INDIVIDUAL BASIS AND FOR ENRICHMENT IN SOCIAL STUDIES. THE UNIT ON THE AMERICAN INDIAN DESCRIBED IS…

Improved Outcomes with Computer-Assisted Instruction in Mathematics and English Language Skills for Hispanic Students in Need of Remedial Education at Miami Dade College, Florida

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vassiliou, John

2011-01-01

In this study, 180 first-time-in-college (FTIC) students at Miami Dade College, Florida in need of remedial instruction in basic mathematics, reading, and sentence skills utilized the A[superscript +]dvancer[R] College Readiness Online software. Significant results were found with increased ACCUPLACER[R] scores; number of students who avoided at…

Preservice and inservice teachers' knowledge of language constructs in Finland.

PubMed

Aro, Mikko; Björn, Piia Maria

2016-04-01

The aim of the study was to explore the Finnish preservice and inservice teachers' knowledge of language constructs relevant for literacy acquisition. A total of 150 preservice teachers and 74 inservice teachers participated in the study by filling out a questionnaire that assessed self-perceived expertise in reading instruction, knowledge of phonology and phonics, and knowledge of morphology. The inservice teachers outperformed the preservice teachers in knowledge of phonology and phonics, as well as morphology. Both groups' knowledge of morphology was markedly lower than their knowledge of phonology and phonics. Because early reading instruction does not focus on the morphological level of language but is phonics-based, this result was expected. However, the findings also revealed a lack of explicit knowledge of basic phonological constructs and less-than-optimal phonemic awareness skills in both groups. Problems in phonemic skills manifested mostly as responding to the phonological tasks based on orthographic knowledge, which reflects an overreliance on the one-to-one correspondence between graphemes and phonemes. The preservice teachers' perceptions of expertise were weakly related to their knowledge and skills. Among the inservice teachers, perceived expertise and knowledge of language constructs were completely unrelated. Although the study was exploratory, these findings suggest that within the Finnish teacher education there is a need to focus more on explicit content studies for language structures and the concepts relevant for literacy instruction, as well as phonological and phonemic skills.

Analogy Mapping Development for Learning Programming

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sukamto, R. A.; Prabawa, H. W.; Kurniawati, S.

2017-02-01

Programming skill is an important skill for computer science students, whereas nowadays, there many computer science students are lack of skills and information technology knowledges in Indonesia. This is contrary with the implementation of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) since the end of 2015 which is the qualified worker needed. This study provided an effort for nailing programming skills by mapping program code to visual analogies as learning media. The developed media was based on state machine and compiler principle and was implemented in C programming language. The state of every basic condition in programming were successful determined as analogy visualization.

The Use of Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Language Skills (DIBELS) and Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) to Compare Reading Proficiency in Native English Speakers and English Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ellett, Ryan

2014-01-01

This study compares native English, Spanish, Lao, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Arabic, and all other ELL students over one, two, three, and four-year spans to determine if certain groups appear to face more difficulties in developing early reading mastery by third grade. This study also examines whether socio-economic status impacts the…

Science Education Notes.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

School Science Review, 1979

1979-01-01

Included is information regarding: the adaptation of microcomputer materials in physics curricula; a school-industry liaison case study involving basic electronics for teachers; the use of language in science lessons; problems in teaching image-synthesis skills; and tabulated results of a questionnaire concerning a ten-year span of organic…

[Understanding questions: a specific difficulty in children with pragmatic communication and language disorders].

PubMed

Monfort, I; Monfort, M

2010-03-03

The question-answer schema is the basis for communicative interaction and is therefore a fundamental aim of the work carried out with children with severe communication and language impairment. Answering questions requires basic skills that enable the listener to identify intonation and facial expression, as well as skills in interpreting intentions and in understanding linguistic content. Some questions can rest on contextual-social keys and others may be based on lexical or structural keys. Some questions, however, call for a more complex understanding, such as 'what' and 'who' questions. Here, we propose an analysis of the skills involved in understanding questions and the consequences on intervention strategies. Intervention in understanding questions should combine different approaches (cognitive, social, linguistic) depending on the type of question, the specific difficulties the child has and the context.

English-as-a-Second-Language Programs in Basic Skills Education Program 1. Appendix

DTIC Science & Technology

1984-01-01

the Army? question understood (1) - gramatically correct (1) no rephrasing/repetition (1) 8. Why are you taking this English Language Course...question understood (1) gramatically correct (1) no rephrasing/repetition (1) 9. Do you think you will use English when you are no longer in the Arnfy...How will you use English?) question understood (1) - gramatically correct (1) -_ no rephrasing/repetition (1) E-4 Page 2 PATROL SCENE Now we want to show

An interventional model to develop health professionals in West Africa.

PubMed

Sanou, Anselme Simeon; Awoyale, Florence Adeola; Diallo, Abdoulaye

2014-01-01

The health sector is characterized by a human resource base lacking in numbers, specialized skills, and management skills. West African Health Organization (WAHO) recognizes the need within the West Africa sub-region for bilingual professionals who are skilled in public health, management, leadership, and information technology to build human capacity in public health and developed the Young Professionals Internship Program (YPIP). Our study explores the evolution of the programme. YPIP program has successfully carried out its original aims and objectives to equip young professionals with basic principles of public health, management, and leadership, acquire competence in a second official language (French, English, and Portuguese), information and communication technology. Contributing factors towards this successful evaluation included positive ratings and commentary from previous interns about the relevance, usefulness, and quality of the programme, encouraging feedback from WAHO management, trainers, administrators, and intern employers on the impact of the YPIP program on young professionals, supporting evidence that demonstrates increased knowledge in professional skills and language competency.

An interventional model to develop health professionals in West Africa

PubMed Central

Sanou, Anselme Simeon; Awoyale, Florence Adeola; Diallo, Abdoulaye

2014-01-01

The health sector is characterized by a human resource base lacking in numbers, specialized skills, and management skills. West African Health Organization (WAHO) recognizes the need within the West Africa sub-region for bilingual professionals who are skilled in public health, management, leadership, and information technology to build human capacity in public health and developed the Young Professionals Internship Program (YPIP). Our study explores the evolution of the programme. YPIP program has successfully carried out its original aims and objectives to equip young professionals with basic principles of public health, management, and leadership, acquire competence in a second official language (French, English, and Portuguese), information and communication technology. Contributing factors towards this successful evaluation included positive ratings and commentary from previous interns about the relevance, usefulness, and quality of the programme, encouraging feedback from WAHO management, trainers, administrators, and intern employers on the impact of the YPIP program on young professionals, supporting evidence that demonstrates increased knowledge in professional skills and language competency. PMID:25419290

Evaluation of an Australian health literacy training program for socially disadvantaged adults attending basic education classes: study protocol for a cluster randomised controlled trial.

PubMed

McCaffery, Kirsten J; Morony, Suzanne; Muscat, Danielle M; Smith, Sian K; Shepherd, Heather L; Dhillon, Haryana M; Hayen, Andrew; Luxford, Karen; Meshreky, Wedyan; Comings, John; Nutbeam, Don

2016-05-27

People with low literacy and low health literacy have poorer health outcomes. Literacy and health literacy are distinct but overlapping constructs that impact wellbeing. Interventions that target both could improve health outcomes. This is a cluster randomised controlled trial with a qualitative component. Participants are 300 adults enrolled in basic language, literacy and numeracy programs at adult education colleges across New South Wales, Australia. Each adult education institute (regional administrative centre) contributes (at least) two classes matched for student demographics, which may be at the same or different campuses. Classes (clusters) are randomly allocated to receive either the health literacy intervention (an 18-week program with health knowledge and skills embedded in language, literacy, and numeracy training (LLN)), or the standard Language Literacy and Numeracy (LLN) program (usual LLN classes, specifically excluding health content). The primary outcome is functional health literacy skills - knowing how to use a thermometer, and read and interpret food and medicine labels. The secondary outcomes are self-reported confidence, more advanced health literacy skills; shared decision making skills, patient activation, health knowledge and self-reported health behaviour. Data is collected at baseline, and immediately and 6 months post intervention. A sample of participating teachers, students, and community health workers will be interviewed in-depth about their experiences with the program to better understand implementation issues and to strengthen the potential for scaling up the program. Outcomes will provide evidence regarding real-world implementation of a health literacy training program with health worker involvement in an Australian adult education setting. The evaluation trial will provide insight into translating and scaling up health literacy education for vulnerable populations with low literacy. Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry ACTRN12616000213448 .

TLC for Growing Minds. Microcomputer Projects. Elementary Intermediate Microcomputer Projects.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Buxton, Marilyn

Designed to improve students' thinking, learning, and creative skills while they learn to program a microcomputer in BASIC programing language, this book for intermediate learners at the elementary school level provides a variety of microcomputer activities designed to extend the concepts learned in accompanying instructional manuals (Volumes 3…

Grades 4-6: Arkansas Public School Course Content Guide.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arkansas State Dept. of Education, Little Rock.

Provided as a framework for use in curriculum development are Arkansas' course content guides for the intermediate elementary grades four, five, and six. At each grade level, language arts, mathematics, reading, social studies, and science skills have been identified at three instructional levels: basic, developmental, and extensional. Basic…

Language Arts: Composition Skills K-12.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Instructional Objectives Exchange, Los Angeles, CA.

There are 127 basic composition objectives in this revised collection for use in kindergarten through high school. At least one evaluation per objective is given. The objectives are organized as follows: (1) Story Writing which covers fanciful and realistic types such as: myths, fable, short story, fiction, and writing dialogue; (2) Letters both…

The Energy and Conservation Education Glossary.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dalton, Ed; And Others

The glossary of approximately 700 energy-related terms provides a useful resource to K-12 classroom teachers and curriculum developers for teaching basic energy concepts and skills. In addition, developers of the glossary suggest that it can help teachers develop supplementary language and word games for students, such as crossword puzzles. The…

Housekeeping ESL. Workplace Literacy Curriculum for Hotels.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Van Duzer, Carol; And Others

This curriculum for hotel employees is based on the analyses of worksite tasks and interactions. Hotel housekeepers were observed on the job, supervisors were consulted, and existing resources were reviewed to determine the language and basic skills needed to effectively and efficiently perform job duties. Twelve curriculum units were developed,…

Poor Anchoring Limits Dyslexics' Perceptual, Memory, and Reading Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oganian, Yulia; Ahissar, Merav

2012-01-01

The basic deficits underlying the severe and persistent reading difficulties in dyslexia are still highly debated. One of the major topics of debate is whether these deficits are language specific, or affect both verbal and non-verbal stimuli. Recently, Ahissar and colleagues proposed the "anchoring-deficit hypothesis" (Ahissar, Lubin,…

Translation: Elements of a Craft.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Heiderson, Mazin A.

An overview of the skills, techniques, tools, and compensation of language translators and interpreters is offered. It begins with a definition of translation and a brief history of translation in the western world. Basic principles of translation dating back to Roman writers are also outlined. A five-step process in producing a good translation…

Kindergarten Teachers' Views about Outdoor Activities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Erdem, Devrim

2018-01-01

Preschool years constitute a vital developmental period during which foundations of later development are formed. It is during this period that essential developments such as establishing attachment bonds, forming a basic sense of autonomy and sense of self (ego), language acquisition and attaining life and social skills. Studies in developmental…

Computers in the Teaching of English as a Foreign Language: Access to the Diversity of Textual Genres and Language Skills

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dos Santos, Roberto-Márcio; Sobrinho, Jerônimo Coura

In the area of language teaching both language skills and textual genres can be worked with simultaneously (thus responding to the Brazilian Curricular Parameters and to the trends in contemporary education, which emphasize contextualized teaching) by means of computers. Computers can make the teaching process dynamic and rich, since they enable the access to the foreign language through virtual environments, which creates a larger number of learning contexts, with all their specific vocabulary and linguistic features in real communication. This study focuses on possible applications of this kind of approach. The computer online is a resource of diverse textual genres and can be an important tool in the language classroom as well as an access to authentic material produced in contextualized practice close to real-life communication. On the other hand, all these materials must be appropriately used without ever worshipping the technology as if it were a miraculous solution. After all, the professional pedagogic skills of the teacher should never be forgotten or taken for granted. In this study, a series of interviews with teachers was carried out - both with Brazilian teachers of the public sector (basic education) and language institutes (private English courses) as well as teacher trainers (university professors), in order to verify if the teachers were prepared to work with informatics in teaching practices, and check the professionals’ views on the subject. The ideas of Maingueneau and Marcuschi about textual genres are a theoretical base in this work, besides the concept of cognitive economy. The text and its typology are focused here as the basic material for teaching English, through digital technologies and hypermedia. The study is also based on Sharma and Barrett’s notion of blended learning as a balanced combination of technological resources and traditional practices in the classroom. Thus, this is an attempt to investigate the relevance of information and communication technologies in the education and professional practice of English teachers in Brazil in the context of the 21st century.

Geoscience Training for NASA Astronaut Candidates

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Young, K. E.; Evans, C. A.; Bleacher, J. E.; Graff, T. G.; Zeigler, R.

2017-01-01

After being selected to the astronaut office, crewmembers go through an initial two year training flow, astronaut candidacy, where they learn the basic skills necessary for spaceflight. While the bulk of astronaut candidate training currently centers on the multiple subjects required for ISS operations (EVA skills, Russian language, ISS systems, etc.), training also includes geoscience training designed to train crewmembers in Earth observations, teach astronauts about other planetary systems, and provide field training designed to investigate field operations and boost team skills. This training goes back to Apollo training and has evolved to support ISS operations and future exploration missions.

The roles of teachers' science talk in revealing language demands within diverse elementary school classrooms: a study of teaching heat and temperature in Singapore

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Seah, Lay Hoon; Yore, Larry D.

2017-01-01

This study of three science teachers' lessons on heat and temperature seeks to characterise classroom talk that highlighted the ways language is used and to examine the nature of the language demands revealed in constructing, negotiating, arguing and communicating science ideas. The transcripts from the entire instructional units for these teachers' four culturally and linguistically diverse Grade 4 classes (10 years old) with English as the language of instruction constitute the data for this investigation. Analysis of these transcripts focused on teachers' talk that made explicit reference to the form or function of the language of science and led to the inductive development of the 'Attending to Language Demands in Science' analytical framework. This framework in turn revealed that the major foregrounding purposes of teachers' talk include labelling, explaining, differentiating, selecting and constructing. Further classification of the instances within these categories revealed the extensive and contextualised nature of the language demands. The results challenge the conventional assumption that basic literacy skills dominate over disciplinary literacy skills in primary school science. Potential uses of the analytical framework that could further expand our understanding of the forms, functions and demands of language used in elementary school science are also discussed.

Basic Skills Resource Center. A Review of the Literature on the Acquisition of English as a Second Language: The Potential for Research Applications

DTIC Science & Technology

1985-05-01

and the implementation and monitoring of an appliled research agenda related to the study of learning strategies. This report describes the initial...phase of one of the f ive studies undertaken through the BSRC research component. The study was designed to K provide information on applications of...concentrates largely on learning to speak and understand a new language. Overall, the empirical studies associated with learning strategies in text

Cross-Cultural Competency in the General Purpose Force: Training Strategies and Implications for Future Operations

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-04-09

No matter the contingency, the GPF will benefit from an expanded culture and language program. Incidents from OIF/OEF – like the Abu Ghraib Prison...was the 2003/2004 Abu Ghraib Prison Abuse Scandal during OIF. Skills on par with being diplomatic and persuasive (indicating a need to negotiate...propagation of C3-centric attitudes in service members.15 In the case of the Abu Ghraib Scandal, basic linguistic skills may or may not have helped

Data management by using R: big data clinical research series.

PubMed

Zhang, Zhongheng

2015-11-01

Electronic medical record (EMR) system has been widely used in clinical practice. Instead of traditional record system by hand writing and recording, the EMR makes big data clinical research feasible. The most important feature of big data research is its real-world setting. Furthermore, big data research can provide all aspects of information related to healthcare. However, big data research requires some skills on data management, which however, is always lacking in the curriculum of medical education. This greatly hinders doctors from testing their clinical hypothesis by using EMR. To make ends meet, a series of articles introducing data management techniques are put forward to guide clinicians to big data clinical research. The present educational article firstly introduces some basic knowledge on R language, followed by some data management skills on creating new variables, recoding variables and renaming variables. These are very basic skills and may be used in every project of big data research.

Deconstructing Building Blocks: Preschoolers' Spatial Assembly Performance Relates to Early Mathematics Skills

PubMed Central

Verdine, Brian N.; Golinkoff, Roberta Michnick; Hirsh-Pasek, Kathryn; Newcombe, Nora S.; Filipowicz, Andrew T.; Chang, Alicia

2013-01-01

This study focuses on three main goals: First, 3-year-olds' spatial assembly skills are probed using interlocking block constructions (N = 102). A detailed scoring scheme provides insight into early spatial processing and offers information beyond a basic accuracy score. Second, the relation of spatial assembly to early mathematics skills was evaluated. Spatial skill independently predicted a significant amount of the variability in concurrent mathematics performance. Finally, the relationship between spatial assembly skill and socioeconomic status, gender, and parent-reported spatial language was examined. While children's performance did not differ by gender, lower-SES children were already lagging behind higher-SES children in block assembly. Furthermore, lower-SES parents reported using significantly fewer spatial words with their children. PMID:24112041

Setting the Stage for Literacy. An Anthology of Adult Student Scripts. Volume 1, Number 1.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Setting the Stage for Literacy, 1994

1994-01-01

This document describes a collaborative learning project that investigated how theater and improvisational drama can help adult learners to develop basic literacy and English language abilities. Three teachers, working with an average of 10 students each for 6 months, conducted classes to increase students' skills in improvisation, creative…

TLC for Growing Minds. Microcomputer Projects. Advanced Projects for Adults.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Taitt, Henry A.

Designed to improve students' thinking, learning, and creative skills while they learn to program a microcomputer in BASIC programing language, this book for advanced learners at the high school/adult level provides a variety of microcomputer activities designed to extend the concepts learned in the accompanying instructional manuals (volumes 3…

Protect Minnesota's Agricultural Land: Components and Activities for Elementary Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Noy, Laura

An endeavor to alert elementary teachers and students to the need to protect and conserve one of Minnesota's basic resources, soil, these supplementary instructional activities are designed for easy integration into science, social studies, language arts, mathematics, and art subject and skill areas. Each activity includes a brief description of…

TLC for Growing Minds. Microcomputer Projects. Junior High Projects for Volumes 3 & 4.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Taitt, Henry A.

Designed to improve students' thinking, learning, and creative skills while they learn to program a microcomputer in BASIC programing language, this book for intermediate learners at the junior high level provides a variety of microcomputer activities designed to extend the concepts learned in the accompanying instructional manuals (Volumes 3 and…

Using CNN Newsroom in Advanced Listening Classes.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vann, Samuel

A university teacher of English as a Second Language describes the use of CNN Newsroom materials to teach listening skills. The basic news broadcast materials, including video and audio tapes, are provided by CNN, and have been developed by the teacher into instructional units. A classroom guide is available on the Internet. The instruction is…

Young Children's Drawings as Related to Basic Communication Skills. Research Monograph No. 31.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

de Kane, Frances Pizzini-Zepeda

The influence of graphic expression activities on kindergarten children's oral language expression was investigated. It was hypothesized that, regardless of the sex, race, or socioeconomic status (SES) of the subjects, children provided with an opportunity to express themselves graphically would talk more about a prior experience than children who…

The Language of Maps. Pathway in Geography Series, Title No. 1.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gersmehl, Philip J.

This book of instructional materials is intended to support the teaching and learning of themes, concepts and skills in geography at all levels of instruction. Divided into five parts, part 1 of this Teacher's manual, "Communicating Basic Spatial Ideas," offers the following: (1) "Introduction"; (2) "Location"; (3) "Distance"; (4) "Direction"; (5)…

TLC for Growing Minds. Microcomputer Projects. Advanced Projects for Junior High.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Taitt, Henry A.

Designed to improve students' thinking, learning, and creative skills while they learn to program a microcomputer in BASIC programing language, this book for advanced learners at the junior high level provides a variety of microcomputer activities designed to extend the concepts learned in the accompanying instructional manuals (volumes 5 and 6).…

Establishment of a New Magnet School: Effects on Student Achievement.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thacker, Jerry L.

1997-01-01

Describes a study of an Indiana magnet school's effects on student achievement. The school has a diverse student body and offers programs in foreign languages and cultures, economics, politics, history, ecology, and social systems. On the Comprehensive Test of Basic Skills, the group of 560 students performed significantly better than they had…

Promoting Literacy in Students with ASD: The Basics for the SLP

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lanter, Elizabeth; Watson, Linda R.

2008-01-01

Purpose: This article provides a tutorial for speech-language pathologists (SLPs) concerning approaches for improving the reading skills of students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). SLPs are encouraged to modify their role to include a literacy focus, not only because of inclusion and standardized reading tests, but also because SLPs offer…

Manual de Cocina y Nutricion (Handbook on Cooking and Nutrition).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ruiz, Mercedes M., Ed.; Pavon, Elena S., Ed.

This manual is part of a Mexican series of instructional materials designed for Spanish speaking adults who are in the process of becoming literate or have recently become literate in their native language. Its objective is to strengthen reading and writing skills while teaching basic nutrition and food preparation techniques. The manual provides…

Tom, Tom, the Piper's Son: Reading While Having Fun.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Holmes, Kerry

2003-01-01

This article describes how a first-grade teacher used poetry to provide students of diverse ability levels with reading and language activities that stimulated their interest and improved basic skills. Activities with poetry included reading the poems aloud individually and as a group, discussing and analyzing the poems' words and meanings, and…

English Language Arts: Literature Section K-12, Experimental Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

New York State Education Dept., Albany. Curriculum Development Center.

This curriculum guide is designed to provide a basic framework of skills and activities useful to elementary and secondary teachers in the teaching of literature. The first section discusses activities to facilitate elementary school students' appreciation and understanding of literature. Activities are discussed for grades K-3 and grades 4-6…

Selling Workplace ESL Instructional Programs. ERIC Digest.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Burt, Miriam

Although basic skills and English language instruction are often viewed as real needs at the workplace, few companies provide this for their workers. Those that do are motivated by one or more of these factors: product quality improvement, commitment of top management to training and education, or the sales effort of an educational provider. Those…

Course in Introduction to Cross-Cultural Communication. Adult Education in the Community.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Corvell, Wendy; Gavin, Dorothy; Knight, Melinda; Lorey, Barb

Materials are provided for Introduction to Cross-Cultural Communication, a 75-hour course developed by teachers experienced in working with students in adult literacy and basic education and English as a second language classes. The course is designed to provide adults with the skills and understanding to enable them to communicate…

TLC for Growing Minds. Microcomputer Projects. Adult Intermediate Microcomputer Projects.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Taitt, Henry A.

Designed to improve students' thinking, learning, and creative skills while they learn to program a microcomputer in BASIC programing language, this book for intermediate learners at the high school/adult level provides a variety of microcomputer activities designed to extend the concepts taught in the accompanying instructional manuals (Volumes 3…

Child Development and the Tool Subjects in Rural Areas. Yearbook 1941.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wofford, Kate V., Ed.

This book, published in 1941, is a collection of articles that emphasize the value of teaching the "tool" or basic skills: reading, elementary mathematics, language arts, "and their subdivisions." The book emphasizes the value of using the environment and experiences of rural children in teaching these subjects. Chapter 1…

Beginning English Day by Day.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roddy, Michael

This book aims to meet the needs of students who are beginning to learn English and to help them reach such goals as gaining an education, finding a job, continuing on to higher education, or functioning better in everyday life in the United States. The book stresses the basic language skills of vocabulary development, grammar, reading, writing,…

Parent Leadership Training Project, October 1, 1970-September 30, 1972. Independent Evaluator's Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arter, Rhetta M.

The Parent Leadership Training Project (PLTP) through Adult Basic Education was established as a two-year demonstration project designed to increase the reading skills of adults (16 and over) through a language-experience approach, using topics selected by the participants. The independent project evaluation covers the entire operational period…

The Role of Translation in Second Language Acquisition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cordero, Anne D.

A translation course on the intermediate college level of instruction is described. The author considers translation to be a skills course which should be among the options open to college students, and stresses the importance of the course. The course activities move from articles of a general scientific nature, basically concerned with…

Development and evaluation of an intermediate-level elective course on medical Spanish for pharmacy students.

PubMed

Mueller, Robert

The Spanish-speaking population in the United States is increasing rapidly, and there is a need for additional educational efforts, beyond teaching basic medical Spanish terminology, to increase the number of Spanish-speaking pharmacists able to provide culturally appropriate care to this patient population. This article describes the development and evaluation of an intermediate-level elective course where students integrated pharmacy practice skills with Spanish-language skills and cultural competency. Educational Activity and Setting: Medical Spanish for Pharmacists was developed as a two-credit elective course for pharmacy students in their third-professional-year who possessed a certain level of Spanish language competence. The course was designed so that students would combine patient care skills such as obtaining a medication list and providing patient education, and pharmacotherapy knowledge previously learned in the curriculum, along with Spanish-language skills, and apply them to simulated Spanish-speaking patients. Elements to promote cultural competency were integrated throughout the course through a variety of methods, including a service learning activity. Successful attainment of course goals and objectives were demonstrated through quizzes, assignments, examinations, and an objective structured clinical examination (OSCE). Based on these course assessments, students performed well during both offerings of the course. While the class cohort size was small in the two offerings of the course, the Medical Spanish for Pharmacists elective may still serve as an example for other pharmacy programs as an innovative approach in combining Spanish language, specific pharmacy skills, cultural competency, and service learning. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

[Detection and specific studies in procedural learning difficulties].

PubMed

Magallón, S; Narbona, J

2009-02-27

The main disabilities in non-verbal learning disorder (NLD) are: the acquisition and automating of motor and cognitive processes, visual spatial integration, motor coordination, executive functions, difficulty in comprehension of the context, and social skills. AIMS. To review the research to date on NLD, and to discuss whether the term 'procedural learning disorder' (PLD) would be more suitable to refer to NLD. A considerable amount of research suggests a neurological correlate of PLD with dysfunctions in the 'posterior' attention system, or the right hemisphere, or the cerebellum. Even if it is said to be difficult the delimitation between NLD and other disorders or syndromes like Asperger syndrome, certain characteristics contribute to differential diagnosis. Intervention strategies for the PLD must lead to the development of motor automatisms and problem solving strategies, including social skills. The basic dysfunction in NLD affects to implicit learning of routines, automating of motor skills and cognitive strategies that spare conscious resources in daily behaviours. These limitations are partly due to a dysfunction in non-declarative procedural memory. Various dimensions of language are also involved: context comprehension, processing of the spatial and emotional indicators of verbal language, language inferences, prosody, organization of the inner speech, use of language and non-verbal communication; this is why the diagnostic label 'PLD' would be more appropriate, avoiding the euphemistic adjective 'non-verbal'.

Achieving Developmental Synchrony in Young Children With Hearing Loss

PubMed Central

Mellon, Nancy K.; Ouellette, Meredith; Greer, Tracy; Gates-Ulanet, Patricia

2009-01-01

Children with hearing loss, with early and appropriate amplification and intervention, demonstrate gains in speech, language, and literacy skills. Despite these improvements many children continue to exhibit disturbances in cognitive, behavioral, and emotional control, self-regulation, and aspects of executive function. Given the complexity of developmental learning, educational settings should provide services that foster the growth of skills across multiple dimensions. Transdisciplinary intervention services that target the domains of language, communication, psychosocial functioning, motor, and cognitive development can promote academic and social success. Educational programs must provide children with access to the full range of basic skills necessary for academic and social achievement. In addition to an integrated curriculum that nurtures speech, language, and literacy development, innovations in the areas of auditory perception, social emotional learning, motor development, and vestibular function can enhance student outcomes. Through ongoing evaluation and modification, clearly articulated curricular approaches can serve as a model for early intervention and special education programs. The purpose of this article is to propose an intervention model that combines best practices from a variety of disciplines that affect developmental outcomes for young children with hearing loss, along with specific strategies and approaches that may help to promote optimal development across domains. Access to typically developing peers who model age-appropriate skills in language and behavior, small class sizes, a co-teaching model, and a social constructivist perspective of teaching and learning, are among the key elements of the model. PMID:20150187

Cochlear implants and spoken language processing abilities: review and assessment of the literature.

PubMed

Peterson, Nathaniel R; Pisoni, David B; Miyamoto, Richard T

2010-01-01

Cochlear implants (CIs) process sounds electronically and then transmit electric stimulation to the cochlea of individuals with sensorineural deafness, restoring some sensation of auditory perception. Many congenitally deaf CI recipients achieve a high degree of accuracy in speech perception and develop near-normal language skills. Post-lingually deafened implant recipients often regain the ability to understand and use spoken language with or without the aid of visual input (i.e. lip reading). However, there is wide variation in individual outcomes following cochlear implantation, and some CI recipients never develop useable speech and oral language skills. The causes of this enormous variation in outcomes are only partly understood at the present time. The variables most strongly associated with language outcomes are age at implantation and mode of communication in rehabilitation. Thus, some of the more important factors determining success of cochlear implantation are broadly related to neural plasticity that appears to be transiently present in deaf individuals. In this article we review the expected outcomes of cochlear implantation, potential predictors of those outcomes, the basic science regarding critical and sensitive periods, and several new research directions in the field of cochlear implantation.

Manual de Salud Familiar y Primeros Auxilios (Family Health and First Aid Manual).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Torres De Leon, Juana Maria

This textbook is part of a Mexican series of instructional materials designed for Spanish speaking adults who are in the process of becoming literate or have recently become literate in their native language. This textbook is designed to strengthen reading and writing skills while teaching basic principles and techniques to improve family health.…

Introduction to a Dubbing Activity for a College First-Year Japanese Language Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Koyama, Nobuko

2016-01-01

This case study presents a description and outline of a dubbing activity in which students utilized their basic linguistic skills holistically. Authentic materials such as television dramas and feature films are "a rich repository of various speech acts, lexicon and linguistic emotivity" (Koyama, 2009) and as such have the potential to…

ANNUAL EVALUATION REPORT OF CONNECTICUT P.A. 523 PROJECTS FOR FISCAL YEAR 1966.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

ROBY, WALLACE

THIS REPORT SUMMARIZES EVALUATION OF PROGRAMS FOR DISADVANTAGED CHILDREN AND YOUTH FUNDED UNDER CONNECTICUT PUBLIC ACT 523 IN SCHOOL DISTRICTS IN TOWNS NOT SERVED BY TITLE I OF THE 1965 ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION ACT. IN GENERAL, THE PROGRAMS ATTEMPTED TO IMPROVE THE STUDENTS' READING, LANGUAGE ARTS, AND BASIC SKILLS AND TO CHANGE THEIR…

Designing Open and Individualized Instruction at the Elementary Level: A Guide for the Individual Teacher.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Feldhusen, John; And Others

A description of open and individualized elementary school instruction is provided. The goals of such instruction are to: 1) teach basic skills in language arts, math, science, and social studies; 2) develop higher cognitive abilities, such as problem solving; and 3) develop the child's social competence and self-concept. Open, individualized…

Hearsay: A Text for Listening. English for Special Purposes Series: Nursing Aide.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Clark, Marybeth; Hubbard, Katherine E.

This is the student handbook for the listening comprehension portion of a course in English as a second language for adult nursing aide students. Eleven units cover basic nursing skills. Each unit consists of combinations of stories, lectures, and dictations read by the teacher often with visual aids. There are "practice listening" sessions and…

Teacher's Manual for Hearsay. English for Special Purposes Series: Nursing Aide.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Clark, Marybeth; Hubbard, Katherine E.

This is the teacher's manual for the listening comprehension portion of a course in English as a second language for adult nursing aide students. Eleven units cover basic nursing skills. Each unit consists of combinations of stories, lectures, and dictations read by the teacher, often with visual aids. There are "practice listening" sessions and…

The Platinum Historical Literacy Class. A 353 Project Final Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schuylkill Intermediate Unit #29, Mar Lin, PA.

A pilot adult basic education (ABE) language experience curriculum was designed and implemented with older adults in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania. The objectives were to improve writing skills, to increase self-esteem, and to create a historical record of the area as seen through the eyes of the average older citizen who had lived through many…

Project: Informal Learning Program (ILP). Final Report for November 1, 1977 to May 31, 1978.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Williams, David L., Jr.; And Others

This final report describes the development and field evaluation of teacher training materials (for inservice workshops) and elementary school language arts materials. The basic goal of the training materials, called Teacher Development Packages (TDPs), was to provide teachers with the information and skills needed to utilize games and informal…

Mathematics for the Technical Student: The Use of the Computer in the Systems Approach to Instruction.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Capps, Joan P.

An instructional method using flow-chart symbols to make mathematical abstractions more concrete was implemented for a year in a technical mathematics course. Students received instruction in computer applications and programming in the BASIC language in order to increase motivation and firm the mathematical skills and problem-solving approaches…

Autism Research: Music Aptitude's Effect on Developmental/Academic Gains for Students with Significant Cognitive/Language Delays

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sobol, Elise S.

2014-01-01

This research study was built upon findings in neuroscience of the brain's natural ability to physically change itself through cognitive modifiability by creating new pathways and neural connections. The purpose of the research was to investigate instructional music applications for improvement in basic math skills with students who are on the…

Test Review: The Comprehensive Adult Student Assessment System (CASAS) Life Skills Reading Tests

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gorman, David; Ernst, Megan L.

2004-01-01

Lifelong learning has become an important goal of education over the last decade. According to the United States Department of Education (2001), nearly 3 million students over age 17 (excluding those institutionalized) enrolled in adult basic education, adult secondary education, or English as a second language classes in the United States.…

The Daily Curriculum Guide, Year II, Weeks 1-10.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dissemination and Assessment Center for Bilingual Education, Austin, TX.

Spanning two years, the program set forth in the Daily Curriculum Guide for preschool Spanish-speaking children is essentially a language maintenance model in which Spanish is used as a means to develop basic concepts, skills and attitudes. This guide gives daily lesson plans for the first ten weeks of the second year. Each lesson, written in…

A Pilot Study Examining the Test-Retest and Internal Consistency Reliability of the ABLLS-R

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Partington, James W.; Bailey, Autumn; Partington, Scott W.

2018-01-01

The literature contains a variety of assessment tools for measuring the skills of individuals with autism or other developmental delays, but most lack adequate empirical evidence supporting their reliability and validity. The current pilot study sought to examine the reliability of scores obtained from the Assessment of Basic Language and Learning…

What Do Phonological Processing Errors Tell about Students' Skills in Reading, Writing, and Oral Language?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Choi, Dowon; Hatcher, Ryan C.; Dulong-Langley, Susan; Liu, Xiaochen; Bray, Melissa A.; Courville, Troy; O'Brien, Rebecca; DeBiase, Emily

2017-01-01

The kinds of errors that children and adolescents make on phonological processing tasks were studied with a large sample between ages 4 and 19 (N = 3,842) who were tested on the Kaufman Test of Educational Achievement-Third Edition (KTEA-3). Principal component analysis identified two phonological processing factors: Basic Phonological Awareness…

Executive Functions Contribute Uniquely to Reading Competence in Minority Youth.

PubMed

Jacobson, Lisa A; Koriakin, Taylor; Lipkin, Paul; Boada, Richard; Frijters, Jan C; Lovett, Maureen W; Hill, Dina; Willcutt, Erik; Gottwald, Stephanie; Wolf, Maryanne; Bosson-Heenan, Joan; Gruen, Jeffrey R; Mahone, E Mark

Competent reading requires various skills beyond those for basic word reading (i.e., core language skills, rapid naming, phonological processing). Contributing "higher-level" or domain-general processes include information processing speed and executive functions (working memory, strategic problem solving, attentional switching). Research in this area has relied on largely Caucasian samples, with limited representation of children from racial or ethnic minority groups. This study examined contributions of executive skills to reading competence in 761 children of minority backgrounds. Hierarchical linear regressions examined unique contributions of executive functions (EF) to word reading, fluency, and comprehension. EF contributed uniquely to reading performance, over and above reading-related language skills; working memory contributed uniquely to all components of reading; while attentional switching, but not problem solving, contributed to isolated and contextual word reading and reading fluency. Problem solving uniquely predicted comprehension, suggesting that this skill may be especially important for reading comprehension in minority youth. Attentional switching may play a unique role in development of reading fluency in minority youth, perhaps as a result of the increased demand for switching between spoken versus written dialects. Findings have implications for educational and clinical practice with regard to reading instruction, remedial reading intervention, and assessment of individuals with reading difficulty.

A predictive study of reading comprehension in third-grade Spanish students.

PubMed

López-Escribano, Carmen; Elosúa de Juan, María Rosa; Gómez-Veiga, Isabel; García-Madruga, Juan Antonio

2013-01-01

The study of the contribution of language and cognitive skills to reading comprehension is an important goal of current reading research. However, reading comprehension is not easily assessed by a single instrument, as different comprehension tests vary in the type of tasks used and in the cognitive demands required. This study examines the contribution of basic language and cognitive skills (decoding, word recognition, reading speed, verbal and nonverbal intelligence and working memory) to reading comprehension, assessed by two tests utilizing various tasks that require different skill sets in third-grade Spanish-speaking students. Linguistic and cognitive abilities predicted reading comprehension. A measure of reading speed (the reading time of pseudo-words) was the best predictor of reading comprehension when assessed by the PROLEC-R test. However, measures of word recognition (the orthographic choice task) and verbal working memory were the best predictors of reading comprehension when assessed by means of the DARC test. These results show, on the one hand, that reading speed and word recognition are better predictors of Spanish language comprehension than reading accuracy. On the other, the reading comprehension test applied here serves as a critical variable when analyzing and interpreting results regarding this topic.

The skills related to the early reading acquisition in Spain and Peru

PubMed Central

Ávila, Vicenta; Martínez, Tomás; Ysla, Liz

2018-01-01

This paper deals with the skills related to the early reading acquisition in two countries that share language. Traditionally on reading readiness research there is a great interest to find out what factors affect early reading ability, but differ from other academic skills that affect general school learnings. Furthermore, it is also known how the influence of pre-reading variables in two countries with the same language, affect the development of the reading. On the other hand, several studies have examined what skills are related to reading readiness (phonological awareness, alphabetic awareness, naming speed, linguistic skills, metalinguistic knowledge and basic cognitive processes), but there are no studies showing whether countries can also influence the development of these skills.Our main objective in this study was to establish whether there were differences in the degree of acquisition of these skills between Spanish (119 children) and Peruvian (128 children), five years old children assessed in their own countries and after controlling Economic, Social and Cultural Status (ESCS). The results show that there are significant differences in the degree of acquisition of these skills between these two samples. It's especially relevant, in these results, that the main predictor in a regression study was the country of origin, explaining a higher percentage of variance than other variables such as age differences, in months, or gender. These findings corroborate the results obtained in other studies with migrant population. PMID:29505592

Different Cognitive Profiles of Patients with Severe Aphasia.

PubMed

Marinelli, Chiara Valeria; Spaccavento, Simona; Craca, Angela; Marangolo, Paola; Angelelli, Paola

2017-01-01

Cognitive dysfunction frequently occurs in aphasic patients and primarily compromises linguistic skills. However, patients suffering from severe aphasia show heterogeneous performance in basic cognition. Our aim was to characterize the cognitive profiles of patients with severe aphasia and to determine whether they also differ as to residual linguistic abilities. We examined 189 patients with severe aphasia with standard language tests and with the CoBaGA (Cognitive Test Battery for Global Aphasia), a battery of nonverbal tests that assesses a wide range of cognitive domains such as attention, executive functions, intelligence, memory, visual-auditory recognition, and visual-spatial abilities. Twenty patients were also followed longitudinally in order to assess their improvement in cognitive skills after speech therapy. Three different subgroups of patients with different types and severity of cognitive impairment were evidenced. Subgroups differed as to residual linguistic skills, in particular comprehension and reading-writing abilities. Attention, reasoning, and executive functions improved after language rehabilitation. This study highlights the importance of an extensive evaluation of cognitive functions in patients with severe aphasia.

Individual differences in online spoken word recognition: Implications for SLI

PubMed Central

McMurray, Bob; Samelson, Vicki M.; Lee, Sung Hee; Tomblin, J. Bruce

2012-01-01

Thirty years of research has uncovered the broad principles that characterize spoken word processing across listeners. However, there have been few systematic investigations of individual differences. Such an investigation could help refine models of word recognition by indicating which processing parameters are likely to vary, and could also have important implications for work on language impairment. The present study begins to fill this gap by relating individual differences in overall language ability to variation in online word recognition processes. Using the visual world paradigm, we evaluated online spoken word recognition in adolescents who varied in both basic language abilities and non-verbal cognitive abilities. Eye movements to target, cohort and rhyme objects were monitored during spoken word recognition, as an index of lexical activation. Adolescents with poor language skills showed fewer looks to the target and more fixations to the cohort and rhyme competitors. These results were compared to a number of variants of the TRACE model (McClelland & Elman, 1986) that were constructed to test a range of theoretical approaches to language impairment: impairments at sensory and phonological levels; vocabulary size, and generalized slowing. None were strongly supported, and variation in lexical decay offered the best fit. Thus, basic word recognition processes like lexical decay may offer a new way to characterize processing differences in language impairment. PMID:19836014

Assessment of communication abilities in multilingual children: Language rights or human rights?

PubMed

Cruz-Ferreira, Madalena

2018-02-01

Communication involves a sender, a receiver and a shared code operating through shared rules. Breach of communication results from disruption to any of these basic components of a communicative chain, although assessment of communication abilities typically focuses on senders/receivers, on two assumptions: first, that their command of features and rules of the language in question (the code), such as sounds, words or word order, as described in linguists' theorisations, represents the full scope of linguistic competence; and second, that languages are stable, homogeneous entities, unaffected by their users' communicative needs. Bypassing the role of the code in successful communication assigns decisive rights to abstract languages rather than to real-life language users, routinely leading to suspected or diagnosed speech-language disorder in academic and clinical assessment of multilingual children's communicative skills. This commentary reflects on whether code-driven assessment practices comply with the spirit of Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

What Clinicians Need to Know about Bilingual Development

PubMed Central

Hoff, Erika; Core, Cynthia

2016-01-01

Basic research on bilingual development suggests several conclusions that can inform clinical practice with children from bilingual environments. They include the following: (1) Dual language input does not confuse children. (2) It is not necessary for the two languages to be kept separate in children’s experience to avoid confusion. (3) Learning two languages takes longer than learning one; on average, bilingual children lag behind monolingual children in single language comparisons. (4) A dominant language is not equivalent to an only language. (5) A measure of total vocabulary provides the best indicator of young bilingual children’s language learning capacity. (6) Bilingual children can have different strengths in each language. (7) The quantity and quality of bilingual children’s input in each language influence their rates of development in each language. (8) Immigrant parents should not be discouraged from speaking their native language to their children. (9) Bilingual environments vary enormously in the support they provide for each language, with the result that bilingual children vary enormously in their dual language skills. Empirical findings in support of each conclusion are presented. PMID:25922994

Denakenaga' for Children. Lesson Plans for Teaching Denakenaga' (Minto-Nenana Tanana) to Children in Elementary Grades.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thompson, Chad; Frank, Ellen

This curriculum for elementary school-level instruction in Denakenaga' is intended for development of oral native language skills. Included are plans for 60 25-minute lessons, arranged in 11 units: basic conversation; food and eating; hunting and animals; clothing and morning routine; weather; body parts; dogs and sleds; numbers; the village;…

Physical Education for Poorly Co-ordinated Children. The Promotion of Body Awareness and the Development of Basic Skills.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Watson, Bevilie R.

This book deals with the promotion of body awareness through use of educational gymnastics, with handicapped or non-handicapped but poorly coordinated children of all age levels. The method provides an analytical approach to movement, encourages children to listen to language, and assists them in creating their own activities. The activities and…

GrowLab. A Complete Guide to Gardening in the Classroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pranis, Eve; Hale, Jack

Having a garden in the classroom offers students a chance to explore plant life cycles, and provides a hands-on context for teaching a wide variety of basic subject area skills in science, mathematics, social studies, language arts, health, and fine arts. This teacher guide is designed to help teachers in grades K-8 establish and maintain a garden…

Walton High School, Bilingual Basic Skills through Interdisciplinary Career Orientation. O.E.E. Evaluation Report, 1982-1983.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Villegas, Ana Maria; Schulman, Robert

The program described here provided instruction in ESL and native language studies, as well as bilingual instruction in mathematics, social studies, science, and career education, to 240 Spanish-speaking students of limited English proficiency. The emphasis of this program--in its third and final year at Walton High School (Bronx, New York)--was…

Fort Hamilton High School Project SPEED: Special Education to Eliminate Dropouts. O.E.E. Evaluation Report, 1982-1983.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nicolaidis, Mary; Sica, Michael

The major goal of Project SPEED (at Fort Hamilton High School, Brooklyn, New York) was dropout prevention. In its first year of operation, 1982-83, the project provided English as a Second Language (ESL) instruction, bilingual instruction in basic skills required for graduation, and guidance services to approximately 300 limited English proficient…

Illinois Community College Board FY 2006 Adult Education and Family Literacy Report to the Governor and General Assembly

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Illinois Community College Board, 2007

2007-01-01

Economic and demographic changes are dramatically increasing the need for adult education, basic literacy, and English-as-a-Second Language (ESL) programs. Millions of Illinois residents lack the level of literacy skills needed to obtain good jobs, perform well on the job, and function well in an increasingly complex society. Addressing the scope…

Illinois Community College Board FY 2005 Adult Education and Family Literacy Report to the Governor and General Assembly

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Illinois Community College Board, 2006

2006-01-01

Economic and demographic changes are dramatically increasing the need for adult education, basic literacy, and English-as-a-Second Language (ESL) programs. Millions of Illinois residents lack the level of literacy skills needed to obtain good jobs, perform well on the job, and function well in an increasingly complex society. Addressing the scope…

Academic Instruction with the Visible V-8 Engine. The Coordinated Correlated Instructional Program.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Davis, W. J.

The book presents three 93-day lesson plans to motivate and teach handicapped secondary students basic academic skills in reading and language arts, English, and mathematics in conjunction with learning about automobile engines from Revell's Visible V8 Engine Kit. Each lesson plan is correlated with the Visible V8 Engine Kit and includes daily…

How To Be a Great Communicator: In Person, on Paper, and on the Podium.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Qubein, Nido R.

Designed to help any person develop the communication skills required for the global business environment, this book teaches not only the basics but also many of the finer points of communication. The book features: (1) the five keys to successful communication; (2) how to use words and body language effectively; (3) how to communicate in the…

English Proficiency Required for Puerto Rican Students to Succeed in University Studies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gonzalez-Iznaga, Rene

2013-01-01

Ninety percent of Puerto Rican public school students who graduate from high school lack the basic English skills needed to succeed in university studies. This lack may be the result of Spanish being used as the major language of instruction at all levels in the public school system; when students graduate, they are limited English proficient…

Finding Home in Nepantla: A Collective Portraiture of Negotiated Identities of Female Adult Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Anatska, Tamara

2017-01-01

The increasing numbers in adult immigrant population in the United States urge educators and scholars to explore and analyze the programs that are available for this population in their efforts to acquire English. Historically, the main objective of these programs was the acquisition of basic English skills deemed necessary to survive in the…

Music Activities Guide for the Preschool Trainable Child. Mental Retardation Training Program Technical Report Series 71-2.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hardesty, Kay W.

Intended for teachers of trainable mentally retarded (TMR) preschool children, the guide gives principles of teaching music to the TMR child and suggests appropriate materials. Listed are reasons for teaching music to the TMR child (such as language development), necessary music skills for the teacher (such as music reading), and basic teaching…

Increasing Creativity with the Self-Studies in Basic English Classes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yagcioglu, Ozlem

2016-01-01

There are many materials, books and resources for the self-studies which can be useful in the ESL and in the EFL classrooms. Choosing the ones which can make learners more creative and happier will help our students to develop their language skills in speaking, reading, writing and listening. This paper deals with the methods and approaches to…

Under Federal Pressure, District Addresses ELLs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zehr, Mary Ann

2009-01-01

Nurta Muktar, a 17-year-old refugee of Somali heritage, learned to read this school year at East High School. It likely would not have happened if East High did not provide classes in basic reading skills for English-language learners (ELLs). And the school likely would not have such classes, some Salt Lake City teachers say, if the U.S.…

A Pilot Study of a Kindergarten Summer School Reading Program in High-Poverty Urban Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Denton, Carolyn A.; Solari, Emily J.; Ciancio, Dennis J.; Hecht, Steven A.; Swank, Paul R.

2010-01-01

This pilot study examined an implementation of a kindergarten summer school reading program in 4 high-poverty urban schools. The program targeted both basic reading skills and oral language development. Students were randomly assigned to a treatment group (n = 25) or a typical practice comparison group (n = 28) within each school; however,…

Proposing a Model Assessment and Intervention Program for Learning Disabled Adolescents in a Typical School Population.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Currie, Winifred

Reported are results of screening over 1,000 eighth or ninth grade students for learning disabilities, and suggested is an intervention program utilizing available local resources. The Currie-Milonas Screening Test is described as consisting of eight subtests to identify problems in the basic skills of reading, writing, language, or mathematics.…

World of Work: Job Club for E.S.L.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roelofs, Alice R.; And Others

This curriculum guide for an employment preparation course for adults who speak English as a second language consists of 10 units on information and general living skills related to employment. The guide is split evenly between basic information needed to obtain a job and information needed once a job is obtained. A unit may consist of one or four…

[The language disorders in schizophrenia in neurolinguistic and psycholinguistic perspectives].

PubMed

Piovan, Cristiano

2012-01-01

The descriptive psychopathology has classically equated the language with the formal aspects of thought. Recent developments in experimental and clinical research have emphasized the study of the language as a specific communicative ability. Within the framework of cognitive neuropsychology, the development of innovative research models, such as those based on the mentalizing ability, has allowed to formulate new hypotheses on the pathogenetic aspects of schizophrenia. Furthermore, mentalizing ability appears to be a basic skill for the pragmatic dimension of language. The author, after a brief description of the methods of investigation of neurolinguistics and psycholinguistics, presents a review of recent studies obtained by consulting the PubMed and PsycINFO databases. Finally, he focuses on the relationship between research findings and issues related to clinical practice.

Language-Independent and Language-Specific Aspects of Early Literacy: An Evaluation of the Common Underlying Proficiency Model.

PubMed

Goodrich, J Marc; Lonigan, Christopher J

2017-08-01

According to the common underlying proficiency model (Cummins, 1981), as children acquire academic knowledge and skills in their first language, they also acquire language-independent information about those skills that can be applied when learning a second language. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relevance of the common underlying proficiency model for the early literacy skills of Spanish-speaking language-minority children using confirmatory factor analysis. Eight hundred fifty-eight Spanish-speaking language-minority preschoolers (mean age = 60.83 months, 50.2% female) participated in this study. Results indicated that bifactor models that consisted of language-independent as well as language-specific early literacy factors provided the best fits to the data for children's phonological awareness and print knowledge skills. Correlated factors models that only included skills specific to Spanish and English provided the best fits to the data for children's oral language skills. Children's language-independent early literacy skills were significantly related across constructs and to language-specific aspects of early literacy. Language-specific aspects of early literacy skills were significantly related within but not across languages. These findings suggest that language-minority preschoolers have a common underlying proficiency for code-related skills but not language-related skills that may allow them to transfer knowledge across languages.

Language learning impairments: integrating basic science, technology, and remediation.

PubMed

Tallal, P; Merzenich, M M; Miller, S; Jenkins, W

1998-11-01

One of the fundamental goals of the modern field of neuroscience is to understand how neuronal activity gives rise to higher cortical function. However, to bridge the gap between neurobiology and behavior, we must understand higher cortical functions at the behavioral level at least as well as we have come to understand neurobiological processes at the cellular and molecular levels. This is certainly the case in the study of speech processing, where critical studies of behavioral dysfunction have provided key insights into the basic neurobiological mechanisms relevant to speech perception and production. Much of this progress derives from a detailed analysis of the sensory, perceptual, cognitive, and motor abilities of children who fail to acquire speech, language, and reading skills normally within the context of otherwise normal development. Current research now shows that a dysfunction in normal phonological processing, which is critical to the development of oral and written language, may derive, at least in part, from difficulties in perceiving and producing basic sensory-motor information in rapid succession--within tens of ms (see Tallal et al. 1993a for a review). There is now substantial evidence supporting the hypothesis that basic temporal integration processes play a fundamental role in establishing neural representations for the units of speech (phonemes), which must be segmented from the (continuous) speech stream and combined to form words, in order for the normal development of oral and written language to proceed. Results from magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and positron emission tomography (PET) studies, as well as studies of behavioral performance in normal and language impaired children and adults, will be reviewed to support the view that the integration of rapidly changing successive acoustic events plays a primary role in phonological development and disorders. Finally, remediation studies based on this research, coupled with neuroplasticity research, will be presented.

Preservice teacher knowledge of basic language constructs in Canada, England, New Zealand, and the USA.

PubMed

Washburn, Erin K; Binks-Cantrell, Emily S; Joshi, R Malatesha; Martin-Chang, Sandra; Arrow, Alison

2016-04-01

The present study examined preservice teachers' (PSTs) knowledge of basic language constructs across four different English-speaking teacher preparations programs. A standardized survey was administered to participants from Canada (n = 80), England (n = 55), New Zealand (n = 26), and the USA (n = 118). All participants were enrolled in undergraduate university programs that led to teacher certification for general education in the primary grades. Our data reveal that preservice teachers from all four countries show patterns of relative strength in areas that were targeted to be crucial within their national initiatives. Nevertheless, in general, PSTs demonstrated a lack of knowledge of certain constructs needed to teach early reading skills. The results are discussed in relation to research reports and initiatives regarding beginning reading instruction from each of the four countries.

Executive Functions Contribute Uniquely to Reading Competence in Minority Youth

PubMed Central

Jacobson, Lisa A.; Koriakin, Taylor; Lipkin, Paul; Boada, Richard; Frijters, Jan; Lovett, Maureen; Hill, Dina; Willcutt, Erik; Gottwald, Stephanie; Wolf, Maryanne; Bosson-Heenan, Joan; Gruen, Jeffrey R.; Mahone, E. Mark

2018-01-01

Competent reading requires various skills beyond those for basic word reading (i.e., core language skills, rapid naming, phonological processing). Contributing “higher-level” or domain-general processes include information processing speed and executive functions (working memory, strategic problem solving, attentional switching). Research in this area has relied on largely Caucasian samples, with limited representation of children from racial or ethnic minority groups. This study examined contributions of executive skills to reading competence in 761 children of minority backgrounds. Hierarchical linear regressions examined unique contributions of executive functions (EF) to word reading, fluency, and comprehension. EF contributed uniquely to reading performance, over and above reading-related language skills; working memory contributed uniquely to all components of reading; while attentional switching, but not problem solving, contributed to isolated and contextual word reading and reading fluency. Problem solving uniquely predicted comprehension, suggesting that this skill may be especially important for reading comprehension in minority youth. Attentional switching may play a unique role in development of reading fluency in minority youth, perhaps as a result of the increased demand for switching between spoken versus written dialects. Findings have implications for educational and clinical practice with regard to reading instruction, remedial reading intervention, and assessment of individuals with reading difficulty. PMID:26755569

Long-Term Stability of Core Language Skill in Children with Contrasting Language Skills

PubMed Central

Bornstein, Marc H.; Hahn, Chun-Shin; Putnick, Diane L.

2016-01-01

This four-wave longitudinal study evaluated stability of core language skill in 421 European American and African American children, half of whom were identified as low (n = 201) and half of whom were average-to-high (n = 220) in later language skill. Structural equation modeling supported loadings of multivariate age-appropriate multisource measures of child language on single latent variables of core language skill at 15 and 25 months and 5 and 11 years. Significant stability coefficients were obtained between language latent variables for children of low and average-to-high language skill, even accounting for child positive social interaction and nonverbal intelligence, maternal education and language, and family home environment. Prospects for children with different language skills and intervention implications are discussed. PMID:26998572

Cognitive and Behavioral Characteristics of Children with Williams Syndrome: Implications for Intervention Approaches

PubMed Central

Mervis, Carolyn B.; John, Angela E.

2010-01-01

Portrayals of individuals with Williams syndrome (WS), a genetic disorder caused by a microdeletion of ~25 genes on chromosome 7q11.23, have reached the general public through a variety of media formats. These descriptions are often paradoxical in nature with individuals with WS repeatedly described as demonstrating near-normal language despite the presence of significant intellectual disability and as being extremely sociable and friendly in spite of their seemingly limited understanding of basic social norms. While this depiction of WS served to attract the interest of basic-science researchers, the results of subsequent studies have provided a more nuanced view. For example, rather than across-the-board “near-normal” language, children with WS demonstrate relative strengths in concrete vocabulary and verbal short-term memory, grammatical abilities at the level expected for general intellectual ability, and considerable weakness in relational/conceptual language and pragmatics (social use of language). To provide a more thorough characterization of the WS behavioral phenotype, we summarize recent findings related to intellectual ability, language development, memory development, executive function development, adaptive behavior skills, and behavior as it relates to learning by children with WS. Finally, we briefly discuss intervention approaches that may help children with WS to achieve their full potential. PMID:20425784

Growth in Oral Reading Fluency in a Semitransparent Orthography: Concurrent and Predictive Relations with Reading Proficiency in Norwegian, Grades 2-5

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arnesen, Anne; Braeken, Johan; Baker, Scott; Meek-Hansen, Wilhelm; Ogden, Terje; Melby-Lervåg, Monica

2017-01-01

This study investigated an adaptation of the Oral Reading Fluency (ORF) measure of the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills into a European context for the Norwegian language, which has a more transparent orthography than English. Second-order latent growth curve modeling was used to examine the longitudinal measurement invariance of…

Approaches to Machine Learning.

DTIC Science & Technology

1984-02-16

The field of machine learning strives to develop methods and techniques to automatic the acquisition of new information, new skills, and new ways of organizing existing information. In this article, we review the major approaches to machine learning in symbolic domains, covering the tasks of learning concepts from examples, learning search methods, conceptual clustering, and language acquisition. We illustrate each of the basic approaches with paradigmatic examples. (Author)

Math Remediation for the College Bound: How Teachers Can Close the Gap, from the Basics through Algebra

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Khatri, Daryao

2011-01-01

Algebra is the language that must be mastered for any course that uses math because it is the gateway for entry into any science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) discipline. This book fosters mastery of critical math and algebraic concepts and skills essential to all of the STEM disciplines and some of the social sciences. This…

Letters outside the Box: Multilingual Practices in High Schools and Academic Contexts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Amono, Maria; Banchetti, Niccolò

2018-01-01

In this report, we present certain teaching activities employed at the University of Calabria and at the I.T.C. C. Mortati high school. The former were conducted within the English for Basic Academic Skills courses, the latter in the Spanish as a Foreign Language classes for students in the last two years of high school. The grammar and linguistic…

Beyond Price Comparisons: Towards a More Critical Consumer Education for Adults through Informal Sites of Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sandlin, Jennifer A.

2004-01-01

Over a decade ago, Oduran (1993) argued that consumer education was an emerging frontier of adult education. While the Adult Performance Level (APL) project in the 1970s sparked some interest in consumer and life skills within adult basic education and English as a second language (Lankshear, 1993; Levine, 1986; Sandlin, 2000), and while this push…

Teaching children generalized imitation skills: a case report.

PubMed

Brown, Freddy Jackson; Peace, Natalie; Parsons, Rachel

2009-03-01

Generalized imitation plays an important role in the acquisition of new skills, in particular language and communication. In this case report a multiple exemplar training procedure, with an errorless learning phase, was used to teach Ben, a 13-year-old child with severe intellectual disabilities, to imitate behaviours modelled by an adult instructor. After exposure to seven multiple exemplars, Ben learned to imitate novel actions to criterion (i.e. generalized imitation). These skills were maintained at 90 percent at 6 week and 18 week follow-up. In line with earlier research, this article provides some further support for the finding that multiple exemplar training can facilitate the reliable emergence of generalized imitation skills. Topographically similar behaviours during the learning phase can be difficult to discriminate and hence can slow the learning process. Future research could explore how generalized imitation supports the development of basic communication and activity skills.

Using a cognitive architecture for general purpose service robot control

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Puigbo, Jordi-Ysard; Pumarola, Albert; Angulo, Cecilio; Tellez, Ricardo

2015-04-01

A humanoid service robot equipped with a set of simple action skills including navigating, grasping, recognising objects or people, among others, is considered in this paper. By using those skills the robot should complete a voice command expressed in natural language encoding a complex task (defined as the concatenation of a number of those basic skills). As a main feature, no traditional planner has been used to decide skills to be activated, as well as in which sequence. Instead, the SOAR cognitive architecture acts as the reasoner by selecting which action the robot should complete, addressing it towards the goal. Our proposal allows to include new goals for the robot just by adding new skills (without the need to encode new plans). The proposed architecture has been tested on a human-sized humanoid robot, REEM, acting as a general purpose service robot.

Linguistic diversity in a deaf prison population: implications for due process.

PubMed

Miller, Katrina R

2004-01-01

The entire deaf prison population in the state of Texas formed the basis for this research. The linguistic skills of prison inmates were assessed using the following measures: (1) Kannapell's categories of bilingualism, (2) adaptation of the diagnostic criteria for Primitive Personality Disorder, (3) reading scores on the Test of Adult Basic Education, and (4) an evaluation of sign language use and skills by a certified sign language interpreter who had worked with deaf inmates for the past 17 years. Deaf inmates with reading scores below the federal standard for literacy (grade level 2.9) were the group most likely to demonstrate linguistic incompetence to stand trial, meaning that they probably lacked the ability to understand the charges against them and/or were unable to participate in their own defenses. Based on the language abilities and reading scores of this population, up to 50% of deaf state prison inmates may not have received due process throughout their arrest and adjudication. Despite their adjudicative and/or linguistic incompetence, these individuals were convicted in many cases, possibly violating their constitutional rights and their rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Children's Expressive Language Skills and Their Impact on the Relation between First-and Second-Language Phonological Awareness Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goodrich, J. Marc; Lonigan, Christopher J.; Farver, JoAnn M.

2014-01-01

The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether the cross-language relations between the phonological awareness (PA) skills of preschool children learning more than one language are dependent upon their first-and second-language oral language skills. Four hundred sixty-six Spanish-speaking language minority children participated in this study.…

The development of executive function and language skills in the early school years.

PubMed

Gooch, Debbie; Thompson, Paul; Nash, Hannah M; Snowling, Margaret J; Hulme, Charles

2016-02-01

The developmental relationships between executive functions (EF) and early language skills are unclear. This study explores the longitudinal relationships between children's early EF and language skills in a sample of children with a wide range of language abilities including children at risk of dyslexia. In addition, we investigated whether these skills independently predict children's attention/behaviour skills. Data are presented from 243 children at four time points. Children were selected for being at risk of reading difficulties either because of a family history of dyslexia (FR; N = 90) or because of concerns regarding their language development (LI; N = 79) or as typically developing controls (TD; N = 74). The children completed tasks to assess their executive function and language skills at ages 4, 5 and 6 years. At 6 (T4) and 7 years (T5) parents and teachers rated the children's attention/behaviour skills. There was a strong concurrent relationship between language and EF at each assessment. Longitudinal analyses indicated a considerable degree of stability in children's language and EF skills: the influence of language on later EF skills (and vice versa) was weak and not significant in the current sample. Children's EF, but not language, skills at T3 predicted attention/behaviour ratings at T4/T5. There is a strong concurrent association between language and EF skills during the preschool and early school years, when children with language impairment show persistent EF deficits. Latent variables measuring language and EF show high longitudinal stability with little evidence of significant or strong reciprocal influences between these constructs. EF, but not language, skills predict later ratings of children's attention and behaviour. © 2015 The Authors. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health.

Differential relationships between language skills and working memory in Turkish-Dutch and native-Dutch first-graders from low-income families.

PubMed

Bosman, Anna M T; Janssen, Marije

2017-01-01

In the Netherlands, Turkish-Dutch children constitute a substantial group of children who learn to speak Dutch at the age of four after they learned to speak Turkish. These children are generally academically less successful. Academic success appears to be affected by both language proficiency and working memory skill. The goal of this study was to investigate the relationship between language skills and working memory in Turkish-Dutch and native-Dutch children from low-income families. The findings revealed reduced Dutch language and Dutch working-memory skills for Turkish-Dutch children compared to native-Dutch children. Working memory in native-Dutch children was unrelated to their language skills, whereas in Turkish-Dutch children strong correlations were found both between Turkish language skills and Turkish working-memory performance and between Dutch language skills and Dutch working-memory performance. Reduced language proficiencies and reduced working-memory skills appear to manifest itself in strong relationships between working memory and language skills in Turkish-Dutch children. The findings seem to indicate that limited verbal working-memory and language deficiencies in bilingual children may have reciprocal effects that strongly warrants adequate language education.

Using a Framework of 21st Century Competencies to Examine Changes between China's 2001 and 2011 Mathematics Curriculum Standards for Basic Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stephens, Max; Keqiang, Richard Xu

2014-01-01

In the Western developed world, the language of 21st century competencies, also referred to as 21st century skills or competences, is a powerful means of drawing attention to links between the secondary school curriculum, post-secondary education, and the social and economic imperatives of the developed economies. This paper will analyze different…

Writing Deficiency among EFL University Students: Causes and Solutions the Case of English LMD Students at Djilali Liabes University

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bouchefra, Miloud

2015-01-01

Writing is a basic skill in language and believed to be the hardest one to teach and learn (Walters, 1987) as the writer must transcribe his/her thoughts while maintaining control over a number of aspects varying from word choice and spelling to overall text structure and layout. In addition to its multifaceted nature, writing requires a huge…

Contribution of Oral Language Skills, Linguistic Skills, and Transcription Skills to Chinese Written Composition among Fourth-Grade Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yeung, Pui-sze; Ho, Connie Suk-han; Chan, David Wai-ock; Chung, Kevin Kien-hoa

2013-01-01

The present study aimed to investigate the contribution of oral language skills, linguistic skills, and transcription skills to Chinese written composition among Grade 4 students in Hong Kong. Measures assessing verbal working memory, oral language skills, linguistic skills (i.e., syntactic skills and discourse skills), transcription skills (i.e.,…

The role of language in Concern and Disregard for others in the first years of life

PubMed Central

Rhee, Soo Hyun; Boeldt, Debra L.; Friedman, Naomi P.; Corley, Robin P.; Hewitt, John K.; Young, Susan E.; Knafo, Ariel; Robinson, JoAnn; Waldman, Irwin D.; Van Hulle, Carol A.; Zahn-Waxler, Carolyn

2012-01-01

We examined the associations between language skills and Concern and Disregard for Others in young children assessed longitudinally at ages 14, 20, 24, and 36 months, testing the hypothesis that language skills have a specific role (distinct from that of general cognitive ability) in the development of Concern and Disregard for Others. We found that higher language skills predicted higher Concern for Others and lower Disregard for Others even after controlling for general cognitive ability, whereas the association between general cognitive ability and Concern/Disregard for Others was not significant after controlling for language skills. Language skills at 14 months predicted Concern for Others at 36 months, and results suggested that the relations between language skills and Concern and Disregard for Others begin early in development. Gender differences in Concern and Disregard for Others were at least partially explained by differences in language skills. These results support the specific role of language skills in Concern and Disregard for Others. PMID:22545842

The role of language in concern and disregard for others in the first years of life.

PubMed

Rhee, Soo Hyun; Boeldt, Debra L; Friedman, Naomi P; Corley, Robin P; Hewitt, John K; Young, Susan E; Knafo, Ariel; Robinson, Joann; Waldman, Irwin D; Van Hulle, Carol A; Zahn-Waxler, Carolyn

2013-02-01

We examined the associations between language skills and concern and disregard for others in young children assessed longitudinally at ages 14, 20, 24, and 36 months, testing the hypothesis that language skills have a specific role (distinct from that of general cognitive ability) in the development of concern and disregard for others. We found that higher language skills predicted higher concern for others and lower disregard for others even after controlling for general cognitive ability, whereas the association between general cognitive ability and concern/disregard for others was not significant after controlling for language skills. Language skills at 14 months predicted concern for others at 36 months, and results suggested that the relations between language skills and concern and disregard for others begin early in development. Gender differences in concern and disregard for others were at least partially explained by differences in language skills. These results support the specific role of language skills in concern and disregard for others. (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved.

An alternating treatment comparison of oral and total communications training programs with echolalic autistic children.

PubMed Central

Barrera, R D; Sulzer-Azaroff, B

1983-01-01

An alternating treatment comparison was conducted of the relative effectiveness of oral and total communication training models for teaching expressive labeling skills to three echolalic autistic children. The results of this comparison demonstrated that total communication proved to be the most successful approach with each of the subjects. In addition, the replication of these findings both within and across subjects suggest that total communication may be, in general, the most effective of these two training models for teaching basic vocal language skills to echolalic children. A number of hypotheses are presented that may provide a basis for the demonstrated effect. PMID:6654770

The influence of maltreatment history and out-of-home-care on children's language and social skills.

PubMed

Lum, Jarrad A G; Powell, Martine; Snow, Pamela C

2018-02-01

This study examined the extent to which maltreatment history and the characteristics of out-of-home care correlated with the language and social skills of maltreated children. Participants in this study were 82 maltreated children aged between 5 and 12 years of age. All children were residing with state-designated carers in out-of-home-care. The children were presented with standardised tests assessing language and social skills. Results showed that the sample performed significantly below the normative mean on both tests. Correlation analyses showed social skills, but not language skills were correlated with aspects of maltreatment history. The education level of the state-designated carer/s was correlated with the children's language skills; higher education level was associated with higher language skills. The study provides evidence that at the group level, language and social skills are poor in maltreated children. However, gains in language skills might be made via the out-of-home-care environment. Improvements in the social skills of maltreated children may require additional support. Crown Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Retrospectively Assessed Early Motor and Current Pragmatic Language Skills in Autistic and Neurotypical Children.

PubMed

Stevenson, Jennifer L; Lindley, Caitlin E; Murlo, Nicole

2017-08-01

Autistic individuals often struggle developmentally, even in areas that are not explicit diagnostic criteria, such as motor skills. This study explored the relation between early motor skills, assessed retrospectively, and current pragmatic language skills. Caregivers of neurotypical and autistic children, matched on gender and age, completed assessments of their child's early motor development and current language abilities. Early motor skills were correlated with later pragmatic language skills, and autistic children exhibited fewer motor skills than neurotypical children. In fact, motor skills were a better predictor of an autism spectrum diagnosis than were scores on a measure of current pragmatic language. These results highlight the important role of motor skills in autism spectrum disorders.

Why Are There Developmental Stages in Language Learning? A Developmental Robotics Model of Language Development.

PubMed

Morse, Anthony F; Cangelosi, Angelo

2017-02-01

Most theories of learning would predict a gradual acquisition and refinement of skills as learning progresses, and while some highlight exponential growth, this fails to explain why natural cognitive development typically progresses in stages. Models that do span multiple developmental stages typically have parameters to "switch" between stages. We argue that by taking an embodied view, the interaction between learning mechanisms, the resulting behavior of the agent, and the opportunities for learning that the environment provides can account for the stage-wise development of cognitive abilities. We summarize work relevant to this hypothesis and suggest two simple mechanisms that account for some developmental transitions: neural readiness focuses on changes in the neural substrate resulting from ongoing learning, and perceptual readiness focuses on the perceptual requirements for learning new tasks. Previous work has demonstrated these mechanisms in replications of a wide variety of infant language experiments, spanning multiple developmental stages. Here we piece this work together as a single model of ongoing learning with no parameter changes at all. The model, an instance of the Epigenetic Robotics Architecture (Morse et al 2010) embodied on the iCub humanoid robot, exhibits ongoing multi-stage development while learning pre-linguistic and then basic language skills. Copyright © 2016 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

Nurturing a lexical legacy: reading experience is critical for the development of word reading skill

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nation, Kate

2017-12-01

The scientific study of reading has taught us much about the beginnings of reading in childhood, with clear evidence that the gateway to reading opens when children are able to decode, or `sound out' written words. Similarly, there is a large evidence base charting the cognitive processes that characterise skilled word recognition in adults. Less understood is how children develop word reading expertise. Once basic reading skills are in place, what factors are critical for children to move from novice to expert? This paper outlines the role of reading experience in this transition. Encountering individual words in text provides opportunities for children to refine their knowledge about how spelling represents spoken language. Alongside this, however, reading experience provides much more than repeated exposure to individual words in isolation. According to the lexical legacy perspective, outlined in this paper, experiencing words in diverse and meaningful language environments is critical for the development of word reading skill. At its heart is the idea that reading provides exposure to words in many different contexts, episodes and experiences which, over time, sum to a rich and nuanced database about their lexical history within an individual's experience. These rich and diverse encounters bring about local variation at the word level: a lexical legacy that is measurable during word reading behaviour, even in skilled adults.

Looking beyond Language Skills--Integrating Digital Skills into Language Teaching

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Deacon, Amanda; Parkin, Lucy; Schneider, Carolin

2017-01-01

The traditional focus of the language elective has been to give students the skills to communicate in the foreign language which has also been their main selling point. However, language graduates need more specific and wide-ranging skills if they are to compete in the current and future job markets. It is now widely accepted that universities…

Reading, Writing & Rings: Science Literacy for K-4 Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McConnell, S.; Spilker, L.; Zimmerman-Brachman, R.

2007-12-01

Scientific discovery is the impetus for the K-4 Education program, "Reading, Writing & Rings." This program is unique because its focus is to engage elementary students in reading and writing to strengthen these basic academic skills through scientific content. As science has been increasingly overtaken by the language arts in elementary classrooms, the Cassini Education Program has taken advantage of a new cross-disciplinary approach to use language arts as a vehicle for increasing scientific content in the classroom. By utilizing the planet Saturn and the Cassini-Huygens mission as a model in both primary reading and writing students in these grade levels, young students can explore science material while at the same time learning these basic academic skills. Content includes reading, thinking, and hands-on activities. Developed in partnership with the Cassini-Huygens Education and Public Outreach Program, the Bay Area Writing Project/California Writing Project, Foundations in Reading Through Science & Technology (FIRST), and the Caltech Pre-College Science Initiative (CAPSI), and classroom educators, "Reading, Writing & Rings" blends the excitement of space exploration with reading and writing. All materials are teacher developed, aligned with national science and language education standards, and are available from the Cassini-Huygens website: http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/education/edu-k4.cfm Materials are divided into two grade level units. One unit is designed for students in grades 1 and 2 while the other unit focuses on students in grades 3 and 4. Each includes a series of lessons that take students on a path of exploration of Saturn using reading and writing prompts.

Video modeling for the development of personal hygiene skills in youth with autism spectrum disorder.

PubMed

Piccin, S; Crippa, A; Nobile, M; Hardan, A Y; Brambilla, P

2018-04-01

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder mainly characterised by deficits in social communication as well as by narrow patterns of behaviour and interests (American Psychiatric Association, 2013), often accompanied by language, intellectual and sensory impairments. The severity of these impairments may lead to deficits in the development of daily living activities such as simple meal preparation and feeding, community skills (e.g. buying groceries), personal care (e.g. dressing) and personal hygiene skills (bathing, toileting, hand washing, teeth brushing) needed for independence. Among others, the lack of independence in personal hygiene skills increases the burden of the caregiver and makes children with ASD more dependent (Flynn & Healy, 2012). Therefore, it is important to develop tools for helping individuals with ASD in increasing their ability to perform these basic life activities which will lead to savings that can be invested in other critical areas of needs.

Evaluation of two videotape instruction programmes on how to break bad news--for Cantonese-speaking medical students in Hong Kong.

PubMed

Betson, C L; Fielding, R; Wong, G; Chung, S F; Nestel, D F

1997-12-01

To evaluate a culture-specific videotape on how to 'break bad news' and another videotape produced by a western university, and to determine if the language of presentation influenced the students' perceived abilities to execute basic skills. Third year medical students at the Faculty of Medicine, the University of Hong Kong. Longitudinal study with experimental design. Two instructional tapes on breaking bad news; one using Chinese speaking role models and one using English. In both groups, self-efficacy summed scores increased from 26.8 (95% CI = 25.9-27.7) at the pre-test to 29.0 (95% CI = 28.4-29.6). The biggest changes occurred in perceived self-efficacy regarding specific skills. However, students using the Chinese tape rated skills as more useful than those using the English tape. The videotapes were useful in teaching communication skills. Culturally relevant audiovisual materials were more effective.

Early Postimplant Speech Perception and Language Skills Predict Long-Term Language and Neurocognitive Outcomes Following Pediatric Cochlear Implantation

PubMed Central

Kronenberger, William G.; Castellanos, Irina; Pisoni, David B.

2017-01-01

Purpose We sought to determine whether speech perception and language skills measured early after cochlear implantation in children who are deaf, and early postimplant growth in speech perception and language skills, predict long-term speech perception, language, and neurocognitive outcomes. Method Thirty-six long-term users of cochlear implants, implanted at an average age of 3.4 years, completed measures of speech perception, language, and executive functioning an average of 14.4 years postimplantation. Speech perception and language skills measured in the 1st and 2nd years postimplantation and open-set word recognition measured in the 3rd and 4th years postimplantation were obtained from a research database in order to assess predictive relations with long-term outcomes. Results Speech perception and language skills at 6 and 18 months postimplantation were correlated with long-term outcomes for language, verbal working memory, and parent-reported executive functioning. Open-set word recognition was correlated with early speech perception and language skills and long-term speech perception and language outcomes. Hierarchical regressions showed that early speech perception and language skills at 6 months postimplantation and growth in these skills from 6 to 18 months both accounted for substantial variance in long-term outcomes for language and verbal working memory that was not explained by conventional demographic and hearing factors. Conclusion Speech perception and language skills measured very early postimplantation, and early postimplant growth in speech perception and language, may be clinically relevant markers of long-term language and neurocognitive outcomes in users of cochlear implants. Supplemental materials https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.5216200 PMID:28724130

Language skills and phonological awareness in children with cochlear implants and normal hearing.

PubMed

Soleymani, Zahra; Mahmoodabadi, Najmeh; Nouri, Mina Mohammadi

2016-04-01

Early auditory experience plays a major role in language acquisition. Linguistic and metalinguistic abilities of children aged 5-5.5 years with cochlear implants (CIs) were compared to age-matched children with normal hearing (NH) to investigate the effect of hearing on development of these two skills. Eighteen children with NH and 18 children with CIs took part in the study. The Test of Language Development-Primary, third edition, was used to assess language and metalinguistic skills by assessment of phonological awareness (PA). Language skills and PA were then compared between groups. Hierarchical linear regression was conducted to determine whether the language skills explained the unique variance in PA. There were significant differences between children with NH and those with CIs for language skills and PA (p≤0.001). All language skills (semantics, syntax, listening, spoken language, organizing, and speaking) were uniquely predictive of PA outcome in the CI children. Linear combinations of listening and semantics and listening, semantics, and syntax correlated significantly with PA. The results show that children with CIs may have trouble with language skills and PA. Listening, semantics, and syntax, among other skills, are significant indicators of the variance in PA for children with CIs. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Correlation between Early Second Language Learning and Native Language Skill Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Caccavale, Terry

2007-01-01

It has long been the assumption of many in the field of second language teaching that learning a second language helps to promote and enhance native language skill development, and that this correlation is direct and positive. Language professionals have assumed that learning a second language directly supports the development of better skills,…

The Origin of Counting: A Study of the Early Meaning of "One", "Two" and "Three" among Basque- and Spanish-Speaking Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Villarroel, Jose Domingo; Minon, Margarita; Nuno, Teresa

2011-01-01

This study examines the beginning of the conceptual understanding of the first number-words and what role language can play in developing the notion of numbers. To that end, 2 1/2- and 3 1/2-year-old Basque and Spanish monolingual children's (N = 131) basic numeracy skills are analysed by means of two different experimental procedures: "Give-N"…

Elementary School Achievement Profiles, Portland Public Schools. A School-by-School Report of Basic Skills Test Results and School/Student/Staff Data. School Year 1985-86.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Portland Public Schools, OR. Dept. of Research, Evaluation, and Testing.

This report contains Portland Achievement Levels Tests results for the 63 elementary schools, 16 middle schools, and 1 special program school in the Portland (Oregon) School District for the 1985-86 school year. Results in reading, language usage, and mathematics are reported for children in grades 3 to 8. Each school data page presents the…

Participatory Approaches to Evaluating Outcomes and Designing Curriculum in Workplace Education Programs. The Report of the 1991 Evaluation of the Massachusetts Workplace Education Initiative.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sperazi, Laura; And Others

The Massachusetts Workplace Education Initiative (MWEI) was begun in 1985 as an inter-agency effort to bring adult basic education and English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) instruction directly into workplaces throughout the state. The impetus for the program was a concern for large numbers of workers who did not have the skills necessary to compete…

Reading impairments in schizophrenia relate to individual differences in phonological processing and oculomotor control: evidence from a gaze-contingent moving window paradigm.

PubMed

Whitford, Veronica; O'Driscoll, Gillian A; Pack, Christopher C; Joober, Ridha; Malla, Ashok; Titone, Debra

2013-02-01

Language and oculomotor disturbances are 2 of the best replicated findings in schizophrenia. However, few studies have examined skilled reading in schizophrenia (e.g., Arnott, Sali, Copland, 2011; Hayes & O'Grady, 2003; Revheim et al., 2006; E. O. Roberts et al., 2012), and none have examined the contribution of cognitive and motor processes that underlie reading performance. Thus, to evaluate the relationship of linguistic processes and oculomotor control to skilled reading in schizophrenia, 20 individuals with schizophrenia and 16 demographically matched controls were tested using a moving window paradigm (McConkie & Rayner, 1975). Linguistic skills supporting reading (phonological awareness) were assessed with the Comprehensive Test of Phonological Processing (R. K. Wagner, Torgesen, & Rashotte, 1999). Eye movements were assessed during reading tasks and during nonlinguistic tasks tapping basic oculomotor control (prosaccades, smooth pursuit) and executive functions (predictive saccades, antisaccades). Compared with controls, schizophrenia patients exhibited robust oculomotor markers of reading difficulty (e.g., reduced forward saccade amplitude) and were less affected by reductions in window size, indicative of reduced perceptual span. Reduced perceptual span in schizophrenia was associated with deficits in phonological processing and reduced saccade amplitudes. Executive functioning (antisaccade errors) was not related to perceptual span but was related to reading comprehension. These findings suggest that deficits in language, oculomotor control, and cognitive control contribute to skilled reading deficits in schizophrenia. Given that both language and oculomotor dysfunction precede illness onset, reading may provide a sensitive window onto cognitive dysfunction in schizophrenia vulnerability and be an important target for cognitive remediation. 2013 APA, all rights reserved

Improving health literacy through adult basic education in Australia.

PubMed

Morony, Suzanne; Lamph, Emma; Muscat, Danielle; Nutbeam, Don; Dhillon, Haryana M; Shepherd, Heather; Smith, Sian; Khan, Aisha; Osborne, Julie; Meshreky, Wedyan; Luxford, Karen; Hayen, Andrew; McCaffery, Kirsten J

2017-05-25

Adults with low literacy are less empowered to take care of their health, have poorer health outcomes and higher healthcare costs. We facilitated partnerships between adult literacy teachers and community health providers to deliver a health literacy training program in adult basic education classrooms. Following course completion we interviewed 19 adult education teachers (15 delivering the health literacy program; 4 delivering standard literacy classes) and four community health providers (CHPs) about their experiences, and analysed transcripts using Framework analysis. Written feedback from eight teachers on specific course content was added to the Framework. Health literacy teachers reported a noticeable improvement in their student's health behaviours, confidence, vocabulary to communicate about health, understanding of the health system and language, literacy and numeracy skills. CHP participation was perceived by teachers and CHPs as very successful, with teachers and CHPs reporting they complemented each other's skills. The logistics of coordinating CHPs within the constraints of the adult education setting was a significant obstacle to CHP participation. This study adds to existing evidence that health is an engaging topic for adult learners, and health literacy can be successfully implemented in an adult basic learning curriculum to empower learners to better manage their health. Health workers can deliver targeted health messages in this environment, and introduce local health services. Investment in adult literacy programs teaching health content has potential both to meet the goals of adult language and literacy programs and deliver health benefit in vulnerable populations. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Literacy Skills in Children With Cochlear Implants: The Importance of Early Oral Language and Joint Storybook Reading

PubMed Central

Ambrose, Sophie E.; Eisenberg, Laurie S.

2009-01-01

The goal of this study was to longitudinally examine relationships between early factors (child and mother) that may influence children's phonological awareness and reading skills 3 years later in a group of young children with cochlear implants (N = 16). Mothers and children were videotaped during two storybook interactions, and children's oral language skills were assessed using the “Reynell Developmental Language Scales, third edition.” Three years later, phonological awareness, reading skills, and language skills were assessed using the “Phonological Awareness Test,” the “Woodcock–Johnson-III Diagnostic Reading Battery,” and the “Oral Written Language Scales.” Variables included in the data analyses were child (age, age at implant, and language skills) and mother factors (facilitative language techniques) and children's phonological awareness and reading standard scores. Results indicate that children's early expressive oral language skills and mothers’ use of a higher level facilitative language technique (open-ended question) during storybook reading, although related, each contributed uniquely to children's literacy skills. Individual analyses revealed that the children with expressive standard scores below 70 at Time 1 also performed below average (<85) on phonological awareness and total reading tasks 3 years later. Guidelines for professionals are provided to support literacy skills in young children with cochlear implants. PMID:18417463

Expanding the developmental models of writing: A direct and indirect effects model of developmental writing (DIEW)

PubMed Central

Kim, Young-Suk Grace; Schatschneider, Christopher

2016-01-01

We investigated direct and indirect effects of component skills on writing (DIEW) using data from 193 children in Grade 1. In this model, working memory was hypothesized to be a foundational cognitive ability for language and cognitive skills as well as transcription skills, which, in turn, contribute to writing. Foundational oral language skills (vocabulary and grammatical knowledge) and higher-order cognitive skills (inference and theory of mind) were hypothesized to be component skills of text generation (i.e., discourse-level oral language). Results from structural equation modeling largely supported a complete mediation model among four variations of the DIEW model. Discourse-level oral language, spelling, and handwriting fluency completely mediated the relations of higher-order cognitive skills, foundational oral language, and working memory to writing. Moreover, language and cognitive skills had both direct and indirect relations to discourse-level oral language. Total effects, including direct and indirect effects, were substantial for discourse-level oral language (.46), working memory (.43), and spelling (.37), followed by vocabulary (.19), handwriting (.17), theory of mind (.12), inference (.10), and grammatical knowledge (.10). The model explained approximately 67% of variance in writing quality. These results indicate that multiple language and cognitive skills make direct and indirect contributions, and it is important to consider both direct and indirect pathways of influences when considering skills that are important to writing. PMID:28260812

Do Early Literacy Skills in Children's First Language Promote Development of Skills in Their Second Language? An Experimental Evaluation of Transfer

PubMed Central

Goodrich, J. Marc; Lonigan, Christopher J.; Farver, JoAnn M.

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the cross-language transfer of the emergent literacy skills of preschoolers who were Spanish-speaking language minority children in the context of an experimental intervention study. Ninety-four children were randomly assigned to either a control condition (High/Scope preschool curriculum) or to receive small-group pull-out instruction (Literacy Express Preschool Curriculum) in English or initially in Spanish and transitioning to English. We examined whether children's initial skills in one language moderated the impact of the intervention on those same skills in the other language at posttest. Results demonstrated that, for children in the English-only intervention condition, initial Spanish receptive vocabulary and elision skills moderated the impact of the intervention on English receptive vocabulary and elision skills at posttest, respectively. For children in the transitional intervention condition, initial English definitional vocabulary and elision skills moderated the impact of the intervention on Spanish definitional vocabulary and elision skills at posttest, respectively. Results for the vocabulary interactions, as well as the elision interaction for the English-only intervention group comparisons, supported the notion of transfer of specific linguistic information across languages. Results for elision interaction for the transitional intervention group comparisons supported language-independent transfer. Implications for the theory of cross-language transfer of emergent literacy skills are discussed. PMID:24019555

The home literacy environment and Latino head start children's emergent literacy skills.

PubMed

Farver, Jo Ann M; Xu, Yiyuan; Lonigan, Christopher J; Eppe, Stefanie

2013-04-01

This study examined children's early literacy skills in both English and Spanish at entry to preschool to investigate the pattern of association among these skills and their families' home language and literacy practices. The participants were 392 primarily Latino immigrant (85%) families and their children. Mothers completed questionnaires about their families and their home literacy environment (HLE), and children's emergent literacy skills were measured in English and Spanish at the outset of the preschool year. Project assistants interviewed mothers in their homes and tallied the presence of literacy-related materials. Results of structural equation modeling showed that the 3 preliteracy skills were significantly associated within and across English and Spanish, suggesting the possible transfer of these early preliteracy skills across languages. For the English language HLE, parents' literacy-related behaviors, sibling-child reading, and families' literacy resources were all associated with children's English oral language skills, and their English print knowledge was associated with their home resources. For the Spanish language HLE, only parents' literacy-related behaviors were related to children's Spanish oral language and print knowledge skills. There were no significant cross-linguistic relations between any aspect of the English HLE and children's Spanish preliteracy skills, whereas parents' literacy-related behaviors in Spanish were negatively associated with children's English oral language and phonological awareness skills. Given the importance of oral language and vocabulary in promoting children's literacy, these results indicate that parents can support this skill in both languages, but their relative impact seems to be within rather across language. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved).

Associations between toddler-age communication and kindergarten-age self-regulatory skills.

PubMed

Aro, Tuija; Laakso, Marja-Leena; Määttä, Sira; Tolvanen, Asko; Poikkeus, Anna-Maija

2014-08-01

In this study, the authors aimed at gaining understanding on the associations of different types of early language and communication profiles with later self-regulation skills by using longitudinal data from toddler age to kindergarten age. Children with early language profiles representing expressive delay, broad delay (i.e., expressive, social, and/or symbolic), and typical language development were compared in domains of kindergarten-age executive and regulative skills (attentional/executive functions, regulation of emotions and behavioral activity, and social skills) assessed with parental questionnaires. Children with delay in toddler-age language development demonstrated poorer kindergarten-age self-regulation skills than children with typical early language development. Broad early language delays were associated with compromised social skills and attentional/executive functions, and early expressive delays were associated with a generally lower level of kindergarten-age executive and regulative skills. Regression analyses showed that both earlier and concurrent language had an effect especially on the attentional/executive functions. The findings suggest that different aspects of toddler-age language have differential associations with later self-regulation. Possible mechanisms linking early language development to later self-regulative development are discussed.

The Interrelationship among First Language Writing Skills, Second Language Writing Skills, and Second Language Proficiency of EFL University Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ito, Fumihiko

2004-01-01

Background: Over the past twenty years, many investigations have been carried out to identify factors influencing second language (L2) learning. Specifically, investigations of the relationship among first language (L1) reading skills, L2 reading skills, and L2 proficiency have been variously conducted, to contribute to the overall growth of L1-L2…

Literacy promotion at the Montreal Children’s Hospital

PubMed Central

Erdos, Caroline; Ferdinand, Jae-Marie

2017-01-01

Abstract The foundations for language and literacy are set in utero when babies hear the tone of their mother’s voice (1). There is strong evidence of a positive relationship between early literacy experiences and language and academic outcomes (2). Unfortunately, many parents do not know about the benefits of reading to and with young children, and many children enter school without the basic skills needed to learn to read and succeed. Physicians who have contact with young families are in a distinctive position to promote reading, though despite its evidence base, it has not yet become a universal intervention. A short description of the projects at the Montreal Children’s Hospital is provided. PMID:29479189

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ayer, Vidya M.; Miguez, Sheila; Toby, Brian H.

Scientists have been central to the historical development of the computer industry, but the importance of software only continues to grow for all areas of scientific research and in particular for powder diffraction. Knowing how to program a computer is a basic and useful skill for scientists. The article introduces the three types of programming languages and why scripting languages are now preferred for scientists. Of them, the authors assert Python is the most useful and easiest to learn. Python is introduced. Also presented is an overview to a few of the many add-on packages available to extend the capabilitiesmore » of Python, for example, for numerical computations, scientific graphics and graphical user interface programming.« less

Long-Term Stability of Core Language Skill in Children with Contrasting Language Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bornstein, Marc H.; Hahn, Chun-Shin; Putnick, Diane L.

2016-01-01

This 4-wave longitudinal study evaluated stability of core language skill in 421 European American and African American children, half of whom were identified as low (n = 201) and half of whom were average-to-high (n = 220) in later language skill. Structural equation modeling supported loadings of multivariate age-appropriate multisource measures…

The Foundations of Literacy Development in Children at Familial Risk of Dyslexia.

PubMed

Hulme, Charles; Nash, Hannah M; Gooch, Debbie; Lervåg, Arne; Snowling, Margaret J

2015-12-01

The development of reading skills is underpinned by oral language abilities: Phonological skills appear to have a causal influence on the development of early word-level literacy skills, and reading-comprehension ability depends, in addition to word-level literacy skills, on broader (semantic and syntactic) language skills. Here, we report a longitudinal study of children at familial risk of dyslexia, children with preschool language difficulties, and typically developing control children. Preschool measures of oral language predicted phoneme awareness and grapheme-phoneme knowledge just before school entry, which in turn predicted word-level literacy skills shortly after school entry. Reading comprehension at 8½ years was predicted by word-level literacy skills at 5½ years and by language skills at 3½ years. These patterns of predictive relationships were similar in both typically developing children and those at risk of literacy difficulties. Our findings underline the importance of oral language skills for the development of both word-level literacy and reading comprehension. © The Author(s) 2015.

Social skills interventions for the autism spectrum: essential ingredients and a model curriculum.

PubMed

Krasny, Lori; Williams, Brenda J; Provencal, Sherri; Ozonoff, Sally

2003-01-01

This article outlines the ingredients the authors feel are critical to making social skills interventions successful for children with autism spectrum disorders. The authors described basic principles for teaching social skills that capitalize on the strengths of such children, while specifically addressing their deficits. The authors applied these widely used principles to group social skills intervention. In particular, social skills groups for children with ASD need to break down complex social behaviors into concrete steps and rules that can be memorized and practiced in a variety of settings. Abstract concepts must be made concrete through a variety of visual, tangible, "hands-on" activities that make socialization fun. Visual structure and predictable routines are essential. Also critical to the success of social skills intervention are instruction and activities that provide necessary support for the language abilities of the participants. A variety of learning opportunities must be used to teach the goals and skills most relevant to children with ASD. These skills must be integrated as intervention progresses. Furthermore, interactions that require the children to focus on peers create a positive social group culture. Within this culture and environment, self-awareness and positive self-esteem can be fostered. A behavior plan that specifies individual goals for group members and a specific system for delivering rewards should be included. Other important ingredients include generalization, which is encouraged through community outings, skill practice in more naturalistic settings, and collaboration with parents and teachers to work on skills outside the group intervention. Weekly therapy does little to change basic deficits of ASD unless there is daily practice and reinforcement of the skills being learned in more natural situations. The authors hope that outlining these principles and specific techniques will encourage more clinicians to offer social skills groups and thus increase their availability around the nation and world. Continued research and treatment for social skills is necessary to provide much needed empiric evidence to determine effectiveness of such interventions.

Helping mothers survive bleeding after birth: an evaluation of simulation-based training in a low-resource setting.

PubMed

Nelissen, Ellen; Ersdal, Hege; Ostergaard, Doris; Mduma, Estomih; Broerse, Jacqueline; Evjen-Olsen, Bjørg; van Roosmalen, Jos; Stekelenburg, Jelle

2014-03-01

To evaluate "Helping Mothers Survive Bleeding After Birth" (HMS BAB) simulation-based training in a low-resource setting. Educational intervention study. Rural referral hospital in Northern Tanzania. Clinicians, nurse-midwives, medical attendants, and ambulance drivers involved in maternity care. In March 2012, health care workers were trained in HMS BAB, a half-day simulation-based training, using a train-the-trainer model. The training focused on basic delivery care, active management of third stage of labor, and treatment of postpartum hemorrhage, including bimanual uterine compression. Evaluation questionnaires provided information on course perception. Knowledge, skills, and confidence of facilitators and learners were tested before and after training. Four master trainers trained eight local facilitators, who subsequently trained 89 learners. After training, all facilitators passed the knowledge test, but pass rates for the skills test were low (29% pass rate for basic delivery and 0% pass rate for management of postpartum hemorrhage). Evaluation revealed that HMS BAB training was considered acceptable and feasible, although more time should be allocated for training, and teaching materials should be translated into the local language. Knowledge, skills, and confidence of learners increased significantly immediately after training. However, overall pass rates for skills tests of learners after training were low (3% pass rate for basic delivery and management of postpartum hemorrhage). The HMS BAB simulation-based training has potential to contribute to education of health care providers. We recommend a full day of training and validation of the facilitators to improve the training. © 2013 Nordic Federation of Societies of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

Early language and executive skills predict variations in number and arithmetic skills in children at family-risk of dyslexia and typically developing controls

PubMed Central

Moll, Kristina; Snowling, Margaret J.; Göbel, Silke M.; Hulme, Charles

2015-01-01

Two important foundations for learning are language and executive skills. Data from a longitudinal study tracking the development of 93 children at family-risk of dyslexia and 76 controls was used to investigate the influence of these skills on the development of arithmetic. A two-group longitudinal path model assessed the relationships between language and executive skills at 3–4 years, verbal number skills (counting and number knowledge) and phonological processing skills at 4–5 years, and written arithmetic in primary school. The same cognitive processes accounted for variability in arithmetic skills in both groups. Early language and executive skills predicted variations in preschool verbal number skills, which in turn, predicted arithmetic skills in school. In contrast, phonological awareness was not a predictor of later arithmetic skills. These results suggest that verbal and executive processes provide the foundation for verbal number skills, which in turn influence the development of formal arithmetic skills. Problems in early language development may explain the comorbidity between reading and mathematics disorder. PMID:26412946

Identifying differences in early literacy skills across subgroups of language-minority children: A latent profile analysis.

PubMed

Lonigan, Christopher J; Goodrich, J Marc; Farver, JoAnn M

2018-04-01

Despite acknowledgment that language-minority children come from a wide variety of home language backgrounds and have a wide range of proficiency in their first (L1) and second (L2) languages, it is unknown whether differences across language-minority children in relative and absolute levels of proficiency in L1 and L2 predict subsequent development of literacy-related skills. The purpose of this study was to identify subgroups of language-minority children and evaluate whether differences in level and rate of growth of early literacy skills differed across subgroups. Five-hundred and twenty-six children completed measures of Spanish and English language and early literacy skills at the beginning, middle, and end of the preschool year. Latent growth models indicated that children's early literacy skills were increasing over the course of the preschool year. Latent profile analysis indicated that language-minority children could be classified into nine distinct groups, each with unique patterns of absolute and relative levels of proficiency in L1 and L2. Results of three-step mixture models indicated that profiles were closely associated with level of early literacy skills at the beginning of the preschool year. Initial level of early literacy skills was positively associated with growth in code-related skills (i.e., print knowledge, phonological awareness) and inversely associated with growth in language skills. These findings suggest that language-minority children are a diverse group with regard to their L1 and L2 proficiencies and that growth in early literacy skills is most associated with level of proficiency in the same language. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Auditory temporal processing skills in musicians with dyslexia.

PubMed

Bishop-Liebler, Paula; Welch, Graham; Huss, Martina; Thomson, Jennifer M; Goswami, Usha

2014-08-01

The core cognitive difficulty in developmental dyslexia involves phonological processing, but adults and children with dyslexia also have sensory impairments. Impairments in basic auditory processing show particular links with phonological impairments, and recent studies with dyslexic children across languages reveal a relationship between auditory temporal processing and sensitivity to rhythmic timing and speech rhythm. As rhythm is explicit in music, musical training might have a beneficial effect on the auditory perception of acoustic cues to rhythm in dyslexia. Here we took advantage of the presence of musicians with and without dyslexia in musical conservatoires, comparing their auditory temporal processing abilities with those of dyslexic non-musicians matched for cognitive ability. Musicians with dyslexia showed equivalent auditory sensitivity to musicians without dyslexia and also showed equivalent rhythm perception. The data support the view that extensive rhythmic experience initiated during childhood (here in the form of music training) can affect basic auditory processing skills which are found to be deficient in individuals with dyslexia. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Word reading skill predicts anticipation of upcoming spoken language input: a study of children developing proficiency in reading.

PubMed

Mani, Nivedita; Huettig, Falk

2014-10-01

Despite the efficiency with which language users typically process spoken language, a growing body of research finds substantial individual differences in both the speed and accuracy of spoken language processing potentially attributable to participants' literacy skills. Against this background, the current study took a look at the role of word reading skill in listeners' anticipation of upcoming spoken language input in children at the cusp of learning to read; if reading skills affect predictive language processing, then children at this stage of literacy acquisition should be most susceptible to the effects of reading skills on spoken language processing. We tested 8-year-olds on their prediction of upcoming spoken language input in an eye-tracking task. Although children, like in previous studies to date, were successfully able to anticipate upcoming spoken language input, there was a strong positive correlation between children's word reading skills (but not their pseudo-word reading and meta-phonological awareness or their spoken word recognition skills) and their prediction skills. We suggest that these findings are most compatible with the notion that the process of learning orthographic representations during reading acquisition sharpens pre-existing lexical representations, which in turn also supports anticipation of upcoming spoken words. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The cross-linguistic transfer of early literacy skills: the role of initial L1 and L2 skills and language of instruction.

PubMed

Cárdenas-Hagan, Elsa; Carlson, Coleen D; Pollard-Durodola, Sharolyn D

2007-07-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of initial first and second language proficiencies as well as the language of instruction that a student receives on the relationship between native language ability of students who are English language learners (ELLs) and their development of early literacy skills and the second language. This study investigated the development of early language and literacy skills among Spanish-speaking students in 2 large urban school districts, 1 middle-size urban district, and 1 border district. A total of 1,016 ELLs in kindergarten participated in the study. Students were administered a comprehensive battery of tests in English and Spanish, and classroom observations provided information regarding the Spanish or English language use of the teacher. Findings from this study suggest that Spanish-speaking students with high Spanish letter name and sound knowledge tend to show high levels of English letter name and sound knowledge. ELLs with low Spanish and English letter name and sound knowledge tend to show high levels of English letter name and sound knowledge when they are instructed in English. Letter name and sound identification skills are fairly highly positively correlated across languages in the beginning of the kindergarten year. In addition, phonological awareness skills appear to be the area with the most significant and direct transfer of knowledge, and language skills do not appear to be a factor in the development of phonological awareness. Finally, the relationship between oral language skills across languages was low, suggesting little relationship between oral language skills across languages at the beginning of the kindergarten year. Results from this study suggest that pedagogical decisions for ELLs should not only consider effective instructional literacy strategies but also acknowledge that the language of instruction for Spanish-speaking ELLs may produce varying results for different students.

Epilepsy, language, and social skills.

PubMed

Caplan, Rochelle

2017-10-04

Language and social skills are essential for intrapersonal and interpersonal functioning and quality of life. Since epilepsy impacts these important domains of individuals' functioning, understanding the psychosocial and biological factors involved in the relationship among epilepsy, language, and social skills has important theoretical and clinical implications. This review first describes the psychosocial and biological factors involved in the association between language and social behavior in children and in adults and their relevance for epilepsy. It reviews the findings of studies of social skills and the few studies conducted on the inter-relationship of language and social skills in pediatric and adult epilepsy. The paper concludes with suggested future research and clinical directions that will enhance early identification and treatment of epilepsy patients at risk for impaired language and social skills. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Longitudinal Relations Among Language Skills, Anger Expression, and Regulatory Strategies in Early Childhood

PubMed Central

Roben, Caroline K.P.; Cole, Pamela M.; Armstrong, Laura Marie

2012-01-01

Researchers have suggested that as children’s language skill develops in early childhood, it comes to help children regulate their emotions (Cole, Armstrong, & Pemberton, 2010; Kopp, 1989), but the pathways by which this occurs have not been studied empirically. In a longitudinal study of 120 children from 18 to 48 months of age, associations among child language skill, observed anger expression, and regulatory strategies during a delay task were examined. Toddlers with better language skill, and whose language skill increased more over time, appeared less angry at 48 months and their anger declined more over time. Two regulatory strategies, support-seeking and distraction, explained a portion of the variance in the association between language skill and anger expression by 36 months. PMID:23278601

The Definition of Basic Skills in Manufacturing Industries.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Charles M.

1996-01-01

Survey responses from 186 of 250 trainers/human resource managers and a Delphi panel of 21 rated companies' basic skills training provisions and the importance of basic skills. Although most stated their companies provide basic skills training, results show most are reluctant to hire, train, or retain workers with low basic skills. (SK)

Basic practical skills teaching and learning in undergraduate medical education - a review on methodological evidence.

PubMed

Vogel, Daniela; Harendza, Sigrid

2016-01-01

Practical skills are an essential part of physicians' daily routine. Nevertheless, medical graduates' performance of basic skills is often below the expected level. This review aims to identify and summarize teaching approaches of basic practical skills in undergraduate medical education which provide evidence with respect to effective students' learning of these skills. Basic practical skills were defined as basic physical examination skills, routine skills which get better with practice, and skills which are also performed by nurses. We searched PubMed with different terms describing these basic practical skills. In total, 3467 identified publications were screened and 205 articles were eventually reviewed for eligibility. 43 studies that included at least one basic practical skill, a comparison of two groups of undergraduate medical students and effects on students' performance were analyzed. Seven basic practical skills and 15 different teaching methods could be identified. The most consistent results with respect to effective teaching and acquisition of basic practical skills were found for structured skills training, feedback, and self-directed learning. Simulation was effective with specific teaching methods and in several studies no differences in teaching effects were detected between expert or peer instructors. Multimedia instruction, when used in the right setting, also showed beneficial effects for basic practical skills learning. A combination of voluntary or obligatory self-study with multimedia applications like video clips in combination with a structured program including the possibility for individual exercise with personal feedback by peers or teachers might provide a good learning opportunity for basic practical skills.

Basic practical skills teaching and learning in undergraduate medical education – a review on methodological evidence

PubMed Central

Vogel, Daniela; Harendza, Sigrid

2016-01-01

Objective: Practical skills are an essential part of physicians’ daily routine. Nevertheless, medical graduates’ performance of basic skills is often below the expected level. This review aims to identify and summarize teaching approaches of basic practical skills in undergraduate medical education which provide evidence with respect to effective students’ learning of these skills. Methods: Basic practical skills were defined as basic physical examination skills, routine skills which get better with practice, and skills which are also performed by nurses. We searched PubMed with different terms describing these basic practical skills. In total, 3467 identified publications were screened and 205 articles were eventually reviewed for eligibility. Results: 43 studies that included at least one basic practical skill, a comparison of two groups of undergraduate medical students and effects on students’ performance were analyzed. Seven basic practical skills and 15 different teaching methods could be identified. The most consistent results with respect to effective teaching and acquisition of basic practical skills were found for structured skills training, feedback, and self-directed learning. Simulation was effective with specific teaching methods and in several studies no differences in teaching effects were detected between expert or peer instructors. Multimedia instruction, when used in the right setting, also showed beneficial effects for basic practical skills learning. Conclusion: A combination of voluntary or obligatory self-study with multimedia applications like video clips in combination with a structured program including the possibility for individual exercise with personal feedback by peers or teachers might provide a good learning opportunity for basic practical skills. PMID:27579364

Using morphological awareness instruction to improve written language skills.

PubMed

Apel, Kenn; Werfel, Krystal

2014-10-01

Written English is a morphophonemic language. Researchers have documented that a conscious awareness of the morphological structure of English morphology is predictive of students' written language skills and that morphological awareness instruction leads to improvements in morphological awareness and in other written language skills. The purpose of this tutorial is to provide specific information to clinical scientists and other educators for integrating morphological awareness instruction into their written language instruction. The authors first define morphological awareness and provide an overview of the research on the effects of morphological awareness intervention on improving morphological awareness and written language skills. Measures used to assess morphological awareness ability are then discussed, followed by suggestions for how clinical scientists and other educators can provide morphological awareness instruction to improve the written language skills of the students they serve. By integrating morphological awareness instruction into the services they provide, clinical scientists and other educators will be providing their students with a strong tool to aid written language skills.

Early Postimplant Speech Perception and Language Skills Predict Long-Term Language and Neurocognitive Outcomes Following Pediatric Cochlear Implantation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hunter, Cynthia R.; Kronenberger, William G.; Castellanos, Irina; Pisoni, David B.

2017-01-01

Purpose: We sought to determine whether speech perception and language skills measured early after cochlear implantation in children who are deaf, and early postimplant growth in speech perception and language skills, predict long-term speech perception, language, and neurocognitive outcomes. Method: Thirty-six long-term users of cochlear…

The Role of a Language Scale for Infant and Preschool Assessment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zimmerman, Irla Lee; Castilleja, Nancy Flores

2005-01-01

The PLS-4 (Preschool Language Scale, 4th edition) is a psychometrically sound instrument constructed to assess language skills in children from birth to 6 years 11 months. It is a useful diagnostic and research tool that can be used to identify current comprehension and expressive language skills and can measure changes in language skills over…

The Role of Language Skill in Child Psychopathology: Implications for Intervention in the Early Years.

PubMed

Salmon, Karen; O'Kearney, Richard; Reese, Elaine; Fortune, Clare-Ann

2016-12-01

In this narrative review, we suggest that children's language skill should be targeted in clinical interventions for children with emotional and behavioral difficulties in the preschool years. We propose that language skill predicts childhood emotional and behavioral problems and this relationship may be mediated by children's self-regulation and emotion understanding skills. In the first sections, we review recent high-quality longitudinal studies which together demonstrate that that children's early language skill predicts: (1) emotional and behavioral problems, and this relationship is stronger than the reverse pattern; (2) self-regulation skill; this pattern may be stronger than the reverse pattern but moderated by child age. Findings also suggest that self-regulation skill mediates the relation between early language skill and children's emotional and behavioral problems. There is insufficient evidence regarding the mediating role of emotion understanding. In subsequent sections, we review evidence demonstrating that: (1) particular kinds of developmentally targeted parent-child conversations play a vital role in the development of language skill, and (2) some current clinical interventions, directly or indirectly, have a beneficial impact on children's vocabulary and narrative skills, but most approaches are ad hoc. Targeting language via parent-child conversation has the potential to improve the outcomes of current clinical interventions in the preschool years.

The role of primary caregiver vocabulary knowledge in the development of bilingual children’s vocabulary skills

PubMed Central

Buac, Milijana; Gross, Megan; Kaushanskaya, Margarita

2015-01-01

Purpose The current study examined the impact of environmental factors (SES, the percent of language exposure to English and to Spanish, and primary caregivers’ vocabulary knowledge) on bilingual children’s vocabulary skills. Method We measured vocabulary skills of 58 bilingual children between the ages of 5 and 7 who spoke Spanish as their native language and English as their second language. Data related to language environment in the home, specifically the percent of language exposure to each language and SES, were obtained from primary caregiver interviews. Primary caregivers’ vocabulary knowledge was measured directly using expressive and receptive vocabulary assessments in both languages. Results Multiple regression analyses indicated that primary caregivers’ vocabulary knowledge, the child’s percent exposure to each language, and SES were robust predictors of children’s English, but not Spanish, vocabulary skills. Conclusions These findings indicate that in the early school age, primary caregiver vocabulary skills have a stronger impact on bilingual children’s second-language than native-language vocabulary. PMID:24824882

Minority Languages Learned Informally: The Social Construction of Language Skills through the Discourse of Ontario Employers. NALL Working Paper.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goldberg, Michelle; Corson, David

Many immigrants, refugees, and aboriginal Canadians learn their own languages in the normal, informal way. These minority languages learned informally are not valued as a skill that yields returns in the labor market in the same way the official languages or formally learned languages do. What counts as a skill in a society, in a given point in…

Sensorimotor Skills and Language Comprehension in Autistic Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sigman, Marian; Ungerer, Judy

1981-01-01

The fact that the autistic children were so impaired in language even with fairly good sensorimotor skills suggests that these skills, particularly object permanence, play a minor role in their language acquisition. (Author)

Oral narrative skills: Explaining the language-emergent literacy link by race/ethnicity and SES.

PubMed

Gardner-Neblett, Nicole; Iruka, Iheoma U

2015-07-01

Although children's early language skills have been found to predict literacy outcomes, little is known about the role of preschool oral narrative skills in the pathway between language and emergent literacy or how these associations differ by race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status. The current study uses the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study to explore how language at age 2 is associated with narrative skills at age 4 and emergent literacy outcomes at age 5 for a nationally representative sample of children. Findings demonstrate that early language is associated with narrative skills for most children. Oral narrative skills were found to mediate the pathway between early language and kindergarten emergent literacy for poor and nonpoor African American children. Implications for children's literacy development and future research are discussed. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

The Dyslexia Spectrum: Continuities between Reading, Speech, and Language Impairments

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Snowling, Margaret J.; Hayiou-Thomas, Marianna E.

2006-01-01

D. V. M. Bishop and M. J. Snowling (2004) proposed that 2 dimensions of language are required to conceptualize the relationship between dyslexia and specific language impairment: phonological skills and wider language skills beyond phonology (grammatical, semantic, and pragmatic skills). In this article, we discuss the commonalities between…

Relationship between early language skills and the development of inattention/hyperactivity symptoms during the preschool period: Results of the EDEN mother-child cohort.

PubMed

Peyre, Hugo; Galera, Cedric; van der Waerden, Judith; Hoertel, Nicolas; Bernard, Jonathan Y; Melchior, Maria; Ramus, Franck

2016-11-08

This study aims to examine bidirectional relationships between children's language skills and Inattention/Hyperactivity (IH) symptoms during preschool. Children (N = 1459) from the EDEN mother-child cohort were assessed at ages 3 and 5.5 years. Language skills were evaluated using the WPPSI-III, NEPSY and ELOLA batteries. Children's behavior, including IH symptoms, was assessed using the parent-rated Strengths & Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). Using a Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) approach, we examined the relationship between language skills and IH symptoms, as well as potential mediating processes. SEM analyses indicated a small negative effect of language skills at 3 years on ADHD symptoms at 5.5 years after adjusting for IH symptoms at 3 years (β =-0.12, SE = 0.04, p-value = 0.002). Interpersonal difficulties did not mediate the relationship between early language skills and later IH symptoms, nor was this association reduced after adjusting for a broad range of pre- and postnatal environmental factors and performance IQ. Among different language skills, receptive syntax at 3 years was most strongly related to IH symptoms at 5.5 years. Poor language skills at age 3 may predict IH symptoms when a child enters primary school. Implications for the understanding and the prevention of the co-occurrence of language disorders and ADHD are discussed.

Parenting Predictors of Cognitive Skills and Emotion Knowledge in Socioeconomically Disadvantaged Preschoolers

PubMed Central

Merz, Emily C.; Zucker, Tricia A.; Landry, Susan H.; Williams, Jeffrey M.; Assel, Michael; Taylor, Heather B.; Lonigan, Christopher J.; Phillips, Beth M.; Clancy-Menchetti, Jeanine; Barnes, Marcia A.; Eisenberg, Nancy; de Villiers, Jill

2014-01-01

This study examined the concurrent and longitudinal associations of parental responsiveness and inferential language input with cognitive skills and emotion knowledge among socioeconomically disadvantaged preschoolers. Parents and 2- to 4-year-old children (mean age = 3.21 years; N=284) participated in a parent-child free play session, and children completed cognitive (language, early literacy, early mathematics) and emotion knowledge assessments. One year later, children completed the same assessment battery. Parental responsiveness was coded from the videotaped parent-child free play sessions, and parental inferential language input was coded from transcripts of a subset of 127 of these sessions. All analyses controlled for child age, gender, and parental education, and longitudinal analyses controlled for initial skill level. Parental responsiveness significantly predicted all concurrent cognitive skills as well as literacy, math, and emotion knowledge one year later. Parental inferential language input was significantly positively associated with children's concurrent emotion knowledge. In longitudinal analyses, an interaction was found such that for children with stronger initial language skills, higher levels of parental inferential language input facilitated greater vocabulary development, whereas for children with weaker initial language skills, there was no association between parental inferential language input and change in children's vocabulary skills. These findings further our understanding of the roles of parental responsiveness and inferential language input in promoting children's school readiness skills. PMID:25576967

Early writing deficits in preschoolers with oral language difficulties.

PubMed

Puranik, Cynthia S; Lonigan, Christopher J

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether preschool children with language impairments (LI), a group with documented reading difficulties, also experience writing difficulties. In addition, a purpose was to examine if the writing outcomes differed when children had concomitant cognitive deficits in addition to oral language problems. A group of 293 preschool children were administered an assessment battery that included measures to examine oral language, nonverbal cognition, emergent reading, and writing. Children were divided into four groups based on their language and cognitive performance. The findings from this study show that as early as preschool, children with weaker oral language skills lag behind their peers with stronger oral language skills in terms of their writing-related skills. Children with oral language and cognitive deficits performed more poorly than children whose deficits were confined to oral language. A child's cognitive ability also has an impact on emergent writing skills, but it appears to be moderated by oral language skills. These results are consistent with research documenting links between preschool language and emergent reading in children with a history of LI. © Hammill Institute on Disabilities 2012.

Early Writing Deficits in Preschoolers with Oral Language Difficulties

PubMed Central

Puranik, Cynthia S.; Lonigan, Christopher J.

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether preschool children with language impairments (LI), a group with documented reading difficulties, also experience writing difficulties. In addition, a purpose was to examine if the writing outcomes differed when children had concomitant cognitive deficits in addition to oral language problems. A group of 293 preschool children were administered an assessment battery that included measures to examine oral language, nonverbal cognition, emergent reading, and writing. Children were divided into four groups based on their language and cognitive performance. The findings from this study show that as early as preschool, children with weaker oral language skills lag behind their peers with stronger oral language skills in terms of their writing-related skills. Children with oral language and cognitive deficits performed more poorly than children whose deficits were confined to oral language. A child’s cognitive ability also has an impact on emergent writing skills, but it appears to be moderated by oral language skills. These results are consistent with research documenting links between preschool language and emergent reading in children with a history of LI. PMID:22043027

Sit to Talk: Relation between Motor Skills and Language Development in Infancy

PubMed Central

Libertus, Klaus; Violi, Dominic A.

2016-01-01

Relations between walking skills and language development have been reported in 10- to 14-month-old infants. However, whether earlier emerging motor milestones also affect language skills remains unknown. The current research fills this gap by examining the relation between reaching and sitting skills and later language development, respectively. Reaching and sitting were assessed eight times, starting when infants (N = 29) were around 3 months of age. All assessments were completed and recorded remotely via videoconference using Skype or FaceTime. Subsequently, infants’ language and motor skills were assessed via parent questionnaires (Communicative Development Inventories and Early Motor Questionnaire) at 10 and 14 months of age. Results revealed a significant correlation between the emergence of sitting skills and receptive vocabulary size at 10 and 14 months of age. Regression analyses further confirmed this pattern and revealed that the emergence of sitting is a significant predictor of subsequent language development above and beyond influences of concurrent motor skills. These findings suggest that the onset of independent sitting may initiate a developmental cascade that results in increased language learning opportunities. Further, this study also demonstrates how infants’ early motor skills can be assessed remotely using videoconference. PMID:27065934

Sit to Talk: Relation between Motor Skills and Language Development in Infancy.

PubMed

Libertus, Klaus; Violi, Dominic A

2016-01-01

Relations between walking skills and language development have been reported in 10- to 14-month-old infants. However, whether earlier emerging motor milestones also affect language skills remains unknown. The current research fills this gap by examining the relation between reaching and sitting skills and later language development, respectively. Reaching and sitting were assessed eight times, starting when infants (N = 29) were around 3 months of age. All assessments were completed and recorded remotely via videoconference using Skype or FaceTime. Subsequently, infants' language and motor skills were assessed via parent questionnaires (Communicative Development Inventories and Early Motor Questionnaire) at 10 and 14 months of age. Results revealed a significant correlation between the emergence of sitting skills and receptive vocabulary size at 10 and 14 months of age. Regression analyses further confirmed this pattern and revealed that the emergence of sitting is a significant predictor of subsequent language development above and beyond influences of concurrent motor skills. These findings suggest that the onset of independent sitting may initiate a developmental cascade that results in increased language learning opportunities. Further, this study also demonstrates how infants' early motor skills can be assessed remotely using videoconference.

Childhood language skills and adolescent self-esteem in preterm survivors.

PubMed

Islam, Umna A; Poole, Kristie L; Schmidt, Louis A; Ford, Jennifer; Saigal, Saroj; Van Lieshout, Ryan J

2018-03-01

Fifty-seven percent of children with poor language skills are affected by socio-emotional problems. Despite the importance of language skills to interpersonal functioning and school performance, relatively little is known about how they affect self-esteem in adolescence. Data on youth at high risk for language problems (e.g. those born extremely low birth weight (ELBW; <1000 grams)) are even more scarce. This prospective study examined associations between language skills at age 8 and self-esteem during adolescence (12-16 years) in individuals born at ELBW ( N = 138) or normal birth weight (NBW; >2500 grams) ( N = 111). Participants' language skills were assessed using the Verbal Scale of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised and the Token Test at age 8. In adolescence, participants completed the Harter Self-Perception Profile for Adolescents. Birth weight status was found to moderate associations between childhood language and adolescent global self-esteem (Token Test ( p = .006), Verbal Intelligence Quotient ( p = .033)) such that better language skills were associated with higher self-esteem in adolescent ELBW survivors, but not in NBW participants. Language skills may play a protective role in the development and maintenance of self-esteem in ELBW youth and could be an important target for optimizing their functioning, particularly before transitioning to the critical adolescent period.

Peer effects in preschool classrooms: is children's language growth associated with their classmates' skills?

PubMed

Justice, Laura M; Petscher, Yaacov; Schatschneider, Christopher; Mashburn, Andrew

2011-01-01

With an increasing number of young children participating in preschool education, this study determined whether peer effects are present in this earliest sector of schooling. Specifically, this work examined whether peer effects were influential to preschoolers' growth in language skills over an academic year and whether peer effects manifest differently based on children's status in reference to their peers. Peer effects were assessed for 338 children in 49 classrooms. A significant interaction between the language skills of children's classmates and children's fall language skills indicated that peer effects were strongest for children with low language skills who were in classrooms that served children with relatively low skill levels, on average. Findings further showed that reference status, or children's relative standing to their peers, has the greater consequence for children with very low language skills in relation to their peers. © 2011 The Authors. Child Development © 2011 Society for Research in Child Development, Inc.

Foreign Language Skills and Jobs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Eddy, Peter A.

Students of foreign languages insist on seeing the evidence that foreign language skills have something to do with getting jobs in the "real world." Evidence is being ammassed which does show this to be true. Several studies have revealed that American firms are looking for qualified personnel who possess language skills. A survey was initiated at…

The Development of Executive Function and Language Skills in the Early School Years

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gooch, Debbie; Thompson, Paul; Nash, Hannah M.; Snowling, Margaret J.; Hulme, Charles

2016-01-01

Background: The developmental relationships between executive functions (EF) and early language skills are unclear. This study explores the longitudinal relationships between children's early EF and language skills in a sample of children with a wide range of language abilities including children at risk of dyslexia. In addition, we investigated…

A Career-Oriented Foreign Language Program for Keystone Oaks School District, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Grubesky, Marcia R.

A career-oriented foreign language program is discussed that takes into account marketable skills of foreign language majors for a number of careers. The program is threefold. First, it recognizes the need for language skills to supplement technical, business, and professional skills to expand educational knowledge; capabilities in diplomacy and…

Family Literacy Works: Key Findings from the NFER Evaluation of the Basic Skills Agency's Demonstration Programmes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Basic Skills Agency, 2006

2006-01-01

The Basic Skills Agency (formerly the Adult Literacy and Basic Skills Unit--ALBSU) is the national development agency for literacy, numeracy and related basic skills in England and Wales. This agency defines basic skills as " the ability to read, write, and speak in English and use mathematics at a level necessary to function and progress at…

Key cognitive preconditions for the evolution of language.

PubMed

Donald, Merlin

2017-02-01

Languages are socially constructed systems of expression, generated interactively in social networks, which can be assimilated by the individual brain as it develops. Languages co-evolved with culture, reflecting the changing complexity of human culture as it acquired the properties of a distributed cognitive system. Two key preconditions set the stage for the evolution of such cultures: a very general ability to rehearse and refine skills (evident early in hominin evolution in toolmaking), and the emergence of material culture as an external (to the brain) memory record that could retain and accumulate knowledge across generations. The ability to practice and rehearse skill provided immediate survival-related benefits in that it expanded the physical powers of early hominins, but the same adaptation also provided the imaginative substrate for a system of "mimetic" expression, such as found in ritual and pantomime, and in proto-words, which performed an expressive function somewhat like the home signs of deaf non-signers. The hominid brain continued to adapt to the increasing importance and complexity of culture as human interactions with material culture became more complex; above all, this entailed a gradual expansion in the integrative systems of the brain, especially those involved in the metacognitive supervision of self-performances. This supported a style of embodied mimetic imagination that improved the coordination of shared activities such as fire tending, but also in rituals and reciprocal mimetic games. The time-depth of this mimetic adaptation, and its role in both the construction and acquisition of languages, explains the importance of mimetic expression in the media, religion, and politics. Spoken language evolved out of voco-mimesis, and emerged long after the more basic abilities needed to refine skill and share intentions, probably coinciding with the common ancestor of sapient humans. Self-monitoring and self-supervised practice were necessary preconditions for lexical invention, and as these abilities evolved further, communicative skills extended to more abstract and complex aspects of the communication environments-that is, the "cognitive ecologies"-being generated by human groups. The hominin brain adapted continuously to the need to assimilate language and its many cognitive byproducts by expanding many of its higher integrative systems, a process that seems to have accelerated and peaked in the past half million years.

Socioeconomic Status, Parent Report of Children's Early Language Skills, and Late Literacy Skills: A Long Term Follow-Up Study among Chinese Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pan, Jinger; Kong, Yan; Song, Shuang; McBride, Catherine; Liu, Hongyun; Shu, Hua

2017-01-01

Previous research on the longitudinal prediction of literacy development has focused mainly on the relationship between early cognitive/language skills and late literacy skills. The present study aimed to test the reliability of a number of measures reported by parents as compared to measuring cognitive and language skills in predicting subsequent…

The role of simultaneous and successive processing in EFL reading.

PubMed

Filickova, Marta; Kovalcikova, Iveta; Ropovik, Ivan

2016-10-01

This study examines the relationship between simultaneous and successive processing (the Planning, Attention, Simultaneous and Successive processing [PASS] theory processes) and reading skills in English as a foreign language (EFL). A group of 81 children were administered two batteries of tests. One was used to measure EFL reading skills, while the other one assessed simultaneous and successive processing. We hypothesised (a) cognitive processes to predict reading ability, as well as (b) the presence of a significant relationship between (c) simultaneous processing and reading comprehension and (d) successive processing and letter and word decoding. The findings confirmed that the anticipated relationships between these domains exist and are of moderate effect size. The research has helped to contribute to the understanding of how simultaneous and successive processing can affect EFL reading skills both on the level of basic word and letter decoding and reading comprehension. © 2015 International Union of Psychological Science.

Stability of Core Language Skill Stability of Core Language Skill from Early Childhood to Adolescence: A Latent Variable Approach

PubMed Central

Bornstein, Marc H.; Hahn, Chun-Shin; Putnick, Diane L.; Suwalsky, Joan T. D.

2014-01-01

This four-wave prospective longitudinal study evaluated stability of language in 324 children from early childhood to adolescence. Structural equation modeling supported loadings of multiple age-appropriate multi-source measures of child language on single-factor core language skills at 20 months and 4, 10, and 14 years. Large stability coefficients (standardized indirect effect = .46) were obtained between language latent variables from early childhood to adolescence and accounting for child nonverbal intelligence and social competence and maternal verbal intelligence, education, speech, and social desirability. Stability coefficients were similar for girls and boys. Stability of core language skill was stronger from 4 to 10 to 14 years than from 20 months to 4 years, so early intervention to improve lagging language is recommended. PMID:25165797

A study of the effects of English language proficiency and scientific reasoning skills on the acquisition of science content knowledge of Hispanic English language learners and native English language-speaking students participating in grade 10 science classes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Torres, Hector Neftali, Sr.

2000-11-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of English language proficiency and levels of scientific reasoning skills of Hispanic English language learners and native English language speaking students on their acquisition of science content knowledge as measured by a state-wide standardized science test. The researcher studied a group of high school Hispanic English language learners and native English language speaking students participating in Grade 10 science classes. The language proficiency of the students was to be measured through the use of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) instrument. A Classroom Test of Scientific Reasoning developed by Lawson (1978) was administered in either English or Spanish to the group of Hispanic English language learners and in English to the group of native English language-speaking students in order to determine their levels of scientific reasoning skills. The students' acquisition of science content knowledge was measured through the use of statewide-standardized science test developed by the State's Department of Education. This study suggests that the levels of English language proficiency appear to influence the acquisition of science content knowledge of Hispanic English language learners in the study. The results of the study also suggest that with regards to scientific reasoning skills, students that showed high levels or reflective reasoning skills for the most part performed better on the statewide-standardized science test than students with intuitive or transitional reasoning skills. This assertion was supported by the studies conducted by Lawson and his colleagues, which showed that high levels of reasoning or reflective reasoning skills are prerequisite for most high school science courses. The findings in this study imply that high order English language proficiency combined with high levels of reasoning skills enhances students' abilities to learn science content subject matter. This lends support to Cummins' theoretical framework, which indicates that learning science content subject matter requires cognitive academic language proficiency (CALP). The study also indicates that CALP maybe the combination of high order English language proficiency and high levels of reasoning skills. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)

Private Sector Providers of Basic Skills Training in the Workplace. A Study of the General Training and Basic Skills Responses of Randomly Selected Companies Which Provide Basic Skills Training to Their Employees.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mark, Jorie Lester

A questionnaire was distributed to 1,305 companies to study the basic skills training provided. Of 62 responses, 41 companies had basic skills training programs. Respondents represented these types of companies: communications and utilities, finance and insurance, manufacturing, wholesalers, retailers, health and hospitals, and mining, and had…

Relationship of L1 Skills and L2 Aptitude to L2 Anxiety on the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sparks, Richard L.; Patton, Jon

2013-01-01

The Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (FLCAS) has been challenged on the grounds that it may also assess language learning skills. In this study, 128 students who had been administered measures of first language (L1) skills in elementary school were followed from 1st to 10th grade. Fifty-three students had completed second language (L2)…

Achievement and High School Completion Rates of Hispanic Students with No English Language Skills Compared to Hispanic Students with Some English Language Skills Attending the Same High School in an Immigrant Responsive City

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Garrison, Joanne M.

2012-01-01

The purpose of the study was to determine achievement and high school completion rates of Hispanic students (n = 13) with no English language skills compared to Hispanic students (n = 11) with some English language skills attending the same high school in an immigrant responsive city. All students were in attendance in the research school…

The Effects of L2 Reading Skills on L1 Reading Skills through Transfer

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Altmisdort, Gonca

2016-01-01

This study investigated whether transfer from L2 to L1 in reading occurs, and if so, which reading sub-skills are transferred into L1 reading. The aim is to identify the role of second language reading skills in L1 reading skills by means of transfer. In addition, the positive effects of the second language transfer to the first language in the…

American Sign Language Syntactic and Narrative Comprehension in Skilled and Less Skilled Readers: Bilingual and Bimodal Evidence for the Linguistic Basis of Reading

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chamberlain, Charlene; Mayberry, Rachel I.

2008-01-01

We tested the hypothesis that syntactic and narrative comprehension of a natural sign language can serve as the linguistic basis for skilled reading. Thirty-one adults who were deaf from birth and used American Sign Language (ASL) were classified as skilled or less skilled readers using an eighth-grade criterion. Proficiency with ASL syntax, and…

Decontextualized Language Production in Two Languages: An Investigation of Children's Word Definition Skills in Korean and English

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kang, Jennifer Yusun

2013-01-01

This study aimed to identify factors that contribute to bilingual children's decontextualized language production and investigate how schooling experience and bilingualism affect the development of this skill. The word definition skills of seventy Korean-English bilingual children whose first language was Korean, yet who had been schooled in…

Preparing Language Teachers to Teach Language Online: A Look at Skills, Roles, and Responsibilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Compton, Lily K. L.

2009-01-01

This paper reviews and critiques an existing skills framework for online language teaching. This critique is followed by an alternative framework for online language teaching skills. This paper also uses a systems view to look at the roles and responsibilities of various stakeholders in an online learning system. Four major recommendations are…

Social Competence and Language Skills in Mandarin-English Bilingual Preschoolers: The Moderation Effect of Emotion Regulation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ren, Yonggang; Wyver, Shirley; Xu Rattanasone, Nan; Demuth, Katherine

2016-01-01

Research Findings: The main aim of this study was to examine whether language skills and emotion regulation are associated with social competence and whether the relationship between English skills and social competence is moderated by emotion regulation in Mandarin-English bilingual preschoolers. The language skills of 96 children ages…

Immigrants' Language Skills and Visa Category. Discussion Paper.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chiswick, Barry R.; Lee, Yew Liang; Miller, Paul W.

This study examines the impact of visa category on the English language skills of recent immigrants to Australia, focusing on the extent to which immigration selection criteria have an impact on language skills and noting the extent to which this impact is over and above that attributable to age, skills, and behavioral factors. The study followed…

Relations between Early Reading and Writing Skills among Spanish-Speaking Language Minority Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goodrich, J. Marc; Farrington, Amber L.; Lonigan, Christopher J.

2016-01-01

Although there is a growing body of literature on the development of reading skills of Spanish-speaking language minority children, little research has focused on the development of writing skills in this population. This study evaluated whether children's Spanish early reading skills (i.e., print knowledge, phonological awareness, oral language)…

Cognitive Retroactive Transfer (CRT) of Language Skills among Bilingual Arabic-English Readers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Abu-Rabia, Salim; Shakkour, Wael; Siegel, Linda

2013-01-01

This study examined the effects of an intervention helping struggling readers improve their reading and writing skills in English as a foreign language (L2), and those same skills in Arabic, which was their first language (L1). Transferring linguistic skills from L2 to L1 is termed "cognitive retroactive transfer". Tests were…

Semantic processing of actions at 9months is linked to language proficiency at 9 and 18months.

PubMed

Kaduk, Katharina; Bakker, Marta; Juvrud, Joshua; Gredebäck, Gustaf; Westermann, Gert; Lunn, Judith; Reid, Vincent M

2016-11-01

The current study uses event-related potential methodologies to investigate how social-cognitive processes in preverbal infants relate to language performance. We assessed 9-month-olds' understanding of the semantic structure of actions via an N400 event-related potential (ERP) response to action sequences that contained expected and unexpected outcomes. At 9 and 18months of age, infants' language abilities were measured using the Swedish Early Communicative Development Inventory (SECDI). Here we show that 9-month-olds' understanding of the semantic structure of actions, evidenced in an N400 ERP response to action sequences with unexpected outcomes, is related to language comprehension scores at 9months and is related to language production scores at 18months of age. Infants who showed a selective N400 response to unexpected action outcomes are those who are classed as above mean in their language proficiency. The results provide evidence that language performance is related to the ability to detect and interpret human actions at 9months of age. This study suggests that some basic cognitive mechanisms are involved in the processing of sequential events that are shared between two conceptually different cognitive domains and that pre-linguistic social understanding skills and language proficiency are linked to one another. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Working memory and language: skill-specific or domain-general relations to mathematics?

PubMed

Purpura, David J; Ganley, Colleen M

2014-06-01

Children's early mathematics skills develop in a cumulative fashion; foundational skills form a basis for the acquisition of later skills. However, non-mathematical factors such as working memory and language skills have also been linked to mathematical development at a broad level. Unfortunately, little research has been conducted to evaluate the specific relations of these two non-mathematical factors to individual aspects of early mathematics. Thus, the focus of this study was to determine whether working memory and language were related to only individual aspects of early mathematics or related to many components of early mathematics skills. A total of 199 4- to 6-year-old preschool and kindergarten children were assessed on a battery of early mathematics tasks as well as measures of working memory and language. Results indicated that working memory has a specific relation to only a few-but critically important-early mathematics skills and language has a broad relation to nearly all early mathematics skills. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Fathers' and Mothers' Verbal Responsiveness and the Language Skills of Young Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder.

PubMed

Flippin, Michelle; Watson, Linda R

2015-08-01

In this observational study, we examined the interactions of 16 young children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and their parents to investigate (a) differences in verbal responsiveness used by fathers and mothers in interactions with their children with ASD and (b) concurrent associations between the language skills of children with ASD and the verbal responsiveness of both fathers and mothers. Parent verbal responsiveness was coded from video recordings of naturalistic parent-child play sessions using interval-based coding. Child language skills were measured by the Preschool Language Scale-Fourth Edition (Zimmerman, Steiner, & Pond, 2002). For both fathers and mothers, parent verbal responsiveness was positively associated with child language skills. Mothers' responsiveness was also significantly associated with child cognition. After controlling for child cognition, fathers' verbal responsiveness continued to be significantly related to child language skills. Although other studies have documented associations between mothers' responsiveness and child language, this is the 1st study to document a significant concurrent association between child language skills of children with ASD and the verbal responsiveness of fathers. Findings of this study warrant the inclusion of fathers in future research on language development and intervention to better understand the potential contributions fathers may make to language growth for children with ASD over time as well as to determine whether coaching fathers to use responsive verbal strategies can improve language outcomes for children with ASD.

Differences in Language Skills: Heritage Language Learner Subgroups and Foreign Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kondo-Brown, Kimi

2005-01-01

Using both proficiency tests and self-assessment measures, this study investigated (a) whether 3 subgroups of Japanese heritage language (JHL) learners would demonstrate language behaviors distinctively different from those of traditional Japanese as a foreign language (JFL) learners, and (b) which domains of language use and skills would…

A preliminary investigation of the relationship between language and gross motor skills in preschool children.

PubMed

Merriman, W J; Barnett, B E

1995-12-01

This study was undertaken to explore the relationship between language skills and gross-motor skills of 28 preschool children from two private preschools in New York City. Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients were calculated for language (revised Preschool Language Scale) and gross motor (Test of Gross Motor Development) scores. Locomotor skills were significantly related to both auditory comprehension and verbal ability while object control scores did not correlate significantly with either language score. These results were discussed in terms of previous research and with reference to dynamical systems theory. Suggestions for research were made.

Contextualizing Competence: Language and LGBT-Based Competency in Health Care.

PubMed

Rossi, Alexis L; Lopez, Eliot J

2017-01-01

Changes in the language and terminology used to refer to individuals identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT), as well as how best to discuss issues of sexual and gender identity, can prove challenging for health care providers due to (1) lack of training; (2) interdisciplinary issues; and (3) prejudices on personal and institutional levels. Given the importance of language in the relationship between health care provider and patient as well as the myriad ways in which language can reflect knowledge, skills, and attitudes, we contend that language is both a facilitator and inhibitor of competence. In this article, we discuss language as a means of exhibiting cultural competence as well as the barriers to facilitating this degree of competence. Communicative competence, a concept traditionally used in linguistics, is discussed as a framework for contextualizing LGBT-specific cultural competence in health care. Ideally, a professional will be considered competent once they (1) acquire a foundation in issues associated with LGBT individuals, as well as a basic understanding of appropriate vocabulary' (2) reconcile personal beliefs with their professional role; (3) create an inclusive healthcare environment such that the influence of personal biases does not negatively impact care; and (4) use identifiers suggested by the patient.

An exploration of imitation recognition in young children with autism spectrum disorders.

PubMed

Berger, Natalie I; Ingersoll, Brooke

2013-10-01

The ability to recognize when one is being imitated has been hypothesized to be an important developmental process related to the emergence of more advanced social-cognitive skills. While a series of behaviors indicating progressively more mature imitation recognition (IR) skills has been assessed in typically developing children, empirical work with children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) has largely focused on basic social responses to an imitative adult (e.g. increases in eye contact). Limited work has explored more mature IR behaviors in this population. This study compared the degree to which children with ASD engage in different behaviors thought to be indicative of IR during a naturalistic imitation task and the relationship between different types of IR behaviors and social-cognitive skills (i.e. imitation, language, social reciprocity, and joint attention). Thirty children with ASD were administered standardized measures of cognitive level, language, joint attention, social reciprocity, and imitation. IR behaviors were observed during periods of contingent imitation by an adult. Participants engaged more frequently in less mature (e.g. looking at the experimenter's toy or face) than more mature IR behaviors (e.g. testing the experimenter's intent to imitate). After controlling for developmental level, social reciprocity, object imitation, and gesture imitation were positively correlated with more mature IR. These findings suggest that the development of more mature IR skills is related to the development of other social-cognitive skills in children with ASD and provide additional empirical support for reports of more mature IR observed in this population. , Inc. © 2013 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

First-born siblings show better second language skills than later born siblings

PubMed Central

Keller, Karin; Troesch, Larissa M.; Grob, Alexander

2015-01-01

We examined the extent to which three sibling structure variables number of siblings, birth order, and presence of an older sibling at school age are linked to the second language skills of bilingual children. The research questions were tested using an ethnically heterogeneous sample of 1209 bilingual children with German as a second language. Controlling for children’s age, sex, nationality, number of children’s books at home, family language and parental German language skills, hierarchical regression analyses showed an inverse relationship between the number of siblings and second language skills: the more siblings a child had, the lower was his/her second language proficiency. This relationship was mediated by attendance in early education institutions. Moreover, first-born siblings showed better second language skills than later born siblings. The current study revealed that the resource dilution model, i.e., the decrease in resources for every additional sibling, holds for second language acquisition. Moreover, the results indicate that bilingual children from families with several children benefit from access to early education institutions. PMID:26089806

Use of Event-Related Potentials to Identify Language and Reading Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Molfese, Victoria J.; Molfese, Dennis L.; Beswick, Jennifer L.; Jacobi-Vessels, Jill; Molfese, Peter J.; Molnar, Andrew E.; Wagner, Mary C.; Haines, Brittany L.

2008-01-01

The extent to which oral language and emergent literacy skills are influenced by event-related potential measures of phonological processing was examined. Results revealed that event-related potential responses identify differences in letter naming but not receptive language skills.

Development of Early English Language and Literacy Skills among Spanish-Speaking Children: Does Preschool Make a Difference?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Han, Myae; Silva, Luisa; Vukelich, Carol; Buell, Martha; Hou, Likun

2014-01-01

This study examined the early English language and literacy skill development of 179 children from 11 Head Start classrooms who participated in an added focus on language and literacy skill-building supported by Early Reading First programme. Of this sample, 118 children were Spanish-speaking English Language Learners (ELL). All children were…

Implementation of Flipped Instruction in Language Classrooms: An Alternative Way to Develop Speaking Skills of Pre-Service English Language Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Köroglu, Zeynep Çetin; Çakir, Abdulvahit

2017-01-01

Flipped Instruction is overemphasized in recent years that has a significant impact in language education. In this context, the current research investigates the effects of Flipped Instruction on pre-service English language teachers' speaking skills development. The research covers subskills of speaking skills. In this study quantitative data…

Having a Baby. An English as a Second Language Workbook for Beginners. English as a Second Language Community Survival Skills.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cunningham, Helen

The workbook, one in a series on survival skills for adults learning English as a Second Language, focuses on development of communication skills, knowledge, and attitudes relating to pregnancy, prenatal care, and childbirth. An introductory section outlines the language functions taught and specific performance objectives within each function…

Normal Language Skills and Normal Intelligence in a Child with de Lange Syndrome.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cameron, Thomas H.; Kelly, Desmond P.

1988-01-01

The subject of this case report is a two-year, seven-month-old girl with de Lange syndrome, normal intelligence, and age-appropriate language skills. She demonstrated initial delays in gross motor skills and in receptive and expressive language but responded well to intensive speech and language intervention, as well as to physical therapy.…

Analysis of Prospective Mathematics Teachers’ Basic Teaching Skills (a Study of Mathematics Education Departement Students’ Field Experience Program at STKIP Garut)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rahayu, D. V.

2017-02-01

This study was intended to figure out basic teaching skills of Mathematics Department Students of STKIP Garut at Field Experience Program in academic year 2014/2015. This study was qualitative research with analysis descriptive technique. Instrument used in this study was observation sheet to measure basic teaching mathematics skills. The result showed that ability of content mastery and explaining skill were in average category. Questioning skill, conducting variations skill and conducting assessment skill were in good category. Managing classroom skill and giving motivation skill were in poor category. Based on the result, it can be concluded that the students’ basic teaching skills weren’t optimal. It is recommended for the collegians to get lesson with appropriate strategy so that they can optimize their basic teaching skills.

Relations among Language Exposure, Phonological Memory, and Language Development in Spanish-English Bilingually-Developing Two-Year-Olds

PubMed Central

Parra, Marisol; Hoff, Erika; Core, Cynthia

2010-01-01

The relation of phonological memory to language experience and development was investigated in 41 Spanish-English bilingual first language learners. The children’s relative exposure to English and Spanish and phonological memory for English-like and Spanish-like nonwords were assessed at 22 months; their productive vocabulary and grammar in both languages were assessed at 25 months. Phonological memory for English- and Spanish-like nonwords were highly correlated, and each was related to vocabulary and grammar in both languages, suggesting a language-general component to phonological memory skill. In addition, there was evidence of language-specific benefits of language exposure to phonological memory skill and of language-specific benefits of phonological memory skill to language development. PMID:20828710

Language skills of young children with unilateral cleft lip and palate following infant orthopedics: a randomized clinical trial.

PubMed

Konst, Emmy M; Rietveld, Toni; Peters, Herman F M; Kuijpers-Jagtman, Anne Marie

2003-07-01

To investigate the effects of infant orthopedics (IO) on the language skills of children with complete unilateral cleft lip and palate (UCLP). In a prospective randomized clinical trial (Dutchcleft), two groups of children with complete UCLP were followed up longitudinally: one group was treated with IO based on a modified Zurich approach in the first year of life (IO group); the other group did not receive this treatment (non-IO group). At the ages of 2, 2(1/2), 3, and 6 years, language development was evaluated in 12 children (six IO and six non-IO). Receptive language skills were assessed using the Reynell test. Expressive language skills of the toddlers were evaluated by calculating mean length of utterance (MLU) and mean length of longest utterances (MLLU); in the 6-year-olds, the expressive language skills were measured using standardized Dutch language tests. The participants had complete UCLP without soft tissue bands or other malformations. IO did not affect the receptive language skills. However, the expressive language measures MLU and MLLU were influenced by IO. At age 2(1/2) and 3 years, the IO group produced longer utterances than the non-IO group. In the follow-up, the difference in expressive language between the two groups was no longer significant. Children treated with IO during their first year of life produced longer sentences than non-IO children at the ages of 2(1/2) and 3 years. At 6 years of age, both groups presented similar expressive language skills. Hence, IO treatment did not have long-lasting effects on language development.

Deaf Students' Receptive and Expressive American Sign Language Skills: Comparisons and Relations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beal-Alvarez, Jennifer S.

2014-01-01

This article presents receptive and expressive American Sign Language skills of 85 students, 6 through 22 years of age at a residential school for the deaf using the American Sign Language Receptive Skills Test and the Ozcaliskan Motion Stimuli. Results are presented by ages and indicate that students' receptive skills increased with age and…

The Social Studies Basic Skills Connection: Practical Strategies for Teaching Basic Skills in Conjunction with Social Studies Content.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Missouri State Dept. of Education, Jefferson City.

Arranged in two parts, this guide introduces elementary and secondary social studies teachers to a variety of methods for integrating social studies content and basic skills instruction. Chapter I defines basic skills as the skills an individual needs to become a self-directed learner, communicate clearly, and make reasoned decisions, and presents…

The Relative Importance of English versus Spanish Language Skills for Low-Income Latino English Language Learners' Early Language and Literacy Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sonnenschein, Susan; Metzger, Shari R.; Dowling, Rebecca; Baker, Linda

2017-01-01

The association between monolingual children's early language abilities and their later reading performance is well established. However, for English language learners, the pattern of associations between early language skills and later literacy is much less well understood for English language learners. This study examined language predictors of…

Breaking Down Barriers: Certificate in Workplace Basic Skills Training for Adult Basic Education Tutors & Co-Ordinators.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Frank, Fiona; Holland, Chris; Jeffery, Sue; Marquand, Alison; Noel, Alison

Designed to familiarize experienced and qualified basic skills tutors and coordinators with issues of teaching basic skills in the workplace in Great Britain, this course can be delivered by experienced workplace basic skills training program coordinators. It can be delivered over three days or as six half-day sessions. Each of the four units…

Do the early development of gestures and receptive and expressive language predict language skills at 5;0 in prematurely born very-low-birth-weight children?

PubMed

Stolt, S; Lind, A; Matomäki, J; Haataja, L; Lapinleimu, H; Lehtonen, L

2016-01-01

It is unclear what the predictive value of very early development of gestures and language is on later language ability in prematurely born very-low-birth-weight (VLBW; birth weight ≤1500g) children. The aim of the present study was to analyse the predictive value of early gestures and a receptive lexicon measured between the ages of 0;9 and 1;3, as well as the predictive value of receptive and expressive language ability at 2;0 for language skills at 5;0 in VLBW children. The subjects were 29 VLBW children and 28 full-term children whose language development has been followed intensively between the ages of 0;9 and 2;0 using the Finnish version of the MacArthur Developmental Inventory and the Reynell Developmental Language Scales (RDLS III). At 5;0, five selected verbal subtests of the Nepsy II test and the Boston Naming Test (BNT) were used to assess children's language skills. For the first time in VLBW children, the development of gestures measured between the ages of 0;9 and 1;3 was shown to correlate significantly and positively with language skills at 5;0. In addition, both receptive and expressive language ability measured at 2;0 correlated significantly and positively with later language skills in both groups. Moreover, according to the hierarchical regression analysis, the receptive language score of the RDLS III at 2;0 was a clear and significant predictor for language skills at 5;0 in both groups. The findings particularly underline the role of early receptive language as a significant predictor for later language ability in VLBW children. The results provide evidence for a continuity between early language development and later language skills. After reading this article, readers will understand the associations between the very early (≤2 years of age) development of gestures and language (i.e. early receptive lexicon, expressive lexicon at 2;0, receptive and expressive language ability at 2;0) and the language skills at 5;0 in prematurely born very-low-birth-weight (VLBW) children. In addition, readers will understand the heterogeneity of the group of VLBW children. The information presented in this article is informative for those who work in a clinical context and who want to be able to identify those VLBW children who need support for their language development at an early age. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Examining the Relationships of Component Reading Skills to Reading Comprehension in Struggling Adult Readers: A Meta-Analysis.

PubMed

Tighe, Elizabeth L; Schatschneider, Christopher

2016-07-01

The current study employed a meta-analytic approach to investigate the relative importance of component reading skills to reading comprehension in struggling adult readers. A total of 10 component skills were consistently identified across 16 independent studies and 2,707 participants. Random effects models generated 76 predictor-reading comprehension effect sizes among the 10 constructs. The results indicated that six of the component skills exhibited strong relationships with reading comprehension (average rs ≥ .50): morphological awareness, language comprehension, fluency, oral vocabulary knowledge, real word decoding, and working memory. Three of the component skills yielded moderate relationships with reading comprehension (average rs ≥ .30 and < .50): pseudoword decoding, orthographic knowledge, and phonological awareness. Rapid automatized naming (RAN) was the only component skill that was weakly related to reading comprehension (r = .15). Morphological awareness was a significantly stronger correlate of reading comprehension than phonological awareness and RAN. This study provides the first attempt at a systematic synthesis of the recent research investigating the reading skills of adults with low literacy skills, a historically understudied population. Directions for future research, the relation of our results to the children's literature, and the implications for researchers and adult basic education programs are discussed. © Hammill Institute on Disabilities 2014.

Examining the Relationships of Component Reading Skills to Reading Comprehension in Struggling Adult Readers: A Meta-Analysis

PubMed Central

Tighe, Elizabeth L.; Schatschneider, Christopher

2015-01-01

The current study employed a meta-analytic approach to investigate the relative importance of component reading skills to reading comprehension in struggling adult readers. A total of 10 component skills were consistently identified across 16 independent studies and 2,707 participants. Random effects models generated 76 predictor-reading comprehension effect sizes among the 10 constructs. The results indicated that six of the component skills exhibited strong relationships with reading comprehension (average rs ≥ .50): morphological awareness, language comprehension, fluency, oral vocabulary knowledge, real word decoding, and working memory. Three of the component skills yielded moderate relationships with reading comprehension (average rs ≥ .30 and < .50): pseudoword decoding, orthographic knowledge, and phonological awareness. Rapid automatized naming (RAN) was the only component skill that was weakly related to reading comprehension (r = .15). Morphological awareness was a significantly stronger correlate of reading comprehension than phonological awareness and RAN. This study provides the first attempt at a systematic synthesis of the recent research investigating the reading skills of adults with low literacy skills, a historically under-studied population. Directions for future research, the relation of our results to the children’s literature, and the implications for researchers and Adult Basic Education (ABE) programs are discussed. PMID:25350926

Communication, Interventions, and Scientific Advances in Autism: A Commentary

PubMed Central

Llaneza, Danielle C.; DeLuke, Susan V.; Batista, Myra; Crawley, Jacqueline N.; Christodulu, Kristin V.; Frye, Cheryl A.

2010-01-01

Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) affect approximately 1 in 150 children across the U.S., and are characterized by abnormal social actions, language difficulties, repetitive or restrictive behaviors, and special interests. ASD include autism (autistic disorder), Asperger syndrome, and Pervasive Developmental Disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS or atypical autism). High-functioning individuals may communicate with moderate-to-high language skills, although difficulties in social skills may result in communication deficits. Low-functioning individuals may have severe deficiencies in language, resulting in poor communication between the individual and others. Behavioral intervention programs have been developed for ASD, and are frequently adjusted to accommodate specific individual needs. Many of these programs are school-based and aim to support the child in the development of their skills, for use outside the classroom with family and friends. Strides are being made in understanding the factors contributing to the development of ASD, particularly the genetic contributions that may underlie these disorders. Mutant mouse models provide powerful research tools to investigate the genetic factors associated with ASD and its co-morbid disorders. In support, the BTBR T+tf/J mouse strain incorporates ASD-like social and communication deficits and high levels of repetitive behaviors. This commentary briefly reviews the reciprocal relationship between observations made during evidence-based behavioral interventions of high- versus low-functioning children with ASD and the accumulating body of research in autism, including animal studies and basic research models. This reciprocity is one of the hallmarks of the scientific method, such that research may inform behavioral treatments, and observations made during treatment may inform subsequent research. PMID:20093134

Communication, interventions, and scientific advances in autism: a commentary.

PubMed

Llaneza, Danielle C; DeLuke, Susan V; Batista, Myra; Crawley, Jacqueline N; Christodulu, Kristin V; Frye, Cheryl A

2010-06-01

Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) affect approximately 1 in 150 children across the U.S., and are characterized by abnormal social actions, language difficulties, repetitive or restrictive behaviors, and special interests. ASD include autism (autistic disorder), Asperger Syndrome, and Pervasive Developmental Disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS or atypical autism). High-functioning individuals may communicate with moderate-to-high language skills, although difficulties in social skills may result in communication deficits. Low-functioning individuals may have severe deficiencies in language, resulting in poor communication between the individual and others. Behavioral intervention programs have been developed for ASD, and are frequently adjusted to accommodate specific individual needs. Many of these programs are school-based and aim to support the child in the development of their skills, for use outside the classroom with family and friends. Strides are being made in understanding the factors contributing to the development of ASD, particularly the genetic contributions that may underlie these disorders. Mutant mouse models provide powerful research tools to investigate the genetic factors associated with ASD and its co-morbid disorders. In support, the BTBR T+tf/J mouse strain incorporates ASD-like social and communication deficits and high levels of repetitive behaviors. This commentary briefly reviews the reciprocal relationship between observations made during evidence-based behavioral interventions of high- versus low-functioning children with ASD and the accumulating body of research in autism, including animal studies and basic research models. This reciprocity is one of the hallmarks of the scientific method, such that research may inform behavioral treatments, and observations made during treatment may inform subsequent research. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Learning through an Aboriginal Language: The Impact on Students' English and Aboriginal Language Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Usborne, Esther; Peck, Josephine; Smith, Donna-Lee; Taylor, Donald M.

2011-01-01

Aboriginal communities across Canada are implementing Aboriginal language programs in their schools. In the present research, we explore the impact of learning through an Aboriginal language on students' English and Aboriginal language skills by contrasting a Mi'kmaq language immersion program with a Mi'kmaq as a second language program. The…

Deficiencies in Basic Knowledge and Skills among High School Business Education Seniors.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goddard, M. Lee

1982-01-01

Conducted a study to determine the level of basic skills achievement among Ohio high school business education seniors. Found that these students lacked competency in general knowledge and in computational skills, basic English skills, and typewriting skills. (GC)

Coordination for the Improvement of Basic Skills.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roberts, Jane M. E.

The Title II Basic Skills legislation, which is part of the Educational Amendments of 1978, requires coordination of basic skills improvement among related federally-supported programs. Coordination, while essential, is made difficult by the proliferation of agencies and bureaus concerned with basic skills and by the need for autonomy among…

Stability of Core Language Skill across the First Decade of Life in Children at Biological and Social Risk

PubMed Central

Bornstein, Marc H.; Hahn, Chun-Shin; Putnick, Diane L.

2016-01-01

Background Command of language is a fundamental skill, a cornerstone of multiple cognitive and socioemotional aspects of development, and a necessary ingredient of successful adjustment and functioning in society. Little is known about the developmental stability of language in at-risk youth or which biological and social risk factors moderate stability. Methods This four-wave 10-year prospective longitudinal study evaluated stability of core language skill in 1780 children in varying categories of biological and social risk in a multiage, multidomain, multimeasure, and multireporter framework. Results Structural equation modeling supported loadings of diverse age-appropriate measures of child language on single latent variables of core language skill at 15 and 25 months and 5 and 11 years, respectively. Core language skill was stable over the first decade of life; significant and comparable stability coefficients were obtained for children with diverse biological and social risks, including poor health, welfare status, teen motherhood, ethnicity, gender, birth order, and families that changed in income and maternal education over the study period; stability in language was strong even accounting for child nonverbal intelligence and social competence, maternal education and language, and the family home environment. Conclusions Core language skill varies in stability with age but is robustly stable in children regardless of multiple biological and social risk factors. PMID:27605246

Redefining Individual Growth and Development Indicators: Oral Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bradfield, Tracy A.; Besner, Amanda C.; Wackerle-Hollman, Alisha K.; Albano, Anthony D.; Rodriguez, Michael C.; McConnell, Scott R.

2014-01-01

Language skills developed during preschool contribute strongly to later reading and academic achievement. Effective preschool assessment and intervention should focus on core components of language development, specifically oral language skills. The Early Language and Literacy Individual Growth and Development Indicators (IGDIs) are a set of…

Language Development of Three- to Twelve-Year-Old Twins Compared to Singletons.

PubMed

Dʼhaeseleer, Evelien; Geenens, Eline; Parmentier, Sarah; Corthals, Paul; Van Lierde, Kristiane

2016-01-01

The language development of twins tends to lag behind in comparison to that of singletons. The purpose of this study was to compare expressive and receptive language skills of 3- to 12-year-old twins with singletons. Secondly, correlations between language differences between twins and singletons and age were investigated. Twenty-four twins with a mean age of 5.1 years participated in the study. The control group consisted of 24 singletons who were matched for gender and age. Language development was investigated using the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals. Twins scored significantly lower for expressive and receptive language skills compared to singletons. Even when excluding preterm-born children, twins still scored significantly lower for expressive language skills. There was no correlation between age and language differences between twins and their matched singletons. Twins score lower for expressive and receptive language skills compared to singletons, and preterm birth cannot be regarded as the main cause for the language delay. The language delay in twins is rather mild but does not seem to decrease with increasing age. © 2016 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Do Early Literacy Skills in Children's First Language Promote Development of Skills in Their Second Language? An Experimental Evaluation of Transfer

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goodrich, J. Marc; Lonigan, Christopher J.; Farver, JoAnn M.

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the cross-language transfer of the emergent literacy skills of preschoolers who were Spanish-speaking language-minority children in the context of an experimental intervention study. Ninety-four children were randomly assigned either to a control condition (HighScope Preschool Curriculum) or to receive…

Fathers' and Mothers' Verbal Responsiveness and the Language Skills of Young Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder

PubMed Central

Watson, Linda R.

2015-01-01

Purpose In this observational study, we examined the interactions of 16 young children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and their parents to investigate (a) differences in verbal responsiveness used by fathers and mothers in interactions with their children with ASD and (b) concurrent associations between the language skills of children with ASD and the verbal responsiveness of both fathers and mothers. Method Parent verbal responsiveness was coded from video recordings of naturalistic parent–child play sessions using interval-based coding. Child language skills were measured by the Preschool Language Scale–Fourth Edition (Zimmerman, Steiner, & Pond, 2002). Results For both fathers and mothers, parent verbal responsiveness was positively associated with child language skills. Mothers' responsiveness was also significantly associated with child cognition. After controlling for child cognition, fathers' verbal responsiveness continued to be significantly related to child language skills. Conclusions Although other studies have documented associations between mothers' responsiveness and child language, this is the 1st study to document a significant concurrent association between child language skills of children with ASD and the verbal responsiveness of fathers. Findings of this study warrant the inclusion of fathers in future research on language development and intervention to better understand the potential contributions fathers may make to language growth for children with ASD over time as well as to determine whether coaching fathers to use responsive verbal strategies can improve language outcomes for children with ASD. PMID:25836377

Bidirectional Associations Among Sensitive Parenting, Language Development, and Social Competence

PubMed Central

Barnett, Melissa A.; Gustafsson, Hanna; Deng, Min; Mills-Koonce, W. Roger; Cox, Martha

2014-01-01

Rapid changes in language skills and social competence, both of which are linked to sensitive parenting, characterize early childhood. The present study examines bidirectional associations among mothers’ sensitive parenting and children’s language skills and social competence from 24 to 36 months in a community sample of 174 families. In addition, this study examines how these developmental pathways vary by child sex. Findings indicate stability across time in sensitive parenting, expressive language skills, and social competence, as well as positive main effects of sensitive parenting on expressive and receptive language skills for girls and boys. We find mixed evidence over time of reciprocal links between social competence and sensitive parenting. Further, boys’ receptive language skills at 24 months uniquely contribute to increases in mothers’ observed sensitive parenting from 24 to 36 months. These findings highlight the utility of applying transactional frameworks to the study of sex-based differences in early developmental processes. PMID:25126021

Using Oral Language Skills to Build on the Emerging Literacy of Adult English Learners. CAELA Network Brief

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vinogradov, Patsy; Bigelow, Martha

2010-01-01

In addition to learning to read and write for the first time, adult English language learners with limited or emerging literacy skills must acquire oral English. Often, learners with limited print literacy in their first language have oral skills in English that exceed their English literacy skills (Geva & Zadeh, 2006). While this mismatch of oral…

The Transfer of Reading Skills From First to Second Language: The Report of an Experiment with Spanish Speakers Learning English.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Deemer, Holly Beth

Certain aspects of the reading process have suggested that second language reading skills are determined to some extent by native language reading skills. Some of this research is reviewed here and an experiment is described in which the reading skills in Spanish and English of three groups of Spanish speakers learning English are compared.…

Dyslexia in adults: Evidence for deficits in non-word reading and in the phonological representation of lexical items.

PubMed

Elbro, C; Nielsen, I; Petersen, D K

1994-01-01

Difficulties in reading and language skills which persist from childhood into adult life are the concerns of this article. The aims were twofold: (1) to find measures of adult reading processes that validate adults' retrospective reports of difficulties in learning to read during the school years, and (2) to search for indications of basic deficits in phonological processing that may point toward underlying causes of reading difficulties. Adults who reported a history of difficulties in learning to read (n=102) were distinctly disabled in phonological coding in reading, compared to adults without similar histories (n=56). They were less disabled in the comprehension of written passages, and the comprehension disability was explained by the phonological difficulties. A number of indications were found that adults with poor phonological coding skills in reading (i.e., dyslexia) have basic deficits in phonological representations of spoken words, even when semantic word knowledge, phonemic awareness, educational level, and daily reading habits are taken into account. It is suggested that dyslexics possess less distinct phonological representations of spoken words.

Oral language and narrative skills in children with specific language impairment with and without literacy delay: a three-year longitudinal study.

PubMed

Vandewalle, Ellen; Boets, Bart; Boons, Tinne; Ghesquière, Pol; Zink, Inge

2012-01-01

This longitudinal study compared the development of oral language and more specifically narrative skills (storytelling and story retelling) in children with specific language impairment (SLI) with and without literacy delay. Therefore, 18 children with SLI and 18 matched controls with normal literacy were followed from the last year of kindergarten (mean age=5 years 5 months) until the beginning of grade 3 (mean age=8 years 1 month). Oral language tests measuring vocabulary, morphology, sentence and text comprehension and narrative skills were administered yearly. Based on first and third grade reading and spelling achievement, both groups were divided into a group with and a group without literacy problems. Results showed that the children with SLI and literacy delay had persistent oral language problems across all assessed language domains. The children with SLI and normal literacy skills scored also persistently low on vocabulary, morphology and story retelling skills. Only on listening comprehension and storytelling, they evolved towards the level of the control group. In conclusion, oral language skills in children with SLI and normal literacy skills remained in general poor, despite their intact literacy development during the first years of literacy instruction. Only for listening comprehension and storytelling, they improved, probably as a result of more print exposure. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Fine motor skills and expressive language: a study with children with congenital hypotyreoidism.

PubMed

Frezzato, Renata Camargo; Santos, Denise Castilho Cabrera; Goto, Maura Mikie Fukujima; Ouro, Michelle Prado Cabral do; Santos, Carolina Taddeo Mendes Dos; Dutra, Vivian; Lima, Maria Cecília Marconi Pinheiro

2017-03-09

To screen the global development of children with and without congenital hypothyroidism and to investigate the association between fine motor skills and expressive language development in both groups. This is a prospective study of a cohort of children diagnosed with Congenital Hypothyroidism and monitored in a reference service for congenital hypothyroidism of a public hospital and of children without this disorder. The screening was performed using the Bayley Scales of Infant Development III in the cognitive, gross and fine motor skills, and receptive and expressive language domains. The children's performance was expressed in three categories: competent, and non-competent. We screened 117 children with average age of 21 months diagnosed with Congenital Hypothyroidism at birth, with the Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH) level normalized during screening, and 51 children without the condition. The children with Congenital Hypothyroidism presented lower performance in gross and fine motor skills upon comparison between the two groups, and no differences were found in the cognitive and receptive and expressive language domains. The association between fine motor skills and language persisted in the group with Hypothyroidism, demonstrating that the interrelationship of skills is present in all individuals, although this group is two times more likely to present expressive language impairment when fine motor skills are already compromised. In the development process, both skills - motor and expressive language - might be associated and/or dependent on each other in the sample assessed.

Adult Basic Skills and the Kansas Workforce. Executive Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Krider, Charles E.; And Others

This report considers the basic skills levels of adults in Kansas, the provision of basic skills training by public and private agencies, and policy options for improving the basic skills of Kansas's workforce. Following a detailed executive report, chapter 1 reviews the workforce challenge, economic and technological changes, and shifts in…

We've Got the "HOTS" for Foreign Languages: Higher Order Thinking Skills.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harper, Jane; Lively, Madeleine

Five units of instruction for teaching vocabulary and higher order thinking skills in foreign language classes are presented. Introductory material considers the differences between language fluency and communication, and lists higher order thinking skills as: (1) classifying, verifying, hypothesizing; (2) making associations and generalizing; (3)…

Do Infant Vocabulary Skills Predict School-Age Language and Literacy Outcomes?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Duff, Fiona J.; Reen, Gurpreet; Plunkett, Kim; Nation, Kate

2015-01-01

Background: Strong associations between infant vocabulary and school-age language and literacy skills would have important practical and theoretical implications: Preschool assessment of vocabulary skills could be used to identify children at risk of reading and language difficulties, and vocabulary could be viewed as a cognitive foundation for…

Promoting Social Communication in a Child with Specific Language Impairment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

O'Handley, Roderick D.; Radley, Keith C.; Lum, John D. K.

2016-01-01

Social difficulties represent a major area of concern in children with specific language impairment (SLI). Social skills interventions targeting communication or language skills of children with SLI have been generally ineffective. The current study tested the efficacy of a social skills intervention consisting of multiple behavioral interventions…

Short Message Service (SMS) Language and Written Language Skills: Educators' Perspectives

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Geertsema, Salomé; Hyman, Charene; van Deventer, Chantelle

2011-01-01

SMS language is English language slang, used as a means of mobile phone text messaging. This practice may impact on the written language skills of learners at school. The main aim of this study was to determine the perspectives of Grade 8 and 9 English (as Home Language) educators in Gauteng regarding the possible influence of SMS language on…

Identifying children at risk for language impairment: screening of communication at 18 months.

PubMed

Bruce, B; Kornfält, R; Radeborg, K; Hansson, K; Nettelbladt, U

2003-09-01

To investigate the possibility of identifying children at risk for language impairment based on a new screening instrument to assess communication and language skills at 18 mo of age. At 18 mo, 58 children were assessed with a screening instrument for communication and language consisting of a professional assessment and a parents' questionnaire. Students of speech and language pathology, well trained in child language assessment, carried out the professional assessment, which was based on observations of play behaviour, interaction and expressive and receptive language skills. Of the 58 children, 43 attended a follow-up assessment of language skills at 54 mo of age. Nine children were considered to be at risk for language impairment at 18 mo and 10 children were evaluated as being at risk at 54 mo. A significant positive correlation was found between the professional evaluations at 18 mo and the language tests at 54 mo. Verbal comprehension and pretend play correlated significantly with the results on the language tests. A professional screening of communication and language at 18 mo of age is worthwhile for predicting problems in language development. The results further show that language comprehension and pretend play rather than expressive skills should be emphasized.

Auditory skills, language development, and adaptive behavior of children with cochlear implants and additional disabilities

PubMed Central

Beer, Jessica; Harris, Michael S.; Kronenberger, William G.; Holt, Rachael Frush; Pisoni, David B.

2012-01-01

Objective The objective of this study was to evaluate the development of functional auditory skills, language, and adaptive behavior in deaf children with cochlear implants (CI) who also have additional disabilities (AD). Design A two-group, pre-test versus post-test design was used. Study sample Comparisons were made between 23 children with CIs and ADs, and an age-matched comparison group of 23 children with CIs without ADs (No-AD). Assessments were obtained pre-CI and within 12 months post-CI. Results All but two deaf children with ADs improved in auditory skills using the IT-MAIS. Most deaf children in the AD group made progress in receptive but not expressive language using the Preschool Language Scale, but their language quotients were lower than the No-AD group. Five of eight children with ADs made progress in daily living skills and socialization skills; two made progress in motor skills. Children with ADs who did not make progress in language, did show progress in adaptive behavior. Conclusions Children with deafness and ADs made progress in functional auditory skills, receptive language, and adaptive behavior. Expanded assessment that includes adaptive functioning and multi-center collaboration is recommended to best determine benefits of implantation in areas of expected growth in this clinical population. PMID:22509948

Why do early mathematics skills predict later reading? The role of mathematical language.

PubMed

Purpura, David J; Logan, Jessica A R; Hassinger-Das, Brenna; Napoli, Amy R

2017-09-01

A growing body of evidence indicates that the development of mathematics and literacy skills is highly related. The importance of literacy skills-specifically language-for mathematics development has been well rationalized. However, despite several prominent studies indicating that mathematics skills are highly predictive of literacy development, the reason for this relation is not well understood. The purpose of this study was to identify how and why early mathematics is predictive of early literacy development. Participants included 125 preschool children 3-5 years old (M = 4 years 3 months). Participants were assessed on mathematics, literacy, and cognitive measures in both the fall and spring of their preschool year. Mediation analyses indicated that the relation between early mathematics and literacy skills is mediated by children's mathematical language skills. These findings suggest that, in prior research identifying mathematical performance as a significant predictor of later literacy skills, mathematical performance may have acted only as a proxy measure for more complex language skills such as those assessed on a mathematical language measure. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

Language in education: The case of Indonesia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nababan, P. W. J.

1991-03-01

Although over 400 languages are spoken in Indonesia, by 1986 60% of the population had some competence in the Indonesian national language, a substantial increase over 1971. Bahasa Indonesia was declared the state language in the 1945 constitution, and reformed spelling was agreed in 1972. It is the sole medium of instruction, except in the first three grades of elementary school in nine regions, where vernaculars may be used transitionally. Thereafter vernaculars are taught as school subjects. Bilingualism, and even multilingualism in Indonesian and one or more vernaculars and/or foreign languages is increasing, and despite the use of Indonesian for official documentary purposes at all levels it does not appear that vernaculars are dying out, although their spheres of use are restricted. Bahasa Indonesia fulfils the four functions: cognitive, instrumental, integrative and cultural, while vernaculars are only integrative and cultural. The curriculum of Indonesian, established centrally, is pragmatic or communicative. It is expressed in a standard syllabus for course books. This approach equally applies to foreign languages, which are introduced at secondary level, although here receptive reading is given more weight than productive skills. A full description of the syllabus organization of the various languages is given. Nonformal language learning also takes place, in the national basic education and literacy programme, which teaches Bahasa Indonesia, and in vocational courses in foreign languages for commerce.

A French-speaking speech-language pathology program in West Africa: transfer of training between Minority and Majority World countries.

PubMed

Topouzkhanian, Sylvia; Mijiyawa, Moustafa

2013-02-01

In West Africa, as in Majority World countries, people with a communication disability are generally cut-off from the normal development process. A long-term involvement of two partners (Orthophonistes du Monde and Handicap International) allowed the implementation in 2003 of the first speech-language pathology qualifying course in West Africa, within the Ecole Nationale des Auxiliaires Medicaux (ENAM, National School for Medical Auxiliaries) in Lome, Togo. It is a 3-year basic training (after the baccalaureate) in the only academic training centre for medical assistants in Togo. This department has a regional purpose and aims at training French-speaking African students. French speech-language pathology lecturers had to adapt their courses to the local realities they discovered in Togo. It was important to introduce and develop knowledge and skills in the students' system of reference. African speech-language pathologists have to face many challenges: creating an African speech and language therapy, introducing language disorders and their possible cure by means other than traditional therapies, and adapting all the evaluation tests and tools for speech-language pathology to each country, each culture, and each language. Creating an African speech-language pathology profession (according to its own standards) with a real influence in West Africa opens great opportunities for schooling and social and occupational integration of people with communication disabilities.

Have Basic Mathematical Skills Grown Obsolete in the Computer Age: Assessing Basic Mathematical Skills and Forecasting Performance in a Business Statistics Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Noser, Thomas C.; Tanner, John R.; Shah, Situl

2008-01-01

The purpose of this study was to measure the comprehension of basic mathematical skills of students enrolled in statistics classes at a large regional university, and to determine if the scores earned on a basic math skills test are useful in forecasting student performance in these statistics classes, and to determine if students' basic math…

Understanding How Babies Build Language Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Honig, Alice Sterling

2006-01-01

Language is a great communication system. Through language, humans can express logical reasoning, grief, happiness, wishes, descriptions, and a rich array of feelings and ideas. Every baby deserves the gift of language power! In this article, the author discusses how babies build language skills and presents activities to help babies build…

Four Language Skills Performance, Academic Achievement, and Learning Strategy Use in Preservice Teacher Training Programs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shawer, Saad Fathy

2016-01-01

This article examines the differences in language learning strategies (LLS) use between preservice teachers of English as a foreign language (EFL) and Arabic as a second language (ASL). It also examines the relationship between LLS use and language performance (academic achievement and four language skills) among ASL students. The study made use…

Componential Skills in Second Language Development of Bilingual Children with Specific Language Impairment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Verhoeven, Ludo; Steenge, Judit; van Leeuwe, Jan; van Balkom, Hans

2017-01-01

In this study, we investigated which componential skills can be distinguished in the second language (L2) development of 140 bilingual children with specific language impairment in the Netherlands, aged 6-11 years, divided into 3 age groups. L2 development was assessed by means of spoken language tasks representing different language skills…

Linguistic Interdependence between Spanish Language and English Language and Reading: A Longitudinal Exploration from Second through Fifth Grade

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Proctor, C. Patrick; Harring, Jeffrey R.; Silverman, Rebecca D.

2017-01-01

This study explored effects of Spanish oral language skills (vocabulary and syntax) on the development of English oral language skills (vocabulary, morphology, semantics, syntax) and reading comprehension among 156 bilingual Latino children in second through fifth grade whose first language was Spanish and whose second language was English. Using…

First, You Have to Hear It! ESL Oral Language Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

LeLoup, Jean W.; Ponterio, Robert

2005-01-01

There is no question that the development of oral language skills in second (as well as first) language learners is of prime importance. Language learners must focus on oral language proficiency because it is eventually the skill they will most use. But oracy in second language learners does not develop in a vacuum. It is inextricably intertwined…

Language Problems Among Abused and Neglected Children: A Meta-Analytic Review.

PubMed

Sylvestre, Audette; Bussières, Ève-Line; Bouchard, Caroline

2016-02-01

Research data show that exposure to abuse and neglect has detrimental effects on a child's language development. In this meta-analysis, we analyze studies (k = 23), to compare the language skills (receptive language, expressive language, pragmatics) of children who have experienced abuse and/or neglect with the language skills of children who have not experienced abuse and/or neglect and to examine whether age or type of maltreatment moderate the relationship between maltreatment and language skills. Results confirm that the language skills of children who have experienced abuse and/or neglect are delayed when compared to children who have not experienced abuse and/or neglect. Compared to older children, young children seem particularly vulnerable to abuse and neglect. No significant differences were demonstrated concerning the type of maltreatment suffered by the child. These findings support the necessity of early detection of language problems in abused and neglected children as well as early intervention in order to implement interventions that will positively stimulate their development. © The Author(s) 2015.

The Effect of Language Specific Factors on Early Written Composition: The Role of Spelling, Oral Language and Text Generation Skills in a Shallow Orthography

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arfé, Barbara; Dockrell, Julie E.; De Bernardi, Bianca

2016-01-01

Spelling skills have been identified as one of the major barriers to written text production in young English writers. By contrast oral language skills and text generation have been found to be less influential in the texts produced by beginning writers. To date, our understanding of the role of spelling skills in transparent orthographies is…

Do L2 Writing Courses Affect the Improvement of L1 Writing Skills via Skills Transfer from L2 to L1?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gonca, Altmisdort

2016-01-01

This study investigates the relationship of second language (L2) writing skills proficiency with the first language (L1) writing skills, in light of the language transfer. The study aims to analyze the positive effects of L2 writing proficiency on L1 writing proficiency. Forty native Turkish-speaking university students participated in the study.…

Growth of Reading Skills in Children with a History of Specific Language Impairment: The Role of Autistic Symptomatology and Language-Related Abilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

St. Clair, Michelle C.; Durkin, Kevin; Conti-Ramsden, Gina; Pickles, Andrew

2010-01-01

Individuals with a history of specific language impairment (SLI) often have subsequent problems with reading skills, but there have been some discrepant findings as to the developmental time course of these skills. This study investigates the developmental trajectories of reading skills over a 9-year time-span (from 7 to 16 years of age) in a…

The Effects of Multisensory Structured Language Instruction on Native Language and Foreign Language Aptitude Skills of At-Risk High School Foreign Language Learners.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sparks, Richard; And Others

1992-01-01

A multisensory structured language (MSL) approach was utilized with two groups of at-risk high school students (n=63), taught in either English and Spanish (MSL/ES) or Spanish only. Foreign language aptitude improved for both groups and native language skills for the MSL/ES group. A group receiving traditional foreign language instruction showed…

Fine motor skill predicts expressive language in infant siblings of children with autism.

PubMed

LeBarton, Eve Sauer; Iverson, Jana M

2013-11-01

We investigated whether fine motor and expressive language skills are related in the later-born siblings of children with autism (heightened-risk, HR infants) who are at increased risk for language delays. We observed 34 HR infants longitudinally from 12 to 36 months. We used parent report and standardized observation measures to assess fine motor skill from 12 to 24 months in HR infants (Study 1) and its relation to later expressive vocabulary at 36 months in HR infants (Study 2). In Study 1, we also included 25 infants without a family history of autism to serve as a normative comparison group for a parent-report fine motor measure. We found that HR infants exhibited fine motor delays between 12 and 24 months and expressive vocabulary delays at 36 months. Further, fine motor skill significantly predicted expressive language at 36 months. Fine motor and expressive language skills are related early in development in HR infants, who, as a group, exhibit risk for delays in both. Our findings highlight the importance of considering fine motor skill in children at risk for language impairments and may have implications for early identification of expressive language difficulties. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Computerized Sign Language-Based Literacy Training for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Children

PubMed Central

Holmer, Emil; Heimann, Mikael; Rudner, Mary

2017-01-01

Abstract Strengthening the connections between sign language and written language may improve reading skills in deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) signing children. The main aim of the present study was to investigate whether computerized sign language-based literacy training improves reading skills in DHH signing children who are learning to read. Further, longitudinal associations between sign language skills and developing reading skills were investigated. Participants were recruited from Swedish state special schools for DHH children, where pupils are taught in both sign language and spoken language. Reading skills were assessed at five occasions and the intervention was implemented in a cross-over design. Results indicated that reading skills improved over time and that development of word reading was predicted by the ability to imitate unfamiliar lexical signs, but there was only weak evidence that it was supported by the intervention. These results demonstrate for the first time a longitudinal link between sign-based abilities and word reading in DHH signing children who are learning to read. We suggest that the active construction of novel lexical forms may be a supramodal mechanism underlying word reading development. PMID:28961874

Computerized Sign Language-Based Literacy Training for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Children.

PubMed

Holmer, Emil; Heimann, Mikael; Rudner, Mary

2017-10-01

Strengthening the connections between sign language and written language may improve reading skills in deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) signing children. The main aim of the present study was to investigate whether computerized sign language-based literacy training improves reading skills in DHH signing children who are learning to read. Further, longitudinal associations between sign language skills and developing reading skills were investigated. Participants were recruited from Swedish state special schools for DHH children, where pupils are taught in both sign language and spoken language. Reading skills were assessed at five occasions and the intervention was implemented in a cross-over design. Results indicated that reading skills improved over time and that development of word reading was predicted by the ability to imitate unfamiliar lexical signs, but there was only weak evidence that it was supported by the intervention. These results demonstrate for the first time a longitudinal link between sign-based abilities and word reading in DHH signing children who are learning to read. We suggest that the active construction of novel lexical forms may be a supramodal mechanism underlying word reading development. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press.

The BASIC Instructional Program: Conversion into MAINSAIL Language.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dageforde, Mary L.

This report summarizes the rewriting of the BASIC Instructional Program (BIP) (a "hands-on laboratory" that teaches elementary programming in the BASIC language) from SAIL (a programming language available only on PDP-10 computers) into MAINSAIL (a language designed for portability on a broad class of computers). Four sections contain…

Setting Up Workplace Basic Skills Training. Guidelines for Practitioners. An ALBSU Special Development Project.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rees, Libby

This guide provides information on basic skills needs and programs in the workplace and issues affecting basic skills provision from a British perspective. Section 1 aims to provide a context for workplace basic skills provision. Sections 2-7 provide practical suggestions and advice on the following topics: (1) marketing; (2) contacting employers;…

What's Working: Program Factors Influencing California Community College Basic Skills Mathematics Students' Advancement to Transfer Level

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fiero, Diane M.

2013-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine which basic skills program factors were exhibited by successful basic skills programs that helped students advance to transfer-level mathematics. This study specifically examined California community college basic skills programs that assist students who place in mathematics courses 2 levels…

Relationships between Language Teachers' Time-Management Skills, Creativity, and Burnout: A Mediation Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mahmoodi-Shahrebabaki, Masoud

2015-01-01

The present study aimed to investigate the effects of language teachers' time management and creativity skills on their burnout levels. The sample consisted of 213 Iranian language teachers. The Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI), Creative Behavior Inventory (CBI) and Time Management Skills Questionnaire (TMSQ) were employed for data collection. By…

Listening Strategy Preferences in Multimedia Environment: A Study on Iranian Female Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fini, Lili

2016-01-01

Listening skill has been recently paid great attention comparing with the other three language skills since having communication is the first and most essential need. Language learners have been using the three different listening strategies (Cognitive, Meta-cognitive, and Socio-affective) to improve their listening skills in multimedia…

Reading Comprehension, Working Memory and Higher-Level Language Skills in Children with SLI and/or Dyslexia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wong, Anita M.-Y.; Ho, Connie S.-H.; Au, Terry K.-F.; McBride, Catherine; Ng, Ashley K.-H.; Yip, Lesley P.-W.; Lam, Catherine C.-C.

2017-01-01

This study examined (1) whether working memory and higher-level languages skills--inferencing and comprehension monitoring--accounted for individual differences among Chinese children in Chinese reading comprehension, after controlling for age, Chinese word reading and oral language skills, and (2) whether children with specific language…

An Appraisal of the Importance of Graduates' Language Skills and ERASMUS Experiences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mattern, Delfina

2016-01-01

This article discusses the importance of graduates' language skills and their European Regional Action Scheme for the Mobility of University Students (ERASMUS) experiences. The purpose of the research is to establish whether the potential benefits of ERASMUS participation for employability, particularly with regard to language skills, mean that…

Improving the Language Skills of Pre-Kindergarten Students: Preliminary Impacts of the "Let's Know!" Experimental Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johanson, Megan; Arthur, Ann M.

2016-01-01

Background: Improving children's oral language skills is an important focus of educational research and practice; however, relatively few interventions have demonstrated impacts on these skills. This work makes a unique contribution to our understanding of the effects of language-focused interventions in pre-kindergarten settings by examining…

Expressive versus Receptive Language Skills in Specific Reading Disorder

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stojanovik, Vesna; Riddell, Patricia

2008-01-01

Despite ample research into the language skills of children with specific reading disorder no studies so far have investigated whether there may be a difference between expressive and receptive language skills in this population. Yet, neuro-anatomical models would predict that children who have specific reading disorder which is not associated…

Are Listening Skills Best Enhanced through the Use of Multimedia Technology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sejdiu, Sejdi

2017-01-01

Listening comprehension is essential to L2 learning. Pupils who are able to demonstrate L2 listening skills are able to demonstrate proficiency in other language skills. Due to the relatively unappreciated role of listening in language development, educators and language experts have been actively promoting the equal or emphasized enhancement of…

Probing EFL Students' Language Skill Development in Tertiary Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Hong

2008-01-01

Research in second or foreign language learning indicates that for adult learners, the improvement of one language skill facilitates the development of other skills. The purpose of this study was to investigate the correlations among Chinese EFL students' reading, writing, and listening development by examining their test scores on the College…

The Relationship of Phonological Skills to Language Skills in Spanish-English-Speaking Bilingual Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cooperson, Solaman J.; Bedore, Lisa M.; Pena, Elizabeth D.

2013-01-01

These two studies investigate the relationship between phonological production skills and performance in other domains of language in Spanish-English-speaking bilingual children. We examine the relationship between scores on a single-word phonology test and language measures selected from formal testing and narrative samples in Spanish and…

Proficiency Verification Systems (PVS): Skills Indices for Language Arts. Technical Note.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Humes, Ann

The procedures undertaken in developing and organizing skills indexes for use in coding elementary school language arts textbooks to determine what is actually taught are presented in this paper. The outlined procedures included performing a preliminary analysis on four language arts textbooks to compile an extensive list of skills and performance…

Direct and Mediated Effects of Language and Cognitive Skills on Comprehension or Oral Narrative Texts (Listening Comprehension) for Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kim, Young-Suk Grace

2016-01-01

We investigated component language and cognitive skills of oral language comprehension of narrative texts (i.e., listening comprehension). Using the construction--integration model of text comprehension as an overarching theoretical framework, we examined direct and mediated relations of foundational cognitive skills (working memory and…

The Difficulties That Seventh Grade Students Face in Comprehensive Reading Skill for English Curricula

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Albdour, Waddah Mahmoud

2015-01-01

The study aims at identifying the difficulties affecting the student in the area of reading comprehension skill in English language curricula, measuring the differences in English language teachers' attitudes towards difficulties that seventh grade students face in reading comprehension skill for English language according to personal variables.…

Peer effects in early childhood education: testing the assumptions of special-education inclusion.

PubMed

Justice, Laura M; Logan, Jessica A R; Lin, Tzu-Jung; Kaderavek, Joan N

2014-09-01

There has been a push in recent years for students with disabilities to be educated alongside their typically developing peers, a practice called inclusion. In this study, we sought to determine whether peer effects operate within early-childhood special-education (ECSE) classrooms in which preschoolers with disabilities are educated alongside typical peers. Peer effects specific to language growth were assessed for 670 preschoolers (mean age = 52 months) in 83 ECSE classrooms; 55% of the children had disabilities. We found that the average language skills of classmates, as assessed in the fall of the year, significantly predicted children's language skills in the spring (after controlling for their relative skill level in the fall); in addition, there was a significant interactive effect of disability status (i.e., the presence or absence of a disability) and peers' language skills. Peer effects were the least consequential for children without disabilities whose classmates had relatively strong language skills, and the most consequential for children with disabilities whose classmates had relatively poor language skills. © The Author(s) 2014.

Cognitive and language skills of Turkish children in Germany: a comparison of the second and third generation and mixed generational groups.

PubMed

Becker, Birgit

2011-01-01

The paper compares several generational groups of Turkish children in Germany with respect to cognitive skills and German language skills at an early age. Empirically, children of inter-marriages outperform the other groups of Turkish children in both tests while children with a first generation mother and a second generation father score worse than all others. All group differences regarding children’s cognitive skills can be explained by the families’ socio-economic status and educational resources. In contrast, with respect to children’s language skills also parents’ endowment with receiving country specific resources (e.g., parental German language proficiency) needs to be taken into account.

Basic Color Terms in Estonian Sign Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hollman, Liivi; Sutrop, Urmas

2011-01-01

The article is written in the tradition of Brent Berlin and Paul Kay's theory of basic color terms. According to this theory there is a universal inventory of eleven basic color categories from which the basic color terms of any given language are always drawn. The number of basic color terms varies from 2 to 11 and in a language having a fully…

Studying the Ability of 7th Grade Students to Define the Circle and Its Elements in the Context of Mathematical Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Akarsu, Esra; Yilmaz, Süha

2015-01-01

In this study, it was aimed to study the mathematical language skills that the 7th grade students use in defining the circle and its elements. In the study, the mathematical language skills of students that they use in defining the circle and its elements in a scenario were compared to the mathematical language skills they use in defining them…

Teacher's Handbook for English for Living: A Set of Materials Designed to Teach Coping Skills and Language Skills to Adolescents for Whom English Is a Second Language.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

New York State Education Dept., Albany. Bureau of Bilingual Education.

This guide provides directions for teaching a series of units on survival skills in English as a second language (ESL). A brief general background of second language instruction and a short bibliography are included. The modules cover: (1) "Getting a Driver's License and Buying a Car"; (2) "Want Ads and Employment Agencies";…

Tableau's Influence on the Oral Language Skills of Students with Language-Based Learning Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Anderson, Alida; Berry, Katherine A.

2017-01-01

This study examined the influence of tableau on the expressive language skills of three students with language-based learning disabilities in inclusive urban fourth-grade English language arts (ELA) classroom settings. Data were collected on linguistic productivity, specificity, and narrative cohesion through analysis of students' responses to…

The Role of Language and Private Speech in Preschoolers' Self-Regulation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bono, Katherine E.; Bizri, Rana

2014-01-01

The present study explored relations among language skills, private speech, and self-regulation in three- to five-year-old children. Language skills were assessed with a standardised measure of language ability and by teacher reports of adaptive use of language in the classroom. Private speech was measured by observing children during a…

Using Trialogues to Measure English Language Skills

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

So, Youngsoon; Zapata-Rivera, Diego; Cho, Yeonsuk; Luce, Christine; Battistini, Laura

2015-01-01

We explored the use of technology-assisted, trialogue-based tasks to measure the English language proficiency of students learning English as a second or foreign language. A presumed benefit of the system for language assessment is its suitability for use in scenario-based tasks that integrate multiple language skills. This integration allows test…

Building a Language-Focused Curriculum for the Preschool Classroom. Volume II: A Planning Guide.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bunce, Betty H.

A language-focused curriculum emphasizes the development of language skills as a key to learning. The curriculum is designed to be appropriate for 3- to 5-year-olds, whether having difficulty acquiring language, developing language skills at a typical rate, or learning English as a second language. Intended to accompany the first volume's…

Gesture, Play, and Language Development of Spanish-Speaking Toddlers with Developmental Language Disorders: A Preliminary Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Guiberson, Mark

2016-01-01

The purpose of this preliminary study was to (a) examine relationships between the symbolic and language skills of a mixed (developmental language disordered [DLD] and typical language [TL]) Spanish-speaking sample; (b) describe gesture, play, and language skills of DLD and TL groups; (c) compare the development between groups; and (d) explore…

STS Case Study Development Support

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rosa de Jesus, Dan A.; Johnson, Grace K.

2013-01-01

The Shuttle Case Study Collection (SCSC) has been developed using lessons learned documented by NASA engineers, analysts, and contractors. The SCSC provides educators with a new tool to teach real-world engineering processes with the goal of providing unique educational materials that enhance critical thinking, decision-making and problem-solving skills. During this third phase of the project, responsibilities included: the revision of the Hyper Text Markup Language (HTML) source code to ensure all pages follow World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) standards, and the addition and edition of website content, including text, documents, and images. Basic HTML knowledge was required, as was basic knowledge of photo editing software, and training to learn how to use NASA's Content Management System for website design. The outcome of this project was its release to the public.

Meaning Negotiated Through Independently-Written Summaries and Oral Academic Conversations: Enhancing Comprehension of Science Text by Ninth-Grade, English Learners

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Burke, Edward Charles

English Learners experience challenges related to comprehension of science text particularly at the high school level. The language of science differs significantly from that of conversation and expository text. Students benefit from collaborative interpretation of readings. Additionally, there appears to be a need to train adolescents in the oral language skills requisite for academic discourse. This study employed a sample of high school physical science students (N = 75) whose first language was Spanish and who were currently developing English language proficiency. It used quasi-experimental methodology with treatment and comparison groups, during the normal operations of the public school classroom. It tested the effect of training with a textbook summarization method and with an academic conversation strategy on the comprehension of state-adopted science textbook readings. Posttest scores of both groups were analyzed using an ANOVA. Posttest scores of treatment group members were analyzed in relation to prior science knowledge, reading level, gender, and level of English proficiency using a factorial ANOVA. Findings suggest that the treatment had a positive impact on the achievement of students who had a low level of English language proficiency. In light of the at-risk nature of this population, given low socioeconomic status and that a high percentage of families are migrant workers, this in encouraging. The basic premise of the treatment appears promising. Evidence collected pertaining to its effect relative to students' general ESOL level, science background knowledge, literacy skills, and gender neither confirmed nor denied the viability of the strategy. The further significance of this study is that it adds to the body of research on strategies to support English Learners.

New Skills for a New Economy: Adult Education's Key Role in Sustaining Economic Growth and Expanding Opportunity.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Comings, John; Sum, Andrew; Uvin, Johan

The role of adult education in sustaining economic growth and expanding opportunity in Massachusetts was explored. The analysis focused on the new basic skills needed for a new economy, groups lacking the new basic skills, the demand for adult basic education (ABE), funding for ABE, building basic skills through adult education, ABE's costs and…

A Multi-Faceted Approach for the Development of the Army's Functional Basic Skills Education Program (BSEP).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Begland, Robert R.

In reviewing the Army Continuing Education System in 1979, the Assistant Secretary of the Army found a basic skills program based on traditional academic level goals was inadequate to meet the Army's requirement to provide functional, job-related basic skill education. Combining the shrinking manpower pool and projected basic skill deficiencies of…

The Effects of Basketball Basic Skills Training on Gross Motor Skills Development of Female Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bayazit, Betul

2015-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of basketball basic skills training on gross motor skills development of female children in Turkey. For that purpose, 40 female children took part in the study voluntarily. Basketball basic skills test was used to improve the gross motor skills of the female children in the study. Also,…

Working Memory and Language: Skill-Specific or Domain-General Relations to Mathematics?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Purpura, David J.; Ganley, Colleen M.

2014-01-01

Children's early mathematics skills develop in a cumulative fashion; foundational skills form a basis for the acquisition of later skills. However, non-mathematical factors such as working memory and language skills have also been linked to mathematical development at a broad level. Unfortunately, little research has been conducted to evaluate the…

Precursors of Reading Difficulties in Czech and Slovak Children At-Risk of Dyslexia.

PubMed

Moll, Kristina; Thompson, Paul A; Mikulajova, Marina; Jagercikova, Zuzana; Kucharska, Anna; Franke, Helena; Hulme, Charles; Snowling, Margaret J

2016-05-01

Children with preschool language difficulties are at high risk of literacy problems; however, the nature of the relationship between delayed language development and dyslexia is not understood. Three hundred eight Slovak and Czech children were recruited into three groups: family risk of dyslexia, speech/language difficulties and controls, and were assessed three times from kindergarten until Grade 1. There was a twofold increase in probability of reading problems in each risk group. Precursors of 'dyslexia' included difficulties in oral language and code-related skills (phoneme awareness, letter-knowledge and rapid automatized naming); poor performance in phonological memory and vocabulary was observed in both affected and unaffected high-risk peers. A two-group latent variable path model shows that early language skills predict code-related skills, which in turn predict literacy skills. Findings suggest that dyslexia in Slavic languages has its origins in early language deficits, and children who succumb to reading problems show impaired code-related skills before the onset of formal reading instruction. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

From First Language Literacy to Second Language Proficiency to Second Language Literacy: The Act of Writing in a Foreign Language Context.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Crerand, Mary E. Lavin

A study investigated how a second language (L2) learner's writing skills develop in a second-language context. The three research questions addressed the effect of: (1) first-language (L1) literacy skills, (2) L2 proficiency, and (3) the instructional context on L2 writing. Subjects were 70 university French students. Data were drawn from 300…

Increased Stroop interference with better second-language reading skill.

PubMed

Braet, Wouter; Noppe, Nele; Wagemans, Johan; Op de Beeck, Hans

2011-03-01

Skilled readers demonstrate remarkable efficiency in processing written words, unlike beginning readers for whom reading occurs more serially and places higher demands on visual attention. In the present study, we used the Stroop paradigm to investigate the relationship between reading skill and automaticity, in individuals learning a second language with a different orthographic system. Prior studies using this paradigm have presented a mixed picture, finding a positive, a negative, or no relationship between the size of Stroop interference and reading skills. Our results show that Stroop interference in the second language was positively related to reading skill (when controlled for interference in the first language). Furthermore, interference was positively related to objective but not subjective indices of the amount of exposure to the second language. We suggest that the lack of consistency in the results of earlier studies may be due, at least in part, to these studies looking at Stroop interference in isolation, rather than comparing interference between languages.

Analysis of Children's Errors in Comprehension and Expression

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hatcher, Ryan C.; Breaux, Kristina C.; Liu, Xiaochen; Bray, Melissa A.; Ottone-Cross, Karen L.; Courville, Troy; Luria, Sarah R.; Langley, Susan Dulong

2017-01-01

Children's oral language skills typically begin to develop sooner than their written language skills; however, the four language systems (listening, speaking, reading, and writing) then develop concurrently as integrated strands that influence one another. This research explored relationships between students' errors in language comprehension of…

Methodological adaptations for investigating the perceptions of language-impaired adolescents regarding the relative importance of selected communication skills.

PubMed

Reed, Vicki A; Brammall, Helen

2006-01-01

This article describes the systematic and detailed processes undertaken to modify a research methodology for use with language-impaired adolescents. The original methodology had been used previously with normally achieving adolescents and speech pathologists to obtain their opinions about the relative importance of selected communication skills for adolescents' positive peer relationships. Modifications attempted to address language-impaired adolescents' characteristic metalinguistic, literacy, cognitive, and information processing weaknesses. Revising the original wording of the communication skills, reducing the reading level of the skills from grade 10 to 4.6, using a Q-sort approach to ranking the importance of the skills, and revising the instructions and administration procedures led to what pilot testing results indicated was a valid methodology for use with language-impaired adolescents. Results of a preliminary study using the revised methodology suggested that language-impaired adolescents may perceive the relative importance of some communication skills differently from their normally achieving peers.

Students who are deaf and hard of hearing and use sign language: considerations and strategies for developing spoken language and literacy skills.

PubMed

Nussbaum, Debra; Waddy-Smith, Bettie; Doyle, Jane

2012-11-01

There is a core body of knowledge, experience, and skills integral to facilitating auditory, speech, and spoken language development when working with the general population of students who are deaf and hard of hearing. There are additional issues, strategies, and challenges inherent in speech habilitation/rehabilitation practices essential to the population of deaf and hard of hearing students who also use sign language. This article will highlight philosophical and practical considerations related to practices used to facilitate spoken language development and associated literacy skills for children and adolescents who sign. It will discuss considerations for planning and implementing practices that acknowledge and utilize a student's abilities in sign language, and address how to link these skills to developing and using spoken language. Included will be considerations for children from early childhood through high school with a broad range of auditory access, language, and communication characteristics. Thieme Medical Publishers 333 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10001, USA.

Growth of reading skills in children with a history of specific language impairment: the role of autistic symptomatology and language-related abilities.

PubMed

St Clair, Michelle C; Durkin, Kevin; Conti-Ramsden, Gina; Pickles, Andrew

2010-03-01

Individuals with a history of specific language impairment (SLI) often have subsequent problems with reading skills, but there have been some discrepant findings as to the developmental time course of these skills. This study investigates the developmental trajectories of reading skills over a 9-year time-span (from 7 to 16 years of age) in a large sample of individuals with a history of SLI. Relationships among reading skills, autistic symptomatology, and language-related abilities were also investigated. The results indicate that both reading accuracy and comprehension are deficient but that the development of these skills progresses in a consistently parallel fashion to what would be expected from a normative sample of same age peers. Language-related abilities were strongly associated with reading skills. Unlike individuals with SLI only, those with SLI and additional autistic symptomatology had adequate reading accuracy but did not differ from the individuals with SLI only in reading comprehension. They exhibited a significant gap between what they could read and what they could understand when reading. These findings provide strong evidence that individuals with SLI experience continued, long-term deficits in reading skills from childhood to adolescence.

Commonalities and Differences in Word Identification Skills among Learners of English as a Second Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Min; Koda, Keiko

2007-01-01

This study examined word identification skills between two groups of college students with different first language (L1) backgrounds (Chinese and Korean) learning to read English as a second language (ESL). Word identification skills were tested in a naming experiment and an auditory category judgment task. Both groups of ESL learners demonstrated…

Phonology in Second Language Reading: Not an Optional Extra

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walter, Catherine

2008-01-01

In examining reading comprehension in a second language (L2), I have demonstrated that the prevailing metaphor of transfer of skills is misleading, and that what happens is access to an already existing general cognitive skill. There is evidence in first language (L1) and in L2 that accessing this skill when reading in an alphabetic language…

Improving the Language Skills of Pre-Kindergarten Students: Preliminary Impacts of the "Let's Know!" Experimental Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johanson, Megan; Arthur, Ann M.

2016-01-01

Background: Improving children's oral language skills is an important focus of educational research and practice; however, relatively few interventions have demonstrated impacts on these skills. This work makes a unique contribution to our understanding of the effects of language-focused interventions in pre-kindergarten settings by examining…

Toward The Goal Of Video Deaf Communication Over Public Telephone Lines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Healy, Donald J.; Clements, Mark A.

1986-11-01

At least 500,000 profoundly deaf persons in the United States communicate primarily by American Sign Language (ASL), a language quite distinct from English and not well suited to writing. Currently, telephone communication for an ASL user is basically limited to use of a teletype machine, which requires both typing skills and proficiency in English. This paper reviews recent research relevant to the development of techniques which would allow manual communication across existing telephone channels using video imagery. Two possibilities for such manual communication are ASL and cued speech. The latter technique uses hand signals to aid lip reading. In either case, conventional television video transmission would require a bandwidth many times that available on a telephone channel. The achievement of visual communication using sign language or cued speech at data rates below 10 kbps, low enough to be transmitted over a public telephone line, will require the development of new data reducing algorithms. Avenues for future research toward this goal are presented.

Exploring the Language and Literacy Outcomes of Pediatric Cochlear Implant Users

PubMed Central

Spencer, Linda J.; Barker, Brittan A.; Tomblin, J. Bruce

2011-01-01

Objective The principal goal of this study was to investigate the relationship between language and literacy (i.e., reading and writing) skills in pediatric cochlear implant users. A peripheral objective was to identify the children's skills that were in need of remediation and subsequently to provide suggestions for remedial programming. It was predicted that the robust language skills often associated with children who have cochlear implant experience would facilitate the development of literacy skills. It was further proposed that the language and literacy skills of pediatric cochlear implant users would approximate the language and literacy skills of children with normal hearing. Design Sixteen pediatric cochlear implant users' language and literacy skills were evaluated and then compared with a reference group of 16 age-matched, normal-hearing children. All 32 participants were educated in mainstream classes within the public school system in the Midwest. The “Sentence Formulation” and “Concepts and Directions” subtests of the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals-3 test were used to evaluate receptive and expressive language skills. Reading comprehension was evaluated with the “Paragraph Comprehension” subtest of the Woodcock Reading Mastery Test. Performance measures for the writing analyses included productivity, complexity and grammaticality measures. Results Children with cochlear implants performed within 1 SD of the normal-hearing, age-matched children on measures of language comprehension, reading comprehension and writing accuracy. However, the children with cochlear implants performed significantly poorer than the children with normal hearing on the expressive “Sentence Formulation” subtest. The cochlear implant users also produced fewer words on the written narrative task than did the normal-hearing children, although there was not a significant difference between groups with respect to total words per clause. Furthermore there was a strong correlation between language performance and reading performance, as well as language performance and total words produced on the written performance measure for the children using cochlear implants. Conclusions The results of this study suggest that the language skills of pediatric cochlear implant users are related to and correlated with the development of literacy skills within these children. Consequently, the performance of the cochlear implant users, on various language and literacy measures, compared favorably to an age-matched group of children with normal hearing. There were significant differences in the ability of the cochlear implant users to correctly utilize grammatical structures such as conjunctions and correct verb forms when they were required to formulate written and oral sentences. Given this information, it would be appropriate for their educational or remedial language programs to emphasize the use and development of these structures. PMID:12799546

Washington State's Integrated Basic Education and Skills Training Program (I-BEST): New Evidence of Effectiveness. CCRC Working Paper No. 20

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zeidenberg, Matthew; Cho, Sung-Woo; Jenkins, Davis

2010-01-01

To increase the rate at which adult basic skills students advance to and succeed in college-level occupational programs, the Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC) developed the Integrated Basic Education and Skills Training, or I-BEST. In the I-BEST model, a basic skills instructor and an occupational instructor team…

Language-specific skills in intercultural healthcare communication: Comparing perceived preparedness and skills in nurses' first and second languages.

PubMed

Gasiorek, Jessica; van de Poel, Kris

2018-02-01

Interactions between people from different cultures are becoming increasingly commonplace in contemporary healthcare settings. To date, most research evaluating cross-cultural preparedness has assumed that medical professionals are speaking their first language (L1). However, as healthcare workers are increasingly mobile and patient populations are increasingly diverse, more and more interactions are likely to occur in a professional's non-native language (L2). This study assessed and compared nurses' perceived cross-cultural preparedness and skillfulness in their interactions with patients from other cultures when speaking both their L1 and L2. The goal of this project was to inform the creation of a communication skills training program. Nurses reported their perceived cross-cultural preparedness and skillfulness (scales adapted from Park et al., 2009) in their L1 and L2 via an online questionnaire. This questionnaire was distributed among nurses working in Vienna, Austria, through the Vienna Hospital Association (VHA). Nurses and nurses-in-training working in VHA hospitals participated. Most participants who provided demographic information were currently nurses (n=179) with an average of 16.88years (SD=11.50) of professional experience (range: 0-40); n=40 were nurses-in-training with an average of 2.13years (SD=0.88) of experience (range: 1-5). Descriptive statistics for each cross-cultural preparedness and skillfulness (in each language) are reported; comparisons between L1 and L2 responses were also conducted. Multiple regression analyses were used to identify predictors of preparedness and L1/L2 skillfulness. Nurses reported feeling significantly less confident in their skills when working in an L2, across a range of culture-related issues. Having had previous communication skills training predicted (better) self-reported L2 skillfulness, although it did not predict L1 skillfulness. These results indicate that there is a language-specific component to cross-cultural skillfulness. Thus, there is a need for language-specific skills training to address L2 skill deficits. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Employers' Perceptions of Basic Technology Skills Needed for Workplace Preparation in Adult Basic Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yow, Alma V.

2010-01-01

Research has documented that many new entrants to the workforce from adult basic education (ABE) programs are critically lacking in the preparation and technology skills needed for workplace success. To address this problem, this basic interpretive qualitative study was implemented to examine and identify the basic technology skills perceived by…

Website Analysis as a Tool for Task-Based Language Learning and Higher Order Thinking in an EFL Context

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roy, Debopriyo

2014-01-01

Besides focusing on grammar, writing skills, and web-based language learning, researchers in "CALL" and second language acquisition have also argued for the importance of promoting higher-order thinking skills in ESL (English as Second Language) and EFL (English as Foreign Language) classrooms. There is solid evidence supporting the…

Using Primary Language Support via Computer to Improve Reading Comprehension Skills of First-Grade English Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rodriguez, Cathi Draper; Filler, John; Higgins, Kyle

2012-01-01

Through this exploratory study the authors investigated the effects of primary language support delivered via computer on the English reading comprehension skills of English language learners. Participants were 28 First-grade students identified as Limited English Proficient. The primary language of all participants was Spanish. Students were…

The Use of Direct Spelling Instruction for Children with Language Impairment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Good, Joy E.; Lance, Dee M.; Rainey, Jacquie

2018-01-01

Children with language impairment frequently struggle with written language skills such as spelling. With their expertise in language, speech-language pathologists are in the position to promote the development of such skills. One way to do this is through the use of direct spelling instruction which has been shown to facilitate growth in a number…

Using Academic Language to Level the Playing Field for English-Language Learners in Physical Education: Part 1

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Constantinou, Phoebe; Wuest, Deborah A.

2015-01-01

With the common core emphasis on English language art and mathematics skills, physical educators are faced with a challenging task. Educators, in general, are expected to identifying the language demands of their discipline and develop academic language skills within each disciplinary area. In other words, educators are expected to prepare…

The interface between spoken and written language: developmental disorders.

PubMed

Hulme, Charles; Snowling, Margaret J

2014-01-01

We review current knowledge about reading development and the origins of difficulties in learning to read. We distinguish between the processes involved in learning to decode print, and the processes involved in reading for meaning (reading comprehension). At a cognitive level, difficulties in learning to read appear to be predominantly caused by deficits in underlying oral language skills. The development of decoding skills appears to depend critically upon phonological language skills, and variations in phoneme awareness, letter-sound knowledge and rapid automatized naming each appear to be causally related to problems in learning to read. Reading comprehension difficulties in contrast appear to be critically dependent on a range of oral language comprehension skills (including vocabulary knowledge and grammatical, morphological and pragmatic skills).

Brain metabolism of children with profound deafness: a visual language activation study by 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography.

PubMed

Fujiwara, Keizo; Naito, Yasushi; Senda, Michio; Mori, Toshiko; Manabe, Tomoko; Shinohara, Shogo; Kikuchi, Masahiro; Hori, Shin-Ya; Tona, Yosuke; Yamazaki, Hiroshi

2008-04-01

The use of fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) with a visual language task provided objective information on the development and plasticity of cortical language networks. This approach could help individuals involved in the habilitation and education of prelingually deafened children to decide upon the appropriate mode of communication. To investigate the cortical processing of the visual component of language and the effect of deafness upon this activity. Six prelingually deafened children participated in this study. The subjects were numbered 1-6 in the order of their spoken communication skills. In the time period between an intravenous injection of 370 MBq 18F-FDG and PET scanning of the brain, each subject was instructed to watch a video of the face of a speaking person. The cortical radioactivity of each deaf child was compared with that of a group of normal- hearing adults using a t test in a basic SPM2 model. The widest bilaterally activated cortical area was detected in subject 1, who was the worst user of spoken language. By contrast, there was no significant difference between subject 6, who was the best user of spoken language with a hearing aid, and the normal hearing group.

Experimenting with an Integrated Syllabus Design in Modern Languages.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Towell, Richard

1991-01-01

Describes a university's experimental task-based French program that successfully integrated foreign language learning more fully with the learning of interpersonal skills and nonlinguistic content, although some language skills, especially those needed for advanced written language and translation, appeared to suffer. (14 references) (Author/CB)

Dutch courage? Effects of acute alcohol consumption on self-ratings and observer ratings of foreign language skills.

PubMed

Renner, Fritz; Kersbergen, Inge; Field, Matt; Werthmann, Jessica

2018-01-01

A popular belief is that alcohol improves the ability to speak in a foreign language. The effect of acute alcohol consumption on perceived foreign language performance and actual foreign language performance in foreign language learners has not been investigated. The aim of the current study was to test the effects of acute alcohol consumption on self-rated and observer-rated verbal foreign language performance in participants who have recently learned this language. Fifty native German speakers who had recently learned Dutch were randomized to receive either a low dose of alcohol or a control beverage that contained no alcohol. Following the experimental manipulation, participants took part in a standardized discussion in Dutch with a blinded experimenter. The discussion was audio-recorded and foreign language skills were subsequently rated by two native Dutch speakers who were blind to the experimental condition (observer-rating). Participants also rated their own individual Dutch language skills during the discussion (self-rating). Participants who consumed alcohol had significantly better observer-ratings for their Dutch language, specifically better pronunciation, compared with those who did not consume alcohol. However, alcohol had no effect on self-ratings of Dutch language skills. Acute alcohol consumption may have beneficial effects on the pronunciation of a foreign language in people who have recently learned that language.

Profiles of verbal working memory growth predict speech and language development in children with cochlear implants.

PubMed

Kronenberger, William G; Pisoni, David B; Harris, Michael S; Hoen, Helena M; Xu, Huiping; Miyamoto, Richard T

2013-06-01

Verbal short-term memory (STM) and working memory (WM) skills predict speech and language outcomes in children with cochlear implants (CIs) even after conventional demographic, device, and medical factors are taken into account. However, prior research has focused on single end point outcomes as opposed to the longitudinal process of development of verbal STM/WM and speech-language skills. In this study, the authors investigated relations between profiles of verbal STM/WM development and speech-language development over time. Profiles of verbal STM/WM development were identified through the use of group-based trajectory analysis of repeated digit span measures over at least a 2-year time period in a sample of 66 children (ages 6-16 years) with CIs. Subjects also completed repeated assessments of speech and language skills during the same time period. Clusters representing different patterns of development of verbal STM (digit span forward scores) were related to the growth rate of vocabulary and language comprehension skills over time. Clusters representing different patterns of development of verbal WM (digit span backward scores) were related to the growth rate of vocabulary and spoken word recognition skills over time. Different patterns of development of verbal STM/WM capacity predict the dynamic process of development of speech and language skills in this clinical population.

Development of student performance assessment based on scientific approach for a basic physics practicum in simple harmonic motion materials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Serevina, V.; Muliyati, D.

2018-05-01

This research aims to develop students’ performance assessment instrument based on scientific approach is valid and reliable in assessing the performance of students on basic physics lab of Simple Harmonic Motion (SHM). This study uses the ADDIE consisting of stages: Analyze, Design, Development, Implementation, and Evaluation. The student performance assessment developed can be used to measure students’ skills in observing, asking, conducting experiments, associating and communicate experimental results that are the ‘5M’ stages in a scientific approach. Each grain of assessment in the instrument is validated by the instrument expert and the evaluation with the result of all points of assessment shall be eligible to be used with a 100% eligibility percentage. The instrument is then tested for the quality of construction, material, and language by panel (lecturer) with the result: 85% or very good instrument construction aspect, material aspect 87.5% or very good, and language aspect 83% or very good. For small group trial obtained instrument reliability level of 0.878 or is in the high category, where r-table is 0.707. For large group trial obtained instrument reliability level of 0.889 or is in the high category, where r-table is 0.320. Instruments declared valid and reliable for 5% significance level. Based on the result of this research, it can be concluded that the student performance appraisal instrument based on the developed scientific approach is declared valid and reliable to be used in assessing student skill in SHM experimental activity.

Children's attention to task-relevant information accounts for relations between language and spatial cognition.

PubMed

Miller, Hilary E; Simmering, Vanessa R

2018-08-01

Children's spatial language reliably predicts their spatial skills, but the nature of this relation is a source of debate. This investigation examined whether the mechanisms accounting for such relations are specific to language use or reflect a domain-general mechanism of selective attention. Experiment 1 examined whether 4-year-olds' spatial skills were predicted by their selective attention or their adaptive language use. Children completed (a) an attention task assessing attention to task-relevant color, size, and location cues; (b) a description task assessing adaptive language use to describe scenes varying in color, size, and location; and (c) three spatial tasks. There was correspondence between the cue types that children attended to and produced across description and attention tasks. Adaptive language use was predicted by both children's attention and task-related language production, suggesting that selective attention underlies skills in using language adaptively. After controlling for age, gender, receptive vocabulary, and adaptive language use, spatial skills were predicted by children's selective attention. The attention score predicted variance in spatial performance previously accounted for by adaptive language use. Experiment 2 followed up on the attention task (Experiment 2a) and description task (Experiment 2b) from Experiment 1 to assess whether performance in the tasks related to selective attention or task-specific demands. Performance in Experiments 2a and 2b paralleled that in Experiment 1, suggesting that the effects in Experiment 1 reflected children's selective attention skills. These findings show that selective attention is a central factor supporting spatial skill development that could account for many effects previously attributed to children's language use. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Going beyond Language: Soft Skill-ing Cultural Difference and Immigrant Integration in Toronto, Canada

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Allan, Kori

2016-01-01

This article traces how a language and soft skills training approach to Canadian immigrant integration emerged with Canada's shift towards a post-industrial tertiary economy. In this economy, soft skills index characteristics of ideal workers that fit the needs of Canada's post-Fordist labour regime. It examines how skills' training is not viewed…

The Relationship Between Speech, Language, and Phonological Awareness in Preschool-Age Children With Developmental Disabilities.

PubMed

Barton-Hulsey, Andrea; Sevcik, Rose A; Romski, MaryAnn

2018-05-03

A number of intrinsic factors, including expressive speech skills, have been suggested to place children with developmental disabilities at risk for limited development of reading skills. This study examines the relationship between these factors, speech ability, and children's phonological awareness skills. A nonexperimental study design was used to examine the relationship between intrinsic skills of speech, language, print, and letter-sound knowledge to phonological awareness in 42 children with developmental disabilities between the ages of 48 and 69 months. Hierarchical multiple regression was done to determine if speech ability accounted for a unique amount of variance in phonological awareness skill beyond what would be expected by developmental skills inclusive of receptive language and print and letter-sound knowledge. A range of skill in all areas of direct assessment was found. Children with limited speech were found to have emerging skills in print knowledge, letter-sound knowledge, and phonological awareness. Speech ability did not predict a significant amount of variance in phonological awareness beyond what would be expected by developmental skills of receptive language and print and letter-sound knowledge. Children with limited speech ability were found to have receptive language and letter-sound knowledge that supported the development of phonological awareness skills. This study provides implications for practitioners and researchers concerning the factors related to early reading development in children with limited speech ability and developmental disabilities.

Developing Oral Language Skills in Middle School English Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fisher, Douglas; Frey, Nancy

2018-01-01

Oral language development can help English learners develop academic proficiency with the English language. In this investigation, at one middle school, teachers focused on improving oral language skills. Using a formative experiment process, the teachers developed an intervention to accomplish their pedagogical goal and then tracked data to see…

Language Skills in Low-SES Rural Appalachian Children: Kindergarten to Middle Childhood

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reynolds, Mary E.; Fish, Margaret

2010-01-01

This study examined the development of language in low-SES rural Appalachian children from kindergarten through middle childhood. Findings showed that the children's language skills improved significantly between kindergarten and middle childhood, with all middle childhood language means within the average range. However, all areas of language…

Dyslexia and Specific Language Impairment: The Role of Phonology and Auditory Processing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fraser, Jill; Goswami, Usha; Conti-Ramsden, Gina

2010-01-01

We explore potential similarities between developmental dyslexia (specific reading disability [SRD]) and specific language impairment (SLI) in terms of phonological skills, underlying auditory processing abilities, and nonphonological language skills. Children aged 9 to 11 years with reading and/or language difficulties were recruited and compared…

Priorities for the Slavic Languages.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gribble, Charles E.

The changing situation in the world and in academia requires a new perspective on priorities for Slavic language instructional materials. For example, courses must be developed that concentrate on reading skills, the main skill today's students of Slavic languages generally require. Materials needed for Slavic languages can be grouped into 16…

Technologies in Use for Second Language Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Levy, Mike

2009-01-01

This article describes the technologies in use for second language learning, in relation to the major language areas and skills. In order, these are grammar, vocabulary, reading, writing, pronunciation, listening, speaking, and culture. With each language area or skill, the relevant technologies are discussed with examples that illustrate how…

Scaffolding Productive Language Skills through Sociodramatic Play

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Galeano, Rebecca

2011-01-01

This article reviews how a receptive, bilingual four-year-old increased her Spanish productive-language skills over five weeks as she engaged in Spanish-language play sessions with bilingual peers. The data show her growing participation in group verbal interactions along with her growing production of her weaker language. In addition, a…

Kindergarten Impacts of a Preschool Language-Focused Intervention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johanson, Megan; Justice, Laura M.; Logan, Jessica

2016-01-01

Many preschool language-focused interventions attempt to boost language and literacy skills in young children at risk in these areas of development, though the long-term effects of such interventions are not well-established. This study investigated kindergarten language and reading skills, specifically the subcomponents of vocabulary, decoding,…

Kindergarten Impacts of a Preschool Language Focused-Intervention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johanson, Megan; Justice, Laura M.; Logan, Jessica

2016-01-01

Many preschool language-focused interventions attempt to boost language and literacy skills in young children at risk in these areas of development, though the long-term effects of such interventions are not well-established. This study investigated kindergarten language and reading skills, specifically the subcomponents of vocabulary, decoding,…

Language Profiles of Poor Comprehenders in English and French

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

D'Angelo, Nadia; Chen, Xi

2017-01-01

This study explored components of language comprehension (vocabulary, grammar, and higher-level language) skills for poor comprehenders in French immersion. We identified three groups of bilingual comprehenders (poor, average, and good) based on English reading performance and compared their language comprehension skills in English L1 and French…

Bilingual Lexical Skills of School-Age Children with Chinese and Korean Heritage Languages in the United States

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jia, Gisela; Chen, Jennifer; Kim, HyeYoung; Chan, Phoenix-Shan; Jeung, Changmo

2014-01-01

This cross-sectional study investigated the bilingual lexical skills of 175 US school-age children (5 to 18 years old) with Cantonese, Mandarin, or Korean as their heritage language (HL), and English as their dominant language. Primary study goals were to identify potential patterns of development in bilingual lexical skills over the elementary to…

The Home Literacy Environment: Exploring How Media and Parent-Child Interactions Are Associated with Children's Language Production

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Liebeskind, Kara G.; Piotrowski, Jessica T.; Lapierre, Matthew A.; Linebarger, Deborah L.

2014-01-01

Children who start school with strong language skills initiate a trajectory of academic success, while children with weaker skills are likely to struggle. Research has demonstrated that media and parent-child interactions, both characteristics of the home literacy environment, influence children's language skills. Using a national sample of…

A Systematic Review of Research on Teaching English Language Skills for Saudi EFL Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alsowat, Hamad H.

2017-01-01

This systematic review study sought to examine the teaching of English language skills in Saudi Arabia by systematically analyzing the previous studies on language skills which were published within the past ten years and identify the research areas to be bridged in the future. The study employed the systematic review approach. The search strategy…

Teachers' Support in Using Computers for Developing Students' Listening and Speaking Skills in Pre-Sessional English Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zou, Bin

2013-01-01

Many computer-assisted language learning (CALL) studies have found that teacher direction can help learners develop language skills at their own pace on computers. However, many teachers still do not know how to provide support for students to use computers to reinforce the development of their language skills. Hence, more examples of CALL…

Are First- and Second-Language Factors Related in Predicting Second-Language Reading Comprehension? A Study of Spanish-Speaking Children Acquiring English as a Second Language from First to Second Grade

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gottardo, Alexandra; Mueller, Julie

2009-01-01

First-language (L1) and 2nd-language (L2) oral language skills and L2 word reading were used as predictors to test the simple view of reading as a model of 2nd-language reading comprehension. The simple view of reading states that reading comprehension is related to decoding and oral language comprehension skills. One hundred thirty-one…

Project CAPABLE: Model Unit.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Madawaska School District, ME.

Project CAPABLE (Classroom Action Program: Aim: Basic Learning Effectiveness) is a classroom approach which integrates the basic learning skills with content. The goal of the project is to use basic learning skills to enhance the learning of content and at the same time use the content to teach basic learning skills. This manual illustrates how…

Longitudinal Analyses of Expressive Language Development Reveal Two Distinct Language Profiles among Young Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

PubMed Central

Tek, Saime; Mesite, Laura; Fein, Deborah; Naigles, Letitia

2013-01-01

Although children with ASD show significant variation in language skills, research on what type(s) of language profiles they demonstrate has been limited. Using growth-curve analyses, we investigated how different groups of young children with ASD show increases in the size of their lexicon, morpho-syntactic production as measured by Brown’s 14 grammatical morphemes, and wh-question complexity, compared to TD children, across six time points. Children with ASD who had higher verbal skills were comparable to TD children on most language measures, whereas the children with ASD who had low verbal skills had flatter trajectories in most language measures. Thus, two distinct language profiles emerged for children with ASD. PMID:23719855

Educational Television as Mediated Literacy Environments for Preschoolers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jennings, Nancy A.; Hooker, Steven D.; Linebarger, Deborah L.

2009-01-01

Research on children's television suggests that preschool programs can facilitate literacy and language development. In 1998 Whitehurst and Lonigan described two interdependent sets of skills involved in literacy acquisition: "outside-in" or oral language skills and "inside-out" or code-related skills. Outside-in skills support children's…

Why Do Early Mathematics Skills Predict Later Reading? The Role of Mathematical Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Purpura, David J.; Logan, Jessica A. R.; Hassinger-Das, Brenna; Napoli, Amy R.

2017-01-01

A growing body of evidence indicates that the development of mathematics and literacy skills is highly related. The importance of literacy skills--specifically language--for mathematics development has been well rationalized. However, despite several prominent studies indicating that mathematics skills are highly predictive of literacy…

Increase in counselling communication skills after basic and advanced microskills training.

PubMed

Kuntze, Jeroen; van der Molen, Henk T; Born, Marise P

2009-03-01

Mastering counselling communication skills is one of the requirements that lead to the diploma of a registered European psychologist. The microcounseling method proves to be effective in training these skills. Research into the effectiveness of the microcounseling method often reports overall effect sizes only. The aim of this study was to investigate the adequate use of separate counselling communication skills (seven basic skills: minimal encouragements; asking questions; paraphrasing; reflection of feeling; concreteness; summarizing; and situation clarification and five advanced skills: advanced accurate empathy; confrontation; positive relabelling; examples of one's own; and directness) after respectively a basic and an advanced training in these skills. Participants were 583 first year or second year bachelor students in psychology who took the counselling communication skills progress test (CSPT). The participants are divided in a group of freshmen, who had not received any training in counselling communication skills; first year students, who had received a training in basic skills; second year students who had followed a training in advanced skills and a control group. A between-subject design, a within-subject design and a pre-test-post-test-control group design were used to examine the scores on these skills. Seven basic skills and four advanced skills had large effect sizes. One advanced skill had a moderate effect size. The microcounseling method is very effective on the level of separate microskills. However, students perform better on the basic skills than on the advanced skills. More training seems to be needed in the latter to achieve the same level of mastery.

Componential skills of beginning writing: An exploratory study

PubMed Central

Kim, Young-Suk; Al Otaiba, Stephanie; Puranik, Cynthia; Folsom, Jessica Sidler; Greulich, Luana; Wagner, Richard K.

2011-01-01

The present study examined the components of end of kindergarten writing, using data from 242 kindergartners. Specifically of interest was the importance of spelling, letter writing fluency, reading, and word- and syntax-level oral language skills in writing. The results from structural equation modeling revealed that oral language, spelling, and letter writing fluency were positively and uniquely related to writing skill after accounting for reading skills. Reading skill was not uniquely related to writing once oral language, spelling, and letter writing fluency were taken into account. These findings are discussed from a developmental perspective. PMID:22267897

The Development of L2 Oral Language Skills in Two L1 Groups: A 7-Year Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Derwing, Tracey M.; Munro, Murray J.

2013-01-01

Researching the longitudinal development of second language (L2) learners is essential to understanding influences on their success. This 7-year study of oral skills in adult immigrant learners of English as a second language evaluated comprehensibility, fluency, and accentedness in first-language (L1) Mandarin and Slavic language speakers. The…

The Development of Language and Reading Skills in the Second and Third Languages of Multilingual Children in French Immersion

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berube, Daniel; Marinova-Todd, Stefka H.

2012-01-01

The relationship between first language (L1) typology, defined as the classification of languages according to their structural characteristics (e.g. phonological systems and writing systems), and the development of second (L2) and third (L3) language skills and literacy proficiency in multilingual children was investigated in this study. The…