Language development in preschool children with hearing loss
Contact: Dr Julia Sarant
Background
There is a need for prospective, longitudinal studies which report on the speech, language and educational development of children with permanent childhood hearing impairment over time, as language delay remains an enormous problem for children with hearing loss, despite technological advances. Also, the influence of variables such as age at diagnosis of hearing loss on outcomes has not been clearly established. This type of research is difficult to conduct, as many variables can potentially affect spoken language development. Some overseas research has shown that children who are diagnosed and receive intervention services early have significantly better language outcomes at age three to five years than those who are not. However, due to methodological limitations in these studies, the United States Preventative Services Task Force has concluded that the existing body of evidence regarding whether earlier diagnosis leads to significantly better language and educational outcomes is only 'fair to poor'.
A previous University of Melbourne 3-year ARC-funded Linkage Project that concluded in 2006 documented the spoken language outcomes of 57 children from the Taralye Oral Language Centre for Deaf Children, providing the first published data for preschool children in Australia. The project aimed to determine whether diagnosis of hearing loss, device fitting, and entry to early intervention by six months of age resulted in significantly better spoken language outcomes. Interpretation of the findings of this project was limited, due to the fact that a much smaller than anticipated number of children participated in the project. Although family participation in early intervention programs, degree of hearing loss, and non-verbal cognitive ability were found to be predictive of spoken language outcomes, no significant differences were found in language outcomes for children who were diagnosed early and those diagnosed later. This result was contrary to the findings of overseas research, and is likely to be due to the small sample size.
As answering this question is important for the clinical management of children with hearing loss both in Australia and worldwide, this project aims to follow the language development of a much larger group of children at Taralye from 2009-2013.
Research Aims
The objectives of this study are to:
- Evaluate the language abilities of children aged 1-6 years with hearing loss;
- Compare the language abilities of early and later-diagnosed children;
- Examine the relationships between language abilities and characteristics of children such as age at entry to early intervention, cognitive abilities, and parent involvement in children's intervention programs.
People
- Dr Julia Sarant (University of Melbourne)
- Ms Therese Kelly (CEO, Taralye)
Collaborators
This project is being conducted in collaboration with Taralye Oral Language Centre for Deaf Children.
Project Details
The participants of this study will be attending the Taralye Oral Language Centre for Deaf Children, the largest early intervention service provider for preschool children with impaired hearing in Victoria. They will use hearing aids and/or cochlear implant/s. The language development of participating children will be evaluated annually, using age-appropriate standardized assessment tools. Family participation in children's intervention programs and cognitive ability will also be measured, along with other factors that may influence language outcomes.
This study will provide prospective data for a larger group of participants to further document and consolidate the picture of spoken language outcomes of young children with hearing loss in Australia. Given the likely differences in educational and audiological management between countries, it may not be appropriate to apply clinical and educational practices based on outcomes for children overseas. It is also imperative that we determine how to optimally assist these children to lay strong foundations of language during their early years, so that age-appropriate language is more easily attainable for all children with hearing loss. In order to do this, we need to thoroughly evaluate Australian children in order to determine their needs. This study uses language assessment measures that allow the direct comparison of Australian results with those from previous studies in the U.S. and with previously documented outcomes for older Australian children.
Publications / Presentations
Sarant JZ, Holt CM, Dowell RC, Rickards FW, Blamey PJ. (2008) Language Development in Oral Preschool Children with Permanent Childhood Hearing Impairment. Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education (in press).
Funding
ANZ Trustees; Victorian Foundation for the Promotion of Oral Education of the Deaf