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Contribution of spoken language and socio-economic background to adolescents’ educational achievement at age 16 years: Adolescents’ language skills and GCSE outcomes
Abstract
Background:
Well-documented associations exist between socio-economic background and language ability in early childhood, and between educational attainment and language ability in children with clinically referred language impairment. However, very little research has looked at the associations between language ability, educational attainment and socio-economic background during adolescence, particularly in populations without language impairment.
Aims:
To investigate: (1) whether adolescents with higher educational outcomes overall had higher language abilities; and (2) associations between adolescent language ability, socio-economic background and educational outcomes, specifically in relation to Mathematics, English Language and English Literature GCSE grade.
Method & procedures:
A total of 151 participants completed five standardized language assessments measuring vocabulary, comprehension of sentences and spoken paragraphs, and narrative skills and one nonverbal assessment when between 13 and 14 years old. These data were compared with the participants' educational achievement obtained upon leaving secondary education (16 years old). Univariate logistic regressions were employed to identify those language assessments and demographic factors that were associated with achieving a targeted A* -C grade in English Language, English Literature and Mathematics General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) at 16 years. Further logistic regressions were then conducted to examine further the contribution of socio-economic background and spoken language skills in the multivariate models.
Results & outcomes:
Vocabulary, comprehension of sentences and spoken paragraphs, and mean length utterance in a narrative task along with socio-economic background contributed to whether participants achieved an A* -C grade in GCSE Mathematics and English Language and English Literature. Nonverbal ability contributed to English Language and Mathematics. The results of multivariate logistic regressions then found that vocabulary skills were particularly relevant to all three GCSE outcomes. Socio-economic background only remained important for English Language, once language assessment scores and demographic information were considered.
Conclusions & implications:
Language ability, and in particular vocabulary, plays an important role for educational achievement. Results confirm a need for ongoing support for spoken language ability throughout secondary education and a potential role for speech and language therapy provision in the continuing drive to reduce the gap in educational attainment between groups from differing socio-economic backgrounds.
... While EAL students varied greatly across measures, those with high English proficiency either matched or outperformed their monolingual peers in both attainment and well-being (Whiteside et al., 2017). Similarly, Spencer and colleagues found strong associations between 13-14-year-olds' language skills (in particular vocabulary) and their achievement in English and mathematics two years later (Spencer et al., 2017). Language matters not only in schools in England; the same relationship between skills in the language of instruction and student achievement has been reported for other countries, including Germany and the US (Guglielmi, 2008;Lutz, 2004). ...
... It is important to note, however, that this finding is a relative one, as language proficiency was linked to attainment across the curriculum. In line with previous evidence, school language skills explained a considerable variance in mathematics scores as well (Heinze et al., 2007;Prediger et al., 2015;Spencer et al., 2017). Two practical implications arise from this finding that are relevant to both researchers and policy-makers: first, school language proficiency is worth supporting across the curriculum. ...
... This argument does not sit well, however, with the body of evidence that demonstrates complex relationships between bilingual language exposure and proficiency on the one hand and academic achievement on the other hand due to intervening factors such as input quality, socio-economic background, interactions between first and second language acquisition, and aptitude (Blom et al., 2012;De Cat, 2020;Jia & Paradis, 2015;Paradis & Jia, 2017;Paradis & Navarro, 2003). If bilingual exposure by itself is not an unequivocal predictor of proficiency in the language of schooling, and if that language proficiency ultimately influences achievement (Guglielmi, 2008;Lutz, 2004;Spencer et al., 2017;Whiteside et al., 2017), one cannot expect more than an indirect relationship between EAL status and student performance. This does not mean to say that the bilingual experience was unimportant, as it is an undeniable personal and social resource for EAL learners and societies alike (Callahan & Gandara, 2014;García & Baetens Beardsmore, 2009;Pearson, 2007;Whiteside et al., 2017) -only that English language proficiency appears to be a key mediator between exposure and academic achievement, and that its assessment is pivotal. ...
We compared two tools that have been used to capture the linguistic heterogeneity and achievement of students in England: the exposure-based distinction between English as an additional language (EAL) and monolingual learners, and the 2017–2018 five level teacher rating of proficiency in English (from “New to English” to “Fluent”). Based on a nationally representative sample of 140,000 students aged 5 to 16 years, we assessed the explanatory power of the proficiency in English rating in relation to educational achievement and compared it directly to EAL status. Our results demonstrate that proficiency in English is a significantly better predictor of student achievement than EAL status and that it accounts for up to six times more variance than other student background variables (ethnicity, gender and socio-economic disadvantage) combined. Proficiency in English was particularly (but certainly not solely) predictive for student performance in subjects such as English and reading vis-à-vis mathematics. Our findings are clear in demonstrating the value of a proficiency in English rating for assessing linguistic heterogeneity and student achievement, in contrast to the exposure-based EAL measure. We recommend the (re)introduction of proficiency in English ratings to monitor and support student progress and discuss the value of classroom-based language assessments.
... Previous studies of the relationship between language skills and socially unequal educational outcomes have focused on short-term consequences (Durham et al, 2007;Spencer et al, 2017). Little research has been conducted on the long-term consequences of socially unequal language skills in mediating the effect of social origin on educational attainment. ...
... In other words 'the currency of education is language and it is the medium of knowledge transmission' as noted by Grenfell (2011: 39) in reference to Bourdieu. Indeed, studies indicate that students with better language skills perform better in school and achieve higher educational qualifications (Strand, 2006;Parsons et al, 2011;Spencer et al, 2017;Schuth et al, 2017). The language abilities of young adolescents in Britain, measured by tests on grammar, receptive vocabulary and expression, correlate with later GSCE grades at age 16 (Spencer et al, 2017). ...
... Indeed, studies indicate that students with better language skills perform better in school and achieve higher educational qualifications (Strand, 2006;Parsons et al, 2011;Spencer et al, 2017;Schuth et al, 2017). The language abilities of young adolescents in Britain, measured by tests on grammar, receptive vocabulary and expression, correlate with later GSCE grades at age 16 (Spencer et al, 2017). Not only are language skills important at the primary or secondary level: language experience and knowledge before entering school are also significant, as they are positively linked to later skills and school performance (Walker et al, 1994;Durham et al, 2007;Claessens et al, 2009;Gilkerson et al, 2018). ...
This article examines the role of language skills in socially stratified educational attainment. Using essays written at the age of 11 in a large British cohort study, the National Child Development Study (NCDS), two measures of written language skills are derived: lexical diversity and the number of spelling and grammar errors. Results show that participants from the lower social strata misspelt more words and used a smaller variety of words in their essays than more socially privileged cohort members. Those language skills mediate part of the association between social origin and the highest level of educational attainment achieved. An even higher mediation of about half can be observed if standardised test measures for verbal and non-verbal cognitive abilities are included in the model. The models show that language skills mediate the social origin effect on educational attainment by about a quarter.
Key messages
Student essays are used to measure language skills.
Socially disadvantaged students’ essays contain more errors.
Essays from socially advantaged cohort members are more lexically diverse.
Language skills mediate part of the social origin effect on educational attainment. </ul
... While EAL students varied greatly across measures, those with high English proficiency either matched or outperformed their monolingual peers in both attainment and well-being (Whiteside et al., 2017). Similarly, Spencer and colleagues found strong associations between 13-14-year-olds' language skills (in particular vocabulary) and their achievement in English and mathematics two years later (Spencer et al., 2017). Language matters not only in schools in England; the same relationship between skills in the language of instruction and student achievement has been reported for other countries, including Germany and the US (Guglielmi, 2008;Lutz, 2004). ...
... It is important to note, however, that this finding is a relative one, as language proficiency was linked to attainment across the curriculum. In line with previous evidence, school language skills explained a considerable variance in mathematics scores as well (Heinze et al., 2007;Prediger et al., 2015;Spencer et al., 2017). Two practical implications arise from this finding that are relevant to both researchers and policy-makers: first, school language proficiency is worth supporting across the curriculum. ...
... This argument does not sit well, however, with the body of evidence that demonstrates complex relationships between bilingual language exposure and proficiency on the one hand and academic achievement on the other hand due to intervening factors such as input quality, socio-economic background, interactions between first and second language acquisition, and aptitude (Blom et al., 2012;De Cat, 2020;Jia & Paradis, 2015;Paradis & Jia, 2017;Paradis & Navarro, 2003). If bilingual exposure by itself is not an unequivocal predictor of proficiency in the language of schooling, and if that language proficiency ultimately influences achievement (Guglielmi, 2008;Lutz, 2004;Spencer et al., 2017;Whiteside et al., 2017), one cannot expect more than an indirect relationship between EAL status and student performance. This does not mean to say that the bilingual experience was unimportant, as it is an undeniable personal and social resource for EAL learners and societies alike (Callahan & Gandara, 2014;García & Baetens Beardsmore, 2009;Pearson, 2007;Whiteside et al., 2017) -only that English language proficiency appears to be a key mediator between exposure and academic achievement, and that its assessment is pivotal. ...
We compared two tools that have been used to capture the linguistic heterogeneity and achievement of students in England: the exposure-based distinction between English as an additional language (EAL) and monolingual learners, and the 2017–2018 five level teacher rating of proficiency in English (from ‘New to English’ to ‘Fluent’). Based on a nationally representative sample of 140,000 students aged 5 to 16 years, we assessed the explanatory power of the proficiency in English rating in relation to educational achievement and compared it directly to EAL status. Our results demonstrate that proficiency in English is a significantly better predictor of student achievement than EAL status and that it accounts for up to six times more variance than other student background variables (ethnicity, gender and socio-economic disadvantage) combined. Proficiency in English was particularly (but certainly not solely) predictive for student performance in language-heavy subjects such as English and reading. Our findings are clear in demonstrating the value of a proficiency in English rating for assessing linguistic heterogeneity and student achievement, in contrast to the exposure-based EAL measure. We encourage the (re)introduction of proficiency in English ratings to monitor and support student progress and discuss the value of classroom-based language assessments.
... However, for students with developmental language disorder (DLD), implicit word learning has proved to be a challenge, leading to limitations in vocabulary depth and breadth (Haebig et al., 2015;Kan & Windsor, 2010;McGregor et al., 2013). The size and quality of vocabulary are regarded by many researchers as critical for the development of reading and listening comprehension (Adlof et al., 2010;Lervåg et al., 2018) and writing (Dockrell & Connelly, 2015) as well as for educational attainment (Spencer, Clegg, Stackhouse, & Rush, 2017), in populations both with and without DLD. ...
... Several longitudinal studies have found DLD to be persistent over time (Rice & Hoffman, 2015;Young et al., 2002) and to increase the risk for educational failure (for a recent meta-review, see Dubois et al., 2020). The identified challenge in educational attainment for this group of students is likely to be related to the pivotal role of oral language, including vocabulary, in learning and education (see overview in Spencer, Clegg, Stackhouse, & Rush, 2017). ...
Purpose
Learning new vocabulary has been identified as a challenge for students with (developmental) language disorder ((D)LD). In this study, we evaluate the effects of two active learning methods, (a) retrieval practice (RP) and (b) rich vocabulary instruction (RVI), in a group of students with (D)LD in secondary school.
Method
A quasi-experimental counterbalanced within-subject design was used to compare and evaluate the effect of RP and RVI on learning Tier 2 vocabulary, with target and control words as dependent measures. Eleven students with (D)LD (M age = 14.9 years) attending a language unit participated. RP and RVI were implemented in regular classroom activities during 16 lessons (eight lessons/instructional condition). Learning was assessed by comparing performance on a pretest session 1–2 weeks prior, with posttest performance 1 week after each instructional condition.
Results
The learning gain for RP was superior to that for RVI, both with respect to the Bayesian probabilistic estimations for target words relative to control words and in direct comparison with RVI. Only weak evidence was found for RVI with respect to the Bayesian probabilistic estimations for target words relative to control words.
Conclusions
All participants showed positive learning gains following RP, whereas the outcome for RVI was more diverse. This initial work suggests that RP promotes larger learning gains relative to RVI and promotes learning across language profiles. This study extends previous studies by exploring the implementation of RP in regular classroom activities and by using more complex to-be-learned material (Tier 2 words).
... DLD is heterogeneous, which results in varied profiles of impairment in oral language and cognitive skills (Bishop, 2006;Pennington, 2006). The study reported here focuses on word learning skills, which are often impaired in children with DLD and are shown to have a persistent and detrimental impact on academic, social-emotional, and vocational development (Kan & Windsor, 2010;Law et al., 2009;Spencer et al., 2017). ...
... Word learning, or the ability to learn and establish new lexical items in vocabulary, is a critical component of language development (Beck et al., 2013). There are robust links between vocabulary and academic development, including literacy (Castles et al., 2018) and mathematics (Spencer et al., 2017), as well as socialemotional outcomes in adolescence and adulthood (Armstrong et al., 2017). Learning a novel word relies on the development of the word form (phonological representation), meaning (semantic representation), and the creation of an association between the two (form-referent link; Chiat, 2001). ...
Background and aims:
Previous research into word learning in children with developmental language disorder (DLD) indicates that the learning of word forms and meanings, rather than form-referent links, is problematic. This difficulty appears to arise with impaired encoding, while retention of word knowledge remains intact. Evidence also suggests that word learning skills may be related to verbal working memory. We aimed to substantiate these findings in the current study by exploring word learning over a series of days.
Methods:
Fifty children with DLD (mean age 6; 11, 72% male) and 54 age-matched typically developing (TD) children (mean age 6; 10, 56% male) were taught eight novel words across a four-day word learning protocol. Day 1 measured encoding, Days 2 and 3 measured re-encoding, and Day 4 assessed retention. At each day, word learning success was evaluated using Naming, Recognition, Description, and Identification tasks.
Results:
Children with DLD showed comparable performance to the TD group on the Identification task, indicating an intact ability to learn the form-referent links. In contrast, children with DLD performed significantly worse for Naming and Recognition (signifying an impaired ability to learn novel word forms), and for Description, indicating problems establishing new word meanings. These deficits for the DLD group were apparent at Days 1, 2, and 3 of testing, indicating impairments with initial encoding and re-encoding; however, the DLD and TD groups demonstrated a similar rate of learning. All children found the retention assessments at Day 4 difficult, and there were no significant group differences. Finally, verbal working memory emerged as a significant moderator of performance on the Naming and Recognition tasks, such that children with DLD and poor verbal working memory had the lowest levels of accuracy.
Conclusions:
This study demonstrates that children with DLD struggle with learning novel word forms and meanings, but are unimpaired in their ability to establish new form-referent links. The findings suggest that the word learning deficit may be attributed to problems with encoding, rather than with retention, of new word knowledge; however, further exploration is required given the poor performance of both groups for retention testing. Furthermore, we found evidence that an impaired ability to learn word forms may only be apparent in children who have DLD and low levels of verbal working memory.
Implications:
When working with children with DLD, speech-language pathologists should assess word learning using tasks that evaluate the ability to learn word forms, meanings, and form-referent links to develop a profile of individual word learning strengths and weaknesses. Clinicians should also assess verbal working memory to identify children at particular risk of word learning deficits. Future research should explore the notion of optimal intervention intensity for facilitating word learning in children with poor language and verbal working memory.
... r = .14). SES was also important to consider as prior research has identified that adolescents in a context of socio-economic disadvantage have an increased risk of language difficulties (Spencer, Clegg, Stackhouse, & Rush, 2017). The SES of each student from both groups was determined using the Socio-Economic Indexes for Areas. ...
... In terms of the instrument's discriminant validity, a group of children aged 6;2-13, diagnosed with speech language impairment or autism spectrum disorder, showed poorer performance on content and comprehension scores relative to the published normative data (Bishop, 2004). The Expression Reception and Recall of Narratives Instrument (ERRNI) has been used in studies involving participants with difficulties in reading and literacy skills (Myers & Botting, 2008) and studies involving adolescents from low socio-economic backgrounds (Spencer et al., 2017). In those studies, the ERRNI did differentiate narrative performance of the population under question, relative to the comparison group recruited or to the published normative data. ...
Purpose
Working with students with emotional behavioral disorders is a challenging area of speech-language pathology practice. In this study, we compare and profile the narrative discourse, structural language, and social communication characteristics of adolescents attending behavioral support and mainstream schools. We also examine relationships between narratives, structural language, social communication, and behavior.
Method
Fifty-four students aged between 12 and 16 years participated. Twenty-seven students were from 3 Australian government Schools for Specific Purposes for students with behavioral difficulties, and 27 typically developing students were from a mainstream, government school. Students were matched for age and closely matched for sex and socioeconomic status. All students completed 3 communication assessments: oral narrative, structural language, and social communication skills. Teachers were asked to complete 2 behavioral questionnaires.
Results
Students in behavioral schools had significant difficulties generating narratives. Their structural language and overall social communication skills were also significantly poorer than their mainstream peers. One third of the behavioral group experienced significant difficulties across all 3 of these communication areas. Externalizing behavior was significantly related to narrative, structural language, and social communication only when the data were pooled across both groups.
Conclusions
Language and social communication difficulties were evident in adolescents who attend alternative school settings—behavioral schools. These findings confirm the need for speech-language pathologists to be engaged in specialist behavioral schools and provide impetus to service providers, speech-language pathologists, and educators to address relationships between behavior and communication ability.
... The growth of English as an additional language (EAL) education worldwide (observed by, e.g., Smith, 2015) has led to an increase in EAL learners in countries such as the UK (Murphy & Unthiah, 2015) and the US (US Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, 2022), highlighting the need for effective EAL language instruction. Previous studies that have focused on the needs of EAL learners (Hessel & Murphy, 2019;Spencer et al., 2017;Townsend et al., 2016) have shown that English academic vocabulary is one vital area where teachers can support EAL learners. While there have been fewer studies conducted in the international school context, existing research indicates that EAL learners in this context also often lack the vocabulary skills to engage with the academic material in their classes (Coxhead & Boutorwick, 2018). ...
This article presents a study examining the vocabulary knowledge of English as an additional language (EAL) learners in two international schools in Japan in relation to the vocabulary profiles of the textbooks they are required to use in the classrooms. The vocabulary knowledge of 139 participants from two international schools was assessed using either the New Vocabulary Levels Test (NVLT) or the Updated Vocabulary Levels Test (UVLT). These results were compared to a 15 million-word corpus compiled from representative subject-specific textbooks to estimate the vocabulary coverage participants are likely to achieve. The findings revealed that EAL learners consistently scored lower than a combined group of their first-language English (FLE) and proficient L2 (PL2) peers, with fewer than 25% of EAL learners mastering the AWL before Grade 12. Furthermore, even the most frequent 5000-word bands provided only 91–93% coverage for subjects like biology and chemistry, leaving many EAL learners struggling to comprehend these texts. This analysis highlights the potential difficulties EAL learners may face in understanding the textbooks that are being used in EAL classrooms, underscoring the need for better vocabulary scaffolding and support for such learners in the international school context.
... In line with UNESCO (2021) Oracy has been defined as 'our ability to communicate effectively using spoken language. It is the ability to speak eloquently, articulate ideas and thoughts, influence through talking, listen to others and have the confidence to express your views (APPG, 2021, p.2). Dobinson & Dockrell (2021) highlight the links between expressive language skills and academic achievement (Roulstone et al., 2011;Spencer et al., 2017), the supportive role these skills play in literacy development in general (Snow, 2016) and in supporting learning across the curriculum (Alexander, 2013;Shiel et al., 2012). ...
Literature review underpinning the Literacy, Numeracy, and Digital Literacy Strategy Ireland, commissioned by the Department of Education
... Knowing one's language well is crucial for effective communication and academic success [1]. Students who lack proficiency in their language may struggle with comprehension, writing, and critical analysis, which can impede their ability to succeed academically. ...
... Meanwhile, Spencer et al. (2017) found that students from low class consistently perform below their upper-class peers. Socioeconomic status can affect speaking skill between factors of parents' education level and availability of learning resources. ...
The research aimed at finding out whether or not (1) there was a significant effect between socioeconomic status on students’ speaking skill, and (2) there was a significant effect between motivation on students’ speaking skill at second semester of English Department Universitas Muhammadiyah Makassar. The research method was Descriptive Quantitative Research. The data collected through questionnaires (to obtained students’ socioeconomic status and motivation) and lecturer's document (to obtained students’ speaking score). From the population of 61 students in Academic Year 2021/2022, the researcher chose 30 students as sample by using random sampling techniques. The data analyzed by using Multiple Liniear Regression Analysis in SPSS. The result of data analysis, it found 1) based on T-test, the results of socioeconomic status on students’ speaking skill were T-test 1.456 > T-table 1.703, indicating there was no significant effect of socioeconomic status on students’ speaking skill, 2) based on T-test, the results of motivation on students’ speaking skill were T-test 4.199 > T-table 1.703 indicating that there was no significant effect of motivation on students’ speaking skill, This research suggested that regardless of socioeconomic status, lecturer keep provide students’ motivation to learn, motivates students about the benefits of having speaking skills, such as getting good careers, transferring knowledge to other people, and travelling abroad.
... Narrative skills are part of pragmatic competence and consist in the ability to describe real-life or fictive accounts of temporally and causally related events (Boudreau, 2008). Narrative skills represent a fundamental aspect for the development of personal identity from late childhood to adolescence (Reese et al., 2010;Steiner & Pillemer, 2018) and the quality of narratives is considered an important predictor of teenagers' educational achievement (Jones et al., 2018;Spencer et al., 2017) and psychological and mental well-being (Manczak et al., 2014;Reese et al., 2017;Shiner et al., 2021). Furthermore, alterations in narrative development are likely to influence psychosocial outcome from childhood to adolescence (Aguilar et al., 2020). ...
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental condition affecting social and communicative skills, including narrative ability, namely the description of real-life or fictive accounts of temporally and causally related events. With this study, we aimed to determine whether a communicative-pragmatic training, i.e., the version for adolescents of the Cognitive-Pragmatic Treatment, is effective in improving the narrative skills of 16 verbally fluent adolescents with ASD. We used a multilevel approach to assess pre-and post-training narrative production skills. Discourse analysis focused on micro-(i.e., mean length of utterance, complete sentences, omissions of morphosyntactic information) and mac-rolinguistic measures (i.e., cohesion, coherence errors, lexical informativeness). Results revealed a significant improvement in mean length of utterance and complete sentences and a decrease in cohesion errors. No significant change was found in the other narrative measures investigated. Our findings suggest that a pragmatically oriented training may be useful in improving grammatical efficiency in narrative production.
... Vocabulary knowledge is a key element of oral language proficiency and has been shown to be linked to educational achievement (e.g., Spencer et al., 2017). Specifically, vocabulary is known to be a strong and unique predictor of reading comprehension (Landi & Ryherd, 2017), and children classified as 'poor comprehenders' have been shown to achieve below expected standards in reading and writing examinations at age 11 and beyond (Ricketts, Sperring & Nation, 2014). ...
Children learning English as an additional language (EAL) are a diverse and growing group of pupils in England’s schools. Relative to their monolingual (ML) peers, these children tend to show lower receptive and expressive vocabulary knowledge in English, although interpretation of findings is limited by small and heterogeneous samples. In an effort to increase representativeness and power, the present study combined published and unpublished datasets from six cross-sectional and four longitudinal studies investigating the vocabulary development of 434 EAL learners and 342 ML peers (age range: 4;9–11;5) in 42 primary schools. Multilevel modelling confirmed previous findings of significantly lower English vocabulary scores of EAL learners and some degree of convergence in receptive but not expressive knowledge by the end of primary school. Evidence for narrowing of the gap in receptive knowledge was found only in datasets spanning a longer developmental period, hinting at the protracted nature of this convergence.
... And, for children experiencing socioeconomic disadvantage, social skill strengths have been identified as a mediator in the association between language difficulties and behavioral problems (36). Both pro-social behavior and language skills are predictive of later academic achievement outcomes, thereby influencing attainment of higher education goals, as well as development of stable romantic relationships in young adulthood (37,38). That is, these skills combined play a pivotal role in positive life course trajectories. ...
It has been well-established that development occurs in the context of a transactional framework, with bidirectional parent-child interactions influencing both proximal and distal outcomes. In particular, child vocabulary development is sensitive to parenting qualities including warmth, sensitivity, and control as well as parental stimulation including language input and access to learning enrichment activities. Similarly, these parenting qualities are influenced by and influence children's development of pro-social behaviors. Given the foundational role of both language and pro-social skills for academic achievement and the establishment of healthy relationships across the lifespan, a comprehensive understanding of the magnitude, stability, and reciprocity of such interactions across childhood has the potential to better inform early intervention and prevention practices and highlight risk and resilience factors. This study investigated the concurrent and successive transactional relationships between child pro-social behavior, child emergent language, and parenting qualities within a large, longitudinal sample. This study utilized Waves 3, 4, and 5 of the Fragile Families and Child Well Being Study (FFCWBS), corresponding to focal child age 3, 5, and 9 years, respectively. A series of Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) with full-information likelihood (FIML) estimation ( n = 3,422) including child prosocial behavior, receptive vocabulary, and supportive parenting behaviors was tested and compared. Our findings indicate significant, positive associations over time between child pro-social behavior and receptive vocabulary, and parenting quality across all three stages of early child development. The steady decline in magnitude of these associations over time highlights the importance of synergistic parent-child interactions in toddlerhood as an early opportunity to propel these developmental outcomes and supportive parenting behaviors. Patterns of change in child pro-social behavior skills and parenting qualities remained positive and relatively stable, while observed growth in child receptive vocabulary skills increased in magnitude over time. Additional investigation of indirect effects specified the role of receptive vocabulary, as well as the bolstering role of prosocial behavior, in eliciting responsive parenting qualities over time.
... Kendeou et al. (2009) tracked preschoolers and found oral language and decoding skills formed separate but correlated clusters that both independently predicted grade 2 reading comprehension. Oral language ability remains important through secondary school, where it is a strong predictor of reading comprehension and academic achievement (Foorman et al., 2015;Spencer et al., 2017). These findings also hold for students who are learning English as an additional language (EAL) (Babayi git, 2015; Lesaux et al., 2010). ...
Educational Impact and Implications Statement
Many studies have explored the association between children’s reading comprehension and their vocabulary and grammar skills. Usually, such studies require multiple-choice or other forms of selected response measures. This study applied natural language processing to children’s open-ended speech and writing, extracting 260 different vocabulary and grammar features. Using machine learning, we found that these features can predict some of the variation in children’s reading comprehension, with a slightly stronger relationship found with their writing than with their speech. Among the features that best predicted reading comprehension, grammatical features were more prevalent in children’s speech and vocabulary features were better predictors in their writing. Other less well-studied features such as sentiment and word ambiguity also played predictive roles. Although our sample was limited, the results can be considered a proof-of-concept for a novel method of assessing the nuances of children’s productive language and literacy skills, as well as understanding how such skills relate to global competencies such as reading comprehension.
... The need for high-quality universal language provision Well-developed oral language skills are strongly associated with academic achievement (Roulstone et al., 2011;Spencer et al., 2017), support literacy development (Snow, 2016) and are an important tool for learning across the curriculum (Alexander, 2013). The importance of oral language extends beyond academic success, impacting on social, emotional, and mental health, both at school (Benner et al., 2002) and during later life (Schoon et al., 2010). ...
Oral language skills underpin children’s educational success and enhance positive life outcomes. Yet, significant numbers of children struggle to develop competence in speaking and listening, especially those from areas of high economic deprivation. A tiered intervention model, graduating the level of provision in line with levels of need, has been posited as most appropriate for supporting children’s language development. The first tier, or universal provision, is characterised by high-quality, evidence-informed language teaching for all. To date, our understanding of effective universal language delivery remains limited, particularly in the primary-school age range. This systematic review addresses this gap by identifying and evaluating existing evidence with the aim of informing practice and future research. Following PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines, a systematic search protocol was used to identify experimental and quasi-experimental studies evaluating universal approaches designed to support children’s oracy skills. Thirty-one studies were identified for inclusion and their characteristics and findings are reported and their reliability evaluated. Studies provide indicative evidence for the effectiveness of interactive book reading, structured vocabulary programmes, manualised curricula and approaches involving speech and language therapists. The strengths and weaknesses of our current knowledge are outlined and implications for practice and research are discussed.
... However, research indicates that many of them acquire a limited L2 proficiency to catch up to their monolingual peers. Crucially, in such a case, language problems cannot be attributed to bilingual development, rather to the deprivation in terms of language input (Spencer et al., 2017). Note indeed that studies conducted in countries where bilingualism is actively promoted (such as Canada), show that bilingual children are not at risk for a language problem, rather, that (early) exposure to two languages is related to several cognitive benefits (Bialystok, 1999;Bialystok and Martin, 2004;Bialystok and Feng, 2009;Luk et al., 2011;Paradis et al., 2011;Poarch and Bialystok, 2015; also with immigrant children see Robinson and Sorace, 2019). ...
This study presents a web-based sentence comprehension test aimed at identifying high school students who are at risk for a language delay. By assessing linguistic skills on a sample of high school students with Italian as an L2 and their monolingual peers, attending a vocational school, we were able to identify a subgroup of L2 students with consistent difficulties in sentence comprehension, though their reading skills were within the average range. The same subgroup revealed to experience a lack of support within the school context, suggesting that poor L2 skills might be a critical variable to consider in order to identify students at risk for school exclusion. Regarding the test, accuracy to the on-line sentence comprehension task was significantly predicted by reading abilities and vocabulary skills, thus indicating that this test might represent a rapid but efficient way to assess linguistic abilities at school. We recommend that establishing a valid and practical procedure for the evaluation of linguistic skills in bilingual students who struggle with their L2 is the first step toward promoting social inclusion in the multilingual classroom, in order to increase their ability to actively participate in school and social activities.
... Over the years, research has shown that there is a strong relationship between learner achievement and socio-economic status (SES) (Chakraborty & Harper, 2017;Howie et al., 2012;McLeod Palane, in press;Roux, 2014;Spencer, Clegg, Stackhouse & Rush, 2017). ...
Grade 4 is a pivotal turning point in the South African school system. In Grade 4, learners must transition from learning how to read, to reading for meaning and learning. An added complication is that in African language schools, learners are taught in the African language from Grade 1 to Grade 3, and then in Grade 4 must switch to English as medium of instruction.
Therefore, participation in the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) 2016 provided much needed insight into whether South African learners can read at the appropriate level. The international study included 50 countries and the 2016 round was the third cycle in which South Africa participated. A random, stratified sample of schools and classes were selected to represent all 11 official languages as well as the nine provinces.
Learners wrote the reading comprehension test in their language of instruction, to which they had been exposed in Grade 1 to 3. In the 2016 participation, a total of 12 810 Grade 4 learners were assessed with the PIRLS instruments.
The main findings included that the majority of the South African learners (78%) cannot read for meaning at the end of Grade 4. South Africa placed last out of the 50 countries participating in the study at fourth grade level. The study also revealed that there was no significant progress nationally since the last report in 2011 for the overall average score. Good news included that between 2011 and 2016 there was a significant improvement in reading literacy achievement for isiNdebele, Sepedi, Sesotho, Tshivenda and Xitsonga. The five language had the lowest performance in the 2011 participation. Learners attending schools in remote rural areas, small towns and townships had the lowest reading literacy achievement. Boys also performed significantly lower than girls in each cycle of PIRLS. The PIRLS 2016 report offers important findings with regards to classroom, school and home factors that are associated with reading achievement as well as recommendations as to how the South African reading crises can be addressed.
Purpose:
Few resources are available to support speech-language pathologists (SLPs') dynamic assessment of vocabulary with school-aged children. We developed the Word Learning Dynamic Assessment Protocol (currently undergoing pilot testing). Framed by implementation science, in the current study we worked with speech-language pathologists to explore their perspectives on the acceptability of the Word Learning Dynamic Assessment Protocol.
Method:
Eight speech-language pathologists who work with school-aged children watched a video demonstration of the Word Learning Dynamic Assessment Protocol being administered with a 6-year-old child and were then interviewed to share their thoughts on the Word Learning Dynamic Assessment Protocol's acceptability.
Result:
Six themes were generated using reflexive thematic analysis: 1) Structure, scripting, and resourcing builds confidence in speech-language pathologists, 2) gaining important insight into the learning process, 3) flexible assessment supports child engagement and diversity, 4) family buy-in is created with clear communication, 5) a worthwhile investment of time?, and 6) building a more tailored assessment.
Conclusion:
The speech-language pathologists who took part in this study valued the structure and resourcing of the Word Learning Dynamic Assessment Protocol as a way of supporting their ability to evaluate a child's strengths and challenges in vocabulary development in an engaging and individually tailored manner. Suggestions for further development will guide task refinement to meet the needs of speech-language pathologists.
Patient-Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs), such as the CLEFT-Q, have become essential for outcomes in patients with CL/P. Normative values of the CLEFT-Q for non-CL/P peers have not yet been established. This study aims to establish normative values for the CLEFT-Q in the general Dutch population. Dutch nationals aged 16-24 years without CL/P were recruited through an online survey. Participants completed the CLEFT-Q, excluding the lip scar and eating and drinking scales. Data were weighted based on the Dutch Central Bureau of Statistics. Normative values were calculated as means and standard deviations, stratified by sex and education category. Tobit regression models were used to analyze associations between CLEFT-Q scores and demographic variables. In total, 870 participants responded, of which 160 were excluded due to potential craniofacial anomalies. Significant variations in CLEFT-Q scores based on sex were found, with females scoring lower than males. Level of education had a modest impact on CLEFT-Q scores, with lower education having lower scores on certain scales. Age marginally influenced CLEFT-Q scores, with younger participants scoring lower than older participants. Positive correlations were found between all CLEFT-Q scales. The strongest correlation was observed between the social and school functioning scales. This study provides the first set of normative values for the CLEFT-Q in the Dutch general population. Significant differences in CLEFT-Q scores based on sex, level of education and age were found. These normative values are useful for clinicians interpreting CLEFT-Q scores and help make informed decisions.
Some meta-analyses have confirmed the efficacy of technology-enhanced vocabulary learning. However, they have not delved into the specific ways in which technology-based activities facilitate vocabulary acquisition, or into first-language vocabulary learning. We conducted a systematic review that retrieved 1,221 journal articles published between 2011 and 2023, of which 40 met our inclusion criteria. Most of the sampled studies focused on teaching receptive vocabulary knowledge and vocabulary breadth. All utilized cognitive strategies. Their common design features included noticing and receptive or productive retrieval, and most implicitly drew upon dual-coding theory. Our findings highlight the need for a balanced approach to vocabulary learning, encompassing both vocabulary breadth and depth, as well as receptive and productive knowledge. They also suggest that affective and social learning strategies should be promoted alongside the cognitive ones that are currently dominant. Additionally, our identification of commonly and rarely used design features can guide curriculum designers to develop more effective tools. Lastly, we argue that the design of technology-enhanced learning should be theory-driven.
How do we adapt our grammar to communicate social detail? Do all working class people have a local dialect or are we free to use language in ways that transcend our place in the social hierarchy? Seeking to answer these questions, this pioneering book is the first to exclusively and extensively address the relationship between social meaning and grammatical variation. It demonstrates how we use grammar to communicate alignments and stances and to construct our social style or social identity. Based on an ethnographic study of high school girls in Northern England, it also uses the author's own experiences as a working-class student, to argue for change in how we conceive of grammar and how grammar is taught in schools. Lively and engaging real life examples from the study are included throughout, bringing to life new contributions to debates in variationist sociolinguistic and linguistic anthropology.
Many children with developmental language disorder (DLD) have a vocabulary deficit. One of the most effective interventions for increasing children's lexicon size is the semantic and phonological approach, an approach that has been used mainly with adolescents. The goals of our study are (1) to test whether the semantic-phonological approach coupled with rich vocabulary instruction is effective with younger children with DLD on words learned during the training and (2) to check whether the gains can be maintained over the long term. A group of eight French-speaking children (aged 6 to 10), with a diagnosis of DLD, underwent a phonological-semantic group intervention over 5 months. Four lists (vegetables, animals, school materials, and sports) of words were trained, each category involving 3-hour sessions. Five-word lists (L1, L2, L3, L4, and L5) corresponded to the four trained categories and one served as control. When L1 words were trained, L2 served as the control list; then when L2 words were trained, L3 was the control list, and so on. The group results indicated significant improvement on the four trained lists once intervention was introduced, and no improvement on the control lists. All effects were maintained over the long term at the delayed posttest. Individual outcomes were dependent on children's cognitive and language profiles. Vocabulary training thus allowed young French
A child's educational achievements are based on multiple factors, including their family, their family's behavior, socioeconomic status, their behavior toward their parents, etc. The main objective of the study is to establish the relationship between the socioeconomic background of the children and their educational achievements and how it impacts their psychology. A descriptive survey research design was used to conduct this study. The target population was 50 students and either of their parents. The target was selected through random sampling. Focus group discussions, in-depth interviews, and different types of observation techniques were implied while collecting the data. The study concluded that most of the students with low socioeconomic status had poor achievements in their academics, which led them into the labor market at an early age. It has been found that parents with low socioeconomic backgrounds were less interested in educating their children. Kids from low socioeconomic backgrounds are more focused on employment instead of pursuing their studies after completing their secondary education. Such students end up in unskilled or blue-collar jobs. This study recommends free-of-cost vocational and technical education to such children to provide them with better livelihood opportunities. There is a need for parental education and awareness programs as well conducted by schools/universities and other concerned authorities.
Early intervention is recognized as providing the best chances for children who come to school disadvantaged to leverage chances of successful learning. Over the past decade, there has been an emphasis on the use of “evidence-based” programs that aim to promote children’s development and prevent disorders. However, in school settings, there is a dearth of scientific evidence on what works to foster children’s language skills at an early age, especially in non-WEIRD (Western, educated, industrialized, rich, democratic) populations. In this chapter, we review the existing scientific evidence on the theme to identify key factors related to the success of early language intervention. Specifically, we explore contextual factors that seem to be related to the success of language intervention, such as environmental differences, child characteristics, school features, and the nature of the intervention itself. Possible explanations and implications on what works to foster children’s language development are discussed.KeywordsLanguage developmentEarly interventionEducationalLanguage disordersSocial environmentBiological factors
Children with language disorder frequently experience difficulties with vocabulary acquisition, and these difficulties often persist into adolescence. The literature indicates that clinical studies tend to investigate phonological-semantic approaches, whereas educational studies focus on the derivation of meaning within a literacy context. Little is known about whether the practices of speech and language therapists and teachers reflect these findings from the literature. The current paper reports on a survey which gathered information from speech and language therapists and mainstream secondary school teachers, about their current practice concerning vocabulary support for adolescents, aged 11–16, who have language disorder. An online questionnaire was distributed through teaching and speech and language therapy professional networks. The aim of the study was to establish which specific strategies were used in practice by speech and language therapists and mainstream secondary school teachers to teach vocabulary to adolescents with language disorder, and which strategies were the most effective. Responses were obtained from 127 speech and language therapists and 47 mainstream secondary school teachers in the UK. Speech and language therapists were more likely than mainstream secondary school teachers to teach phonological awareness and semantic feature analysis as strategies for developing vocabulary skills. Both professions used literacy-related strategies as well as strategies for independent word learning such as the derivation of meaning from morphology and context. Increased joint working and training opportunities would further develop the knowledge and skills of both mainstream secondary school teachers and speech and language therapists, enabling theoretically-grounded and relevant vocabulary support for this group of adolescents.
Two periods of compulsory school closure in England as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic necessitated the adoption of virtual teaching and learning environments. Although such platforms had already been launched in English schools prior to March 2020, when schools closed, their usage by classroom teachers had not been established. Pupil premium funding to support disadvantaged students in English schools began in 2011, with the aim of narrowing the academic performance gap between these students and their peers. Less likely to do as well at school as their peers, the consequent narrative around these children at school is one of ‘catch-up’, a narrative which grew during the pandemic with debate around ‘lost learning’ amongst all children, but particularly, the disadvantaged. The enduring assumption that these children will do less well than their peers, rather than be less likely to, was thus further compounded. This paper considers one secondary school English department’s provision of additionality to support equity during the pandemic, its success and lessons which might be applied in the future.
Quantitative measures of vocabulary use have added much to our understanding of first and second language writing development. This paper argues for measures of register appropriateness as a useful addition to these tools. Developing an idea proposed by Durrant and Brenchley (2019), it explores what such measures can tell us about vocabulary development in the L1 writing of school children in England and critically examines how results should be interpreted. It shows that significant patterns of discipline- and genre-specific vocabulary development can be identified for measures related to four distinct registers, though the strongest patterns are found for vocabulary associated with fiction and academic writing. Follow-up analyses showed that changes across year groups were primarily driven, not by the nature of individual words, but by the overall quantitative distribution of register-specific vocabulary, suggesting that the traditional distinction between measures of lexical diversity and lexical sophistication may not be helpful for understanding development in this context. Closer analysis of academic vocabulary showed development of distinct vocabularies in Science and English writing in response to sharply differing communicative needs in those disciplines, suggesting that development in children’s academic vocabulary should not be seen as a single coherent process.
Background
Although language and communication difficulties are common in secondary school students, there has been limited research into the efficacy of interventions for adolescents with language and communication difficulties.
Aims
To investigate the efficacy of teaching assistant (TA)‐delivered narrative and vocabulary interventions to mainstream secondary school‐aged students with language disorder.
Methods & Procedures
A randomized controlled trial (RCT) of a language and communication intervention was used to evaluate the efficacy of vocabulary and narrative interventions to improve the vocabulary and narrative performance of adolescents (mean age = 12.8 years) with language disorder. The language and communication programmes (narrative, vocabulary and combined narrative and vocabulary) were delivered by TAs in the classroom, three times per week, for 45–60 min each, over 6 weeks, totalling 18 sessions. Standardized and intervention‐specific measures were used as outcomes.
Outcomes & Results
Twenty‐one schools with 358 eligible participants were recruited. The three intervention groups showed significant improvements (d = .296) on a narrative latent variable defined by a standardized narrative assessment (the Expression, Reception and Recall of Narrative Instrument—ERRNI), but there were no significant improvements on an overall vocabulary latent variable compared with the waiting control group. Differential effects were found on some non‐standardized intervention‐specific measures with the narrative group making significantly more progress on narrative tasks compared with the waiting control group, the vocabulary group showing the same pattern on specific vocabulary tasks, and the combined narrative and vocabulary group making significantly more progress on some of the intervention‐specific narrative, and all the intervention‐specific vocabulary outcomes compared with the waiting control group.
Conclusions & Implications
It is possible to improve narrative but not vocabulary skills, as assessed by standardized measures, in secondary school students with a relatively brief group TA‐delivered intervention. There were differential effects for both narrative and vocabulary with intervention‐specific measures. Future work is required to explore whether more intensive and longer lasting interventions would be more effective and to identify which students in this age group are most likely to benefit from such interventions.
Many speech and language therapy (SLT) services have limited capacity for providing school-based input. Some offer commissioned SLT input, to enhance the service provided by the UK National Health Service (NHS), giving schools the option to increase the amount and scope of SLT intervention. This two-tiered model of service provision is relatively new and has not been researched. This study investigated the experiences of schools who had commissioned input from the local SLT service, in terms of (1) describing how this was utilized and (2) exploring perceptions of its value. Semi-structured interviews were carried out with special educational needs co-ordinators (SENCos) from 11 schools and were thematically analysed using Framework Analysis. SENCos reported many positive aspects of the commissioned model, including better communication with Speech and Language Therapists (SLTs) and improved outcomes for children. SENCos felt that the numbers of children with speech, language and communication needs (SLCN) had reduced following commissioned input. Very few disadvantages of the model were identified. SLTs delivered a range of activities, including training staff and providing direct input for children. SENCos would recommend the service, and perceived the cost to be moderate. These data suggest that SENCos place a high value on SLT in schools, and welcome the opportunity to purchase additional input.
Background:
Children with developmental language disorder (DLD) frequently have difficulties with word learning and understanding vocabulary. For these children, this can significantly impact on social interactions, daily activities and academic progress. Although there is literature providing a rationale for targeting word learning in such children, there is little evidence for the effectiveness of specific interventions in this area for children with identified DLD.
Aims:
To establish whether direct one-to-one intervention for children with DLD over 9 years of age leads to improved abilities to identify, comprehend, define, and use nouns and verbs targeted in intervention as compared with non-targeted control items and whether or not the participants' rating of their own knowledge of the words changes with intervention.
Methods & procedures:
Twenty-five children and young people with language disorder (aged 9;4-16;1) participated in the study: 18 with DLD and seven with a language disorder associated with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Two assessments of different levels were created: a higher ability (less frequent words) and a lower ability (more frequent words). Participants' speech and language therapists (SLTs) decided which level would be the most appropriate for each participant. Four tasks were carried out as part of the assessment and the scores were used to identify which words each participant worked on. Participants received one 30-min session per week one-to-one with their own SLT for 7 weeks, plus a 5-min revision session in between each main session. During each of the first five sessions, participants learned two new words; the two final sessions were spent revising the 10 words which had been targeted.
Outcomes & results:
Post-intervention assessment showed an increase in scores for both treated and control words. However, progress on treated words was significantly greater than on control words (d = 1.07), indicating effectiveness of intervention. The difference between progress on targeted and control words was found both for nouns (d = 1.29) and verbs (d = 0.64), but the effect size was larger for nouns. Whether or not the participants had an associated ASD did not affect the results. The children's self-rating of their knowledge of the targeted words was also significantly higher than for control words post-intervention.
Conclusions & implications:
The intervention delivered one-to-one by the participants' usual SLT was effective in teaching new vocabulary to older children with language disorders. This shows that older children with language disorders can make progress with direct one-to-one intervention focused on vocabulary.
Background:
A high prevalence of Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) is reported in the population of Young Offenders (YO). However, little is known about the extent of the association between language and offending behaviour relative to social disadvantage, education attendance and non-verbal intelligence (IQ), and neither has this association been investigated with particular reference to the expository discourse abilities of YOs on community orders in the UK.
Aims:
This study aimed to examine the direction and strength of the association between language and offending behaviour by comparing the receptive and expressive language and expository discourse abilities of male and female YOs and non-offenders in the UK, relative to the confounds of social disadvantage, years of education attended and non-verbal IQ. Examining expository discourse provided a measure of the YOs. ability to verbally communicate complex information; a communication ability that is fundamental to engaging effectively in youth offending services and secondary education.
Methods:
An opportunity sample of 52 YOs was recruited from a youth offending service. The YO group was matched on years of education, social disadvantage and non-verbal IQ to a purpose selected comparison group of 25 non-offenders. All participants had English as their first language and were not currently receiving any speech and language intervention. Participants completed standardised measures of receptive and expressive language and an expository discourse measure. The incidence of DLD was identified and compared across offender group using scores from the language and expository discourse measures and gender differences were also explored. Finally, logistical regression analysis was used to test the association between language performance and offending status relative to the confounds of social disadvantage, education attendance and non-verbal IQ.
Outcomes & results:
A large proportion of YOs scored below test norms for the language and expository discourse measures, which indicated a high incidence of DLD that was much larger than that displayed by the non-offenders. No differences were found on language performance between male and female YOs. Logistic regression analyses found that as language performance increased, the probability of being a non-offender significantly increased.
Conclusions & implications:
Participants were over 1 to 5 times more likely to be classified as a non-offender for every unit increase in the language and expository discourse scores. The statistically significant positive association found between language and offending behaviour relative to other confounds, highlights the important role of language in understanding offending behaviour. YOs displayed high incidences of DLD in their language and expository discourse abilities despite having not received any speech and language intervention prior to their involvement in this study. This has implications for their effective engagement in education and in youth offending and criminal justice services (CJS). Professionals in education, health and social care and youth justice should be made aware of the language needs of both YOs and children with emotional behavioural difficulties, and these language needs should be identified and targeted as early as possible to enable them to be effective communicators who can engage effectively in their provision.
Background:
There is some evidence that vocabulary intervention is effective for children, although further research is needed to confirm the impact of intervention within contexts of social disadvantage. Very little is known about the effectiveness of interventions to increase adolescent knowledge of cross-curriculum words.
Aims:
To evaluate the effectiveness of an intervention programme designed to develop adolescents' knowledge of cross-curriculum words.
Methods & procedures:
Participants were 35 adolescents aged between 12 and 14 years who were at risk of educational underachievement with low scores on a range of assessments. Participants received a 10-week intervention programme in small groups, targeting 10 cross-curriculum words (e.g., 'summarize'). This was evaluated using a bespoke outcome measure (the Word Knowledge Profile). The study involved an AABA design, with a repeated baseline, delayed intervention cohort and blind assessment. Intervention included both semantic and phonological information about the target words and involved the adolescents using the words in multiple contexts.
Outcomes & results:
Results were promising and participants' knowledge of the targeted words significantly increased following intervention. Progress was demonstrated on the Word Knowledge Profile on the item requiring participants to define the word (for the summer intervention group only). This increase in depth of knowledge was seen on taught words but not on matched non-taught words.
Conclusions & implications:
Cross-curriculum words are not consistently understood by adolescents at risk of low educational attainment within a low socio-economic context. A 10-week intervention programme resulted in some increases to the depth of knowledge of targeted cross-curriculum words.
Following the publication of the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry Report, in 1999, the Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED) commissioned a review of evidence on ‘race’ inequalities in education. Drawing on new evidence, much of it never previously published, this report seeks to place ethnic inequalities within a wider discussion of educational inequality. The aim is to establish, on the basis of the best available evidence, the relative significance of ‘race’ and ethnicity alongside other factors, especially gender and social class background, so as to clarify an agenda for racial equality in education.
Introduction Most children develop speech and language skills effortlessly, but some are slow to develop these skills and then go on to struggle with literacy and academic skills throughout their schooling. It is the first few years of life that are critical to their subsequent performance. This project looks at what we know about the early communication environment in a child's first two years of life, and the role this plays in preparing children for school using data from a large longitudinal survey of young people (ALSPAC -the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children). It examines the characteristics of the environment in which children learn to communicate (such as activities undertaken with children, the mother's attitude towards her baby, and the wider support available to the family) and the extent to which this affects a child's readiness for school entry (defined as their early language, reading, writing, and maths skills that they need in school). Key Findings • There is a strong association between a child's social background and their readiness for school as measured by their scores on school entry assessments covering language, reading, maths and writing. • Language development at the age of 2 years predicts children's performance on entry to primary school. Children's understanding and use of vocabulary and their use of two or three word sentences at 2 years is very strongly associated with their performance on entering primary school. • The children's communication environment influences language development. The number of books available to the child, the frequency of visits to the library, parents teaching a range of activities, the number of toys available, and attendance at pre-school, are all important predictors of the child's expressive vocabulary at 2 years. The amount of television on in the home is also a predictor; as this time increased, so the child's score at school entry decreased. • The communication environment is a more dominant predictor of early language than social background. In the early stages of language development, it is the particular aspects of a child's communication environment that are associated with language acquisition rather than the broader socio-economic context of the family. • The child's language and their communication environment influence the child's performance at school entry in addition to their social background. Children's success at school is governed not only by their social background; the child's communication environment before their second birthday and their language at the age of two years also have a strong influence.
Perhaps the most prevailing inequalities in educational achievement in England are those associated with socio-economic status (SES), ethnicity and gender. However, little research has sought to compare the relative size of these gaps or to explore interactions between these factors. This paper analyses the educational achievement at age 11, 14 and 16 of over 15,000 students from the nationally representative longitudinal study of young people in England. At age 16, the achievement gap associated with social class was twice as large as the biggest ethnic gap and six times as large as the gender gap. However, the results indicate that ethnicity, gender and SES do not combine in a simple additive fashion; rather, there are substantial interactions particularly between ethnicity and SES and between ethnicity and gender. At age 16 among low SES students, all ethnic minority groups achieve significantly better than White British students (except Black Caribbean boys who do not differ from White British boys), but at high SES only Indian students outperform White British students. A similar pattern of results was apparent in terms of progress age 11-16, with White British low SES students and Black Caribbean boys (particularly the more able) making the least progress. Parents' educational aspirations for their child and students' own educational aspirations, academic self-concept, frequency of completing homework, truancy and exclusion could account for the minority ethnic advantage at low SES, but conditioning on such factors simultaneously indicates substantial ethnic underachievement at average and high SES. Accounts of educational achievement framed exclusively in terms of social class, ethnicity or gender are insufficient, and the results challenge educational researchers to develop more nuanced accounts of educational success or failure.
This paper reports an analysis of the educational attainment and progress between age 11 and age 14 of over 14,500 students from the nationally representative Longitudinal Study of Young People in England. The mean attainment gap in national tests at age 14 between White British and several ethnic minority groups was large, more than three times the size of the gender gap, but at the same time only about one-third of the size of the social class gap. Socioeconomic variables could account for the attainment gaps for Black African, Pakistani and Bangladeshi students, but not for Black Caribbean students. Further controls for parental and student attitudes, expectations and behaviours indicated minority ethnic groups were on average more advantaged on these measures than White British students, but this was not reflected proportionately in their levels of attainment. Black Caribbean students were distinctive as the only group making less progress than White British students between age 11 and 14 and this could not be accounted for by any of the measured contextual variables. Possible explanations for the White British—Black Caribbean gap are considered.
Purpose
The present study examined the relationship between mathematics and language to better understand the nature of the deficit and the academic implications associated with specific language impairment (SLI) and academic implications for English language learners (ELLs).
Method
School-age children (N = 61; 20 SLI, 20 ELL, 21 native monolingual English [NE]) were assessed using a norm-referenced mathematics instrument and 3 experimental computer-based mathematics games that varied in language demands. Group means were compared with analyses of variance.
Results
The ELL group was less accurate than the NE group only when tasks were language heavy. In contrast, the group with SLI was less accurate than the groups with NE and ELLs on language-heavy tasks and some language-light tasks. Specifically, the group with SLI was less accurate on tasks that involved comparing numerical symbols and using visual working memory for patterns. However, there were no group differences between children with SLI and peers without SLI on language-light mathematics tasks that involved visual working memory for numerical symbols.
Conclusion
Mathematical difficulties of children who are ELLs appear to be related to the language demands of mathematics tasks. In contrast, children with SLI appear to have difficulty with mathematics tasks because of linguistic as well as nonlinguistic processing constraints.
Supplemental Material
https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.6170279
This article describes both the process and products of a cooperative inquiry project between two educational researchers—one from literacy education and one from mathematics education. The collaboration took place in an undergraduate, inquiry-based mathematics classroom in which the researchers sought to develop a shared vision of learning and literacy. The researchers discovered that they each used a different learning model to make sense of mathematics instruction, and that both of these models obscured important aspects of learning in a Standards-based mathematics classroom. An alternative model of learning and literacy in mathematics that takes into consideration both models is presented, as well as the process through which the researchers negotiated this shared perspective.
The impact of language characteristics in mathematics test items on student performance was evaluated for students with disabilities (SWD) and English language learners (ELL) as well as a large general student sample. Relationships were examined for test items and students at 4th, 7th, and 10th grades. The individual test item was the unit of analysis. Student performance was represented by item difficulty, or the probability of answering the item correctly. Regression analyses were conducted to examine relationships between item linguistic characteristics as independent variables with item difficulty as the dependent variable. Language characteristics had moderate effects on item difficulty at 4th grade, dropping to small-to-medium effects at 10th grade. ELL and SWD groups were not disproportionately affected by language characteristics in these test items. Difficult mathematics vocabulary had a consistent effect on performance for all students at all grades. Ambiguous or multiple-meaning words increased item difficulty at 4th grade.
This meta-analysis reviewed the literature on socioeconomic status (SES) and academic achievement in journal articles published between 1990 and 2000. The sample included 101,157 students, 6,871 schools, and 128 school districts gathered from 74 independent samples. The results showed a medium to strong SES–achievement relation. This relation, however, is moderated by the unit, the source, the range of SES variable, and the type of SES–achievement measure. The relation is also contingent upon school level, minority status, and school location. The author conducted a replica of White’s (1982) meta-analysis to see whether the SES–achievement correlation had changed since White’s initial review was published. The results showed a slight decrease in the average correlation. Practical implications for future research and policy are discussed.
This article describes a longitudinal analysis of a nationally representative cohort of over 80,000 pupils in England who completed both national end of Key Stage 2 (KS2) tests and the Cognitive Abilities Test (CAT) at age 11 in 1997, national end of Key Stage 3 (KS3) tests at age 14 in summer 2000 and General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) and other public examinations at age 16 in summer 2002. The CAT had significantly higher correlations with subsequent KS3 and GCSE outcomes than did KS2 test points scores. However, multiple regression analyses indicated that a combination of CAT and KS2 test scores gave the best prediction of future KS3\GCSE outcomes. The article argues that measures of both pupils' general transferable learning abilities, and measures of specific curricular attainments at the end of primary school have unique and distinct value at the start of the secondary phase. The article discusses some practical ways in which the different types of assessment data can be used within the secondary school.
A quasi-experimental study of a novel, cross-content area vocabulary intervention program called Word Generation showed significantly greater growth among 6th- to 8th-grade students in schools implementing the program than in comparison schools, on a curriculum-specific test. Furthermore, the language-minority students in the treatment, but not the comparison, schools showed greater growth than the English-only students. Improvement on the curriculum-specific test predicted performance on the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) English language arts assessment, again only for students in the treatment schools. Recognizing the need to implement a more rigorous experimental study of this program, nonetheless we conclude that participation in the intervention, with its focus on deep reading, comprehension of current-events topics, productive classroom discussion, developing arguments, and producing persuasive essays, was a plausible contributor to student performance on the MCAS.
School effectiveness analyses have largely ignored the role of the family as an important source of variation for children's educational progress. Sibling analyses in developmental psychology and behavioural genetics have largely ignored sources of shared environmental variation beyond the immediate family. We formulate a multilevel cross-classified model that examines variation in children's progress during secondary schooling and partitions this variability into pupil, family, primary school, secondary school, local education authority and residential area. Our results suggest that about 50% of what has been labelled as pupil variation in school effectiveness models is really between-family variation and that about 22% of the total variance is due to shared environments beyond the immediate family. Copyright (c) 2010 Royal Statistical Society.
The present study examines the linkages between family socioeconomic status (SES) in childhood and educational achievement in young adulthood using data from a 25-year longitudinal study of a birth cohort of over 1000 New Zealand children. Structural equation modeling of the association between latent SES at birth and educational achievement by age 25 years showed evidence of a strong association between latent SES and later educational achievement. Much of this association was mediated via two pathways relating to child cognitive ability and family educational aspirations; family economic resources and school factors did not mediate the association. However, even when the major theoretical pathways were taken into account, a substantial component of the latent SES/educational achievement correlation remained unexplained.
This 5-year prospective longitudinal study of 70,000 + English children examined the association between psychometric intelligence at age 11 years and educational achievement in national examinations in 25 academic subjects at age 16. The correlation between a latent intelligence trait (Spearman's g from CAT2E) and a latent trait of educational achievement (GCSE scores) was 0.81. General intelligence contributed to success on all 25 subjects. Variance accounted for ranged from 58.6% in Mathematics and 48% in English to 18.1% in Art and Design. Girls showed no advantage in g, but performed significantly better on all subjects except Physics. This was not due to their better verbal ability. At age 16, obtaining five or more GCSEs at grades A⁎–C is an important criterion. 61% of girls and 50% of boys achieved this. For those at the mean level of g at age 11, 58% achieved this; a standard deviation increase or decrease in g altered the values to 91% and 16%, respectively.
Purpose
Parents, professionals, and policy makers need information on the long-term prognosis for children with communication disorders. Our primary purpose in this report was to help fill this gap by profiling the family, educational, occupational, and quality of life outcomes of young adults at 25 years of age (N = 244) from the Ottawa Language Study, a 20-year, prospective, longitudinal study of a community sample of individuals with (n = 112) and without (n = 132) a history of early speech and/or language impairments. A secondary purpose of this report was to use data from earlier phases of the study to predict important, real-life outcomes at age 25.
Method
Participants were initially identified at age 5 and subsequently followed at 12, 19, and 25 years of age. Direct assessments were conducted at all 4 time periods in multiple domains (demographic, communicative, cognitive, academic, behavioral, and psychosocial).
Results
At age 25, young adults with a history of language impairments showed poorer outcomes in multiple objective domains (communication, cognitive/academic, educational attainment, and occupational status) than their peers without early communication impairments and those with early speech-only impairments. However, those with language impairments did not differ in subjective perceptions of their quality of life from those in the other 2 groups. Objective outcomes at age 25 were predicted differentially by various combinations of multiple, interrelated risk factors, including poor language and reading skills, low family socioeconomic status, low performance IQ, and child behavior problems. Subjective well-being, however, was primarily associated with strong social networks of family, friends, and others.
Conclusion
This information on the natural history of communication disorders may be useful in answering parents' questions, anticipating challenges that children with language disorders might encounter, and planning services to address those issues.
A 2-year follow-up of the mathematical abilities of young children with specific language impairment (SLI) is reported. To detect the nature of the difficulties children with SLI exhibited in mathematics, the first- and second-grade children's performance was compared to mental age and language age comparison groups of typically developing children on a series of tasks that examined conceptual, procedural, and declarative knowledge of mathematics. Despite displaying knowledge of many conceptual aspects of mathematics such as counting plates of cookies to decide which plate had "more," children with SLI displayed marked difficulty with declarative mathematical knowledge that required an immediate response such as rote counting to fifty, counting by 10's, reciting numerals backwards from 20, and addition facts such as 2 + 2=?. Moreover, children with SLI performed similarly to their cognitive peers on mathematical tasks that allowed children to use actual objects to count and on math problems that did not require them to exceed the sequence of numbers that they knew well. These findings offer further evidence that storage and/or retrieval of rote sequential material is particularly cumbersome for children with SLI.
This study examined the enumeration and numerical reasoning levels of children with specific language impairment (SLI) compared to those of two groups of typically developing children: children matched for age (AM) and children matched for grammatical ability (GM). The children completed four numerical tasks: reproduction of sets, numerosity of sets, an addition/subtraction condition of the numerosity of sets, and transformation effects (conservation of number). Between-group analyses indicate that the children in the SLI group performed better than the children in the GM group for all set sizes of all tasks with one exception (set size 7 of the add/subtract task) and performed more poorly than the children in the AM group for 7 of the 16 trials. There was a strong correlation of count range with the reproduction of sets task for the children with SLI, but not for the children in the other two groups. The AM group consistently used verbal counting to facilitate numerical problem solving. Conversely prompting the children with SLI to use verbal counting while completing any of the numerical tasks resulted in a 50% decline in accuracy. Children need opportunities to strengthen numerical constructs, such as those enhanced through verbal counting. However, children with SLI also need opportunities to fortify their nonverbal enumeration and numerical reasoning without requiring the use of their deficit area.
In creating a semantic assessment that will be linguistically and culturally fair, it is important to avoid the bias of acquired vocabulary tests. This article describes techniques to assess children's processing of new words, their lexical organization and retrieval, which may be more significant than the number of words known. Special properties of the quantifier every also give an idea of the child's level of semantic ability. In addition, we examine how the child's performance on each item-type helps the speech-language pathologist determine the sources of children's problems in this domain.
Background/Context
It is well established in the research literature that socioeconomically disadvantaged students and schools do less well on standardized measures of academic achievement compared with their more advantaged peers. Although studies in numerous countries have shown that the socioeconomic profile of a school is strongly correlated with student outcomes, less is understood about how the relationship may vary if both individual student and school socioeconomic status (SES) are disaggregated.
Purpose/Objective/Research Question/Focus of Study
This study examines the relationship between school SES and student outcomes in more detail by asking two research questions. First, how does the association vary for students of different socioeconomic backgrounds? In other words, is the association stronger for students from lower SES backgrounds than for students from higher SES backgrounds? Second, how does the association vary across schools with different socioeconomic compositions? In other words, are increases in school socioeconomic composition consistently associated with increases in student academic achievement?
Population/Participants/Subjects
This study uses data from the Australian 2003 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). The sample includes over 320 secondary schools and more than 12,000 students from Australia.
Research Design
This study is a secondary analysis of data from the Australian 2003 PISA. Descriptive statistics are used to compare the average reading, mathematics, and science achievement of secondary school students from different SES backgrounds in a variety of school SES contexts.
Conclusions
The two main findings of the study are that increases in the mean SES of a school are associated with consistent increases in students’ academic achievement, and that this relationship is similar for all students regardless of their individual SES. In the Australian case, the socio-economic composition of the school matters greatly in terms of students’ academic performance.
The belief that with hard work and determination, all children have the opportunity to succeed in life is a cherished part of the American Dream. Yet, increased inequality in America has made that dream more difficult for many to obtain. In Too Many Children Left Behind, an international team of social scientists assesses how social mobility varies in the United States compared with Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Bruce Bradbury, Miles Corak, Jane Waldfogel, and Elizabeth Washbrook show that the academic achievement gap between disadvantaged American children and their more advantaged peers is far greater than in other wealthy countries, with serious consequences for their future life outcomes. With education the key to expanding opportunities for those born into low socioeconomic status families, Too Many Children Left Behind helps us better understand educational disparities and how to reduce them. Analyzing data on 8,000 school children in the United States, the authors demonstrate that disadvantages that begin early in life have long-lasting effects on academic performance. The social inequalities that children experience before they start school contribute to a large gap in test scores between low- and high-SES students later in life. Many children from low-SES backgrounds lack critical resources, including books, high-quality child care, and other goods and services that foster the stimulating environment necessary for cognitive development. The authors find that not only is a child's academic success deeply tied to his or her family background, but that this class-based achievement gap does not narrow as the child proceeds through school. The authors compare test score gaps from the United States with those from three other countries and find smaller achievement gaps and greater social mobility in all three, particularly in Canada. The wider availability of public resources for disadvantaged children in those countries facilitates the early child development that is fundamental for academic success. All three countries provide stronger social services than the United States, including universal health insurance, universal preschool, paid parental leave, and other supports. The authors conclude that the United States could narrow its achievement gap by adopting public policies that expand support for children in the form of tax credits, parenting programs, and pre-K. With economic inequalities limiting the futures of millions of children, Too Many Children Left Behind is a timely study that uses global evidence to show how the United States can do more to level the playing field.
Young people's perceptions may offer an insight into the complex associations between language, education and social class. However, little research has asked young people what they think of their own talking. Forty-two British adolescents aged between 14 and 15 years were interviewed: 21 attended a school in a working class area; 21 attended school in a middle class area. This paper examines and compares interview extracts from the two groups of adolescents.Results of a thematic analysis suggest that adolescents in both schools use language to signal their identity and to identify the group membership of others. Identity was linked by participants to social class. For example, adolescents attending school in a working class area described how they avoid talking ‘posh’ and those in a middle class area avoided talking like a ‘chav’. Adolescents attending school in a working class area described differences between the requirements of talking with teachers versus with their peers. Those in a middle class area discussed how their language skills were related to literacy and educational success. Implications for educational policy and practice are examined.
This article is based upon a secondary analysis of three successive cohorts of the Youth Cohort Study of England and Wales and examines the effects of social class and ethnicity on gender differences in General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) attainment for those who left school in 1997, 1999 and 2001 respectively. The article shows that both social class and ethnicity exert a far greater influence on the GCSE performance of boys and girls than gender. Within this it assesses whether there is an interaction effect between gender and social class and also gender and ethnicity in terms of their impact on educational attainment. The article shows that, across all three cohorts, there is no evidence of any systematic variation in the size of the gender differences in educational attainment that exist across either social class or ethnic groups. Simply in terms of the effects of social class, ethnicity and gender on educational attainment, therefore, it is argued that these can actually be understood in terms of a simple ‘additive model’. The implications of this for initiatives aimed at addressing gender differences in educational attainment are considered briefly in the conclusion.
This article presents analyses of attainment variations for five cohorts of school leavers between 1988 and 1995. Social class, ethnicity and gender variations in educational attainment at 16 are examined using data from over 80,000 young people in England and Wales. This is the only representative data set that allows analyses of educational variations in England and Wales across social class, ethnic and gender groups simultaneously. The preliminary analyses showed an underrepresentation of some ethnic and lower social class groups in the independent education sector. The attainment analyses thereafter are for state school pupils only. Between 1988 and 1995, attainment differences relating to social class, ethnicity and gender are all seen to increase. In terms of the percentages leaving compulsory schooling with five or more high grade passes (grade A*‐C at General Certificate of Secondary Education), the social class gap of 50 percentage points widened to 56 percentage points, the ethnicity gap from 14 to 20 percentage points and the gender gap from 5 to 10 percentage points. The uneven improvement in educational attainment across ethnic, social class and gender groups is a cause for concern. For certain subgroups there appears to be little or no improvement over the 8 years. These findings relate to a period of considerable political intervention within the British compulsory education system. They suggest that policies focused on raising educational standards may be at variance with the aim of reducing educational inequality.
In this paper we test whether oral language development during the preschool years helps explain the positive relationship between family socioeconomic status (SES) and children's elementary school performance. In particular, we test for the portion of the SES effect on 2nd to 4th grade reading, 3rd to 4th grade mathematics, and overall teacher-rated performance that is explained by oral language ability measured when kindergarten begins. We analyze a unique data set containing unusually comprehensive measures of kindergarten oral language ability. The data are for white Midwestern children and their families. Estimation via structural equation modeling shows that oral language skill at kindergarten entry explains most of the effect of SES on elementary school performance. Since other studies have shown that elementary school performance strongly determines later educational attainment, much of the intergenerational transmission of socioeconomic status occurs when the child is very young.
The relationships are explored between language and literacy and academic success at 16 years in an English sample of 62 young people with a history of specific language impairment identified at 8 years. Data were available from national assessments at 16 and 14; in addition the pupils had completed a range of standardized tests to examine language, literacy and non-verbal ability at 10 years and 8 months and at 16 years. Concurrent measures of literacy had the highest correlations with academic performance. However, analysis revealed a complex model identifying relationships between academic performance at 16 and previous academic attainments in secondary school (national assessments at 14) and a measure of language (listening to paragraphs, Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals 3 or CELF-RUK; Peers et al., 1999). Standardized measures of literacy, non-verbal ability and listening to paragraphs (CELF-RUK) taken at age 11 accounted for over 50% of the variance in performance on Key Stage 3 (KS3) assessments at 14 in English, maths and science. Current gaps in our understanding of the factors that support successful school performance are discussed.
It is often claimed that working and talking with partners while carrying out maths activities is beneficial to students’ learning and the development of their mathematical understanding. However, observational research has shown that primary school children often do not work productively in group-based classroom activities, with the implication that they lack the necessary skills to manage their joint activity. The research we describe investigated these issues and also explored the role of the teacher in guiding the development of children’s skills in using language as a tool for reasoning. It involved an interventional teaching programme called Thinking Together, designed to enable children to talk and reason together effectively. The results obtained indicate that children can be enabled to use talk more effectively as a tool for reasoning; and that talk-based group activities can help the development of individuals’ mathematical reasoning, understanding and problem-solving. The results also encourage the view that the teacher of mathematics can play an important role in the development of children’s awareness and use of language as a tool for reasoning. We suggest some ways that this role can be carried out most effectively.
Some students enter the world of mathematics with a disadvantage. The authors explored the causes for this from a language-processing perspective. They were particularly concerned with students with potential learning disabilities or specific language impairments. They also explored the role of language-mediated instruction in creating an accumulation of ambiguity in the instructional environment. They offer inferences on how this ambiguity may cause insecurities among young learners, and they suggest preemptive methodologies to better prepare young learners for formal mathematics education.
This article reports the results of an Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) funded study which focuses on the differential academic achievement of different groups of pupils. The paper describes the findings on the size and extent of school effects across 3 years (1990, 1991, 1992) for different groups of pupils (classified by gender, eligibility for free school means [FSM], ethnic group and by prior attainment). Pupils’ overall General Certificate of Secondary Education performance and their performance in selected subjects (English, English literature, French, history, mathematics and science) have been analysed using multilevel modelling, employing a total sample of 94 inner London secondary schools. A ‘value added’ approach is adopted, controlling for selected student background measures of prior attainment (at secondary transfer), gender, age, ethnicity and low income to provide statistical controls for differences between schools in the characteristics of their intakes. Differential school and departmental effects were identified for all pupil groups examined. However, the strongest evidence of differential effects was found for groups classified by prior attainment and ethnicity. Overall, the findings indicate that schools that appear to be more or less effective for a particular group of pupils, such as non‐FSM pupils, are likely to be more or less effective for all pupils. However, in some schools, substantial differences between groups were identified. The implications of these findings for the debate about the publication, presentation and interpretation of schools’ examination results and the extent to which the overall concepts of ‘effective’ or ‘ineffective’ schools can be applied, are discussed.
While strong early literacy skills are important, they aren't enough to ensure a student's later reading and academic success. Four literacy experts investigate the reasons in this book--and demonstrate why schools need to go beyond K-3 literacy to help adolescents reach their full potential. Following a group of children from low-income families from preschool through high school, the authors charted the students' outcomes using test data reflecting language and literacy skills; self-report data reflecting motivation and engagement in school; and interviews with students, teachers, and parents. Through the sobering discoveries made during this study, educators, administrators, researchers, and reading specialists will discover the critical influence of both protective factors and risk factors, including: (1) academic and emotional support from teachers and parents; (2) motivational factors; (3) ongoing reading support in middle school and high school; (4) living in poverty; (5) attending multiple schools; (6) family disruption; and (7) social-emotional difficulties. Readers will also explore how elements of a special education model--more student-teacher interaction, smaller class size, and student-directed learning--enhance the quality of educational programs serving all adolescents. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
This article offers recommendations for literacy and mathematics leaders as they design and implement effective professional development and support for middle and secondary mathematics teachers to integrate literacy into their instruction. To cross the mathematics literacy divide, the authors provide an annotated bibliography of articles detailing the effective use of literacy strategies for mathematics instruction. The article closes with a discussion of the characteristics of these articles and list of suggestions for greater collaboration between literacy and mathematics leaders to support the instructional practices of mathematics teachers.
There is a growing awareness of the importance of academic vocabulary, and more generally, of academic language proficiency, for students' success in school. There is also a growing body of research on the nature of the demands that academic language places on readers and writers, and on interventions to help students meet these demands. In this review, we discuss the role of academic vocabulary within academic language, examine recent research on instruction in academic vocabulary, considering both general academic words and discipline-specific words, and offer our perspective on the current state of this research and recommendations on how to continue inquiry and to improve practice in this area. We use the metaphor of 'words as tools' to reflect our understanding that instruction in academic vocabulary must approach words as means for communicating and thinking about disciplinary content, and must therefore provide students with opportunities to use the instructed words for these purposes as they are learning them.
It is recognized that children from areas associated with socioeconomic disadvantage are at an increased risk of delayed language development. However, so far research has focused mainly on young children and there has been little investigation into language development in adolescence.
To investigate the language abilities of adolescents from two different socioeconomic areas. The paper aims to determine if a higher proportion of adolescents from an area of socioeconomic disadvantage have low language scores when compared with adolescents from a relatively advantaged area.
Six standardized language assessments were used to measure expressive and receptive language skills across vocabulary, syntax and narrative in two cohorts of 13 and 14 year olds: one cohort attending a school in an area of socioeconomic disadvantage (103 participants) and the other cohort attending a school in an area of relative socioeconomic advantage (48 participants).
The cohort from the area of disadvantage performed significantly lower than the assessments' normative mean on all measures of language ability. There were significant differences between the two cohorts on four of the six language measures. More adolescents from the school in the area of socioeconomic disadvantage had standardized assessment scores that suggest hitherto undetected language difficulties.
Results suggest that socioeconomic background is associated with language ability in adolescence as measured by standardized tests. In particular, adolescents from an area of socioeconomic disadvantage were at risk of low vocabulary scores. The advantages and disadvantages of using standardized language assessments are discussed and the implications for clinical and educational practice and for school level policies are highlighted.
Previous studies have highlighted the level of communication difficulty experienced by children from socially disadvantaged backgrounds, but the pattern of difficulties remains unclear.
The study asks whether the performance of a community sample of children from one of the most socially disadvantaged neighbourhoods in Scotland is best characterized by a general delay in all areas of development, by difficulties across the more formal structural aspects of language or in phonological skills.
The study included 138 monolingual English-speaking children: 63 (45.7%) boys and 75 (54.3%) girls aged between 5 and 12 years. All children were assessed blind to educational attainment in the school.
Nearly 40% of children had delayed language development with 10% having severe difficulties. The children presented with an uneven profile with much lower structural language scores than reading, general communication skills or non-verbal performance. Although service use was high in the group as a whole, the proportion who met criteria for specific language impairment on discrepancy criteria were not those who were being referred to speech and language therapy.
Although many children were performing well within the normal range, a substantial proportion were not, having considerable implications for the way that services are delivered to these children. Given the high prevalence of delayed structural language difficulties in this group, there is a clear need for a more universal 'population'-based approaches to service delivery.
In this paper the controversial educational topic of class size reduction is addressed. Controlling for a large number of observable characteristics and potential endogeneity in the class size variable, an educational production function is estimated using a quantile regression technique. The "conventional wisdom" that class size reduction is a viable means to increase scholastic achievement is discounted. Rather, the results point towards a far stronger peer effect through which class size reduction may play an important role. Due to heterogeneity in the newly identified peer effect, class size reduction is shown to be a potentially regressive policy measure.
Services for children with speech and language needs in England and Wales are in a period of change. The context is subject to major systemic pressures deriving from government policies. These include the development of inclusive education and encouragement of multiprofessional collaboration in policy development and practice ('joined up thinking'). In addition, structures at local level are changing with the establishment of unitary authorities and the change from Health Trusts to Primary Care Trusts. Professional practice is also changing with a shift from clinical to community settings for speech and language therapists working with children. The present study reports on a survey sponsored by the Department for Education and Employment, Department of Health and the Welsh Assembly to identify the nature of speech and language therapy (SLT) services provided to education in England and Wales. The sample comprised all SLT service managers (n = 133, response rate 74%). The results indicate that services vary greatly in size and in their SLT: child ratio, with a mean of one SLT to 4257 child population. The caseload was highest for the 5-10 age group, and service delivery was targeted at these children, with low levels of work with secondary aged pupils. Most provision in educational settings was made to mainstream schools, but the provision of SLT time per child was substantially higher in specialist language resources. Apart from the preschool phase, most SLT provision was for children with statements of special educational needs. Prioritization of service delivery was usually by severity of need. The provision of bilingual SLT services was very limited, with only 14.0 full-time equivalents SLTs fluent in a community language, other than Welsh, where proportionately availability was much greater. Most LEAs funded SLT posts, although these were usually employed as part of the SLT service, with only about 10% of LEAs employing SLTs direct. However, 55.5% of SLT managers reported that recruitment and retention were problematic, resulting in gaps in the service. These findings are discussed with respect to changes driven by professional judgements on the nature of optimal service delivery, and government policy, with particular reference to inclusion and equity of service delivery.
A sample (n=48) of eight-year-olds with specific language impairments is compared with age-matched (n=55) and language matched controls (n=55) on a range of tasks designed to test the interdependence of language and mathematical development. Performance across tasks varies substantially in the SLI group, showing profound deficits in production of the count word sequence and basic calculation and significant deficits in understanding of the place-value principle in Hindu-Arabic notation. Only in understanding of arithmetic principles does SLI performance approximate that of age-matched-controls, indicating that principled understanding can develop even where number sequence production and other aspects of number processing are severely compromised.
This investigation reports the results of national educational examinations in secondary schooling for young people who have been participating in the Manchester Language Study.
The emphasis of the study is on furthering understanding of educational outcomes at the end of compulsory education.
A total of 120 adolescents with a history of specific language impairment (SLI) and 121 adolescents with typical development (TD) who were in their final year of compulsory secondary schooling (mean age = 17;4 years) participated. National educational examination results throughout secondary schooling were collected along with a range of psycholinguistic skills from 11 to 16/17 years.
Forty-four per cent of young people with SLI obtained at least one of the expected qualifications at the end of secondary education, indicating some improvements compared with reports on earlier cohorts. Regression analyses revealed that literacy and language skills were predictive of educational attainment after controlling for IQ and maternal education. Nearly one-quarter of the sample of adolescents with SLI was not entered for any examinations at the end of compulsory education. A very strong association between earlier patterns of entry for examinations and patterns of examination entry at school leaving age was found.
In addition to performance IQ, concurrent and early literacy and language skills have significant effects on the academic attainments of young people with a history of SLI. The transition from primary to secondary schooling is a crucial time for assessment and evaluation of individual children's needs and levels of support required.