Child and Parenting Outcomes After 1 Year of Educare

Educare is a birth to age 5 early education program designed to reduce the achievement gap between children from low‐income families and their more economically advantaged peers through high‐quality center‐based programming and strong school–family partnerships. This study randomly assigned 239 children (< 19 months) from low‐income families to Educare or a business‐as‐usual control group. Assessments tracked children 1 year after randomization. Results revealed significant differences favoring treatment group children on auditory and expressive language skills, parent‐reported problem behaviors, and positive parent–child interactions. Effect sizes were in the modest to medium range. No effects were evident for observer‐rated child behaviors or parent‐rated social competence. The overall results add to the evidence that intervening early can set low‐income children on more positive developmental courses.     

Language Use Contributes to Expressive Language Growth: Evidence From Bilingual Children

The unique relation of language use (i.e., output) to language growth was investigated for forty‐seven 30‐month‐old Spanish–English bilingual children (27 girls, 20 boys) whose choices of which language to speak resulted in their levels of English output differing from their levels of English input. English expressive vocabularies and receptive language skills were assessed at 30, 36, and 42 months. Longitudinal multilevel modeling indicated an effect of output on expressive vocabulary growth only. The finding that output specifically benefits the development of expressive language skill has implications for understanding effects of language use on language skill in monolingual and bilingual development, and potentially, for understanding consequences of cultural differences in how much children are expected to talk in conversation with adults.     

Using a Teacher Rating Scale of Language and Literacy Skills with Preschool Children of English-Speaking,Spanish-Speaking,and Bilingual Backgrounds

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between a teacher report measure, the Teacher Rating of Oral Language and Literacy (TROLL; Dickinson et al. in Teacher rating of oral language and literacy (TROLL): a research-based tool. Center for the Improvement of Early Reading Achievement, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 2001) and a direct behavioral measure of language development, the Preschool Language Scale-4 (PLS-4; Zimmerman et al. in Preschool Language Scale-4. The Psychological Corporation, San Antonio, 2002), among English-speaking (n = 210), Spanish-speaking (n = 34), and English/Spanish bilingual (n = 109) typically-developing preschool children. Three hundred and fifty-three preschool children who attended early childhood education programs in an urban area of the Southwestern United States participated. Preschool teachers completed the TROLL, and the PLS-4 was individually administered to the children at preschool centers. The TROLL and PLS-4 were significantly correlated for English-speaking children, but with small effect sizes noted. For Spanish-speaking children, the TROLL and the expressive subscale of the PLS-4 were not significant, and for bilingual children the TROLL and PLS-4 were not significant. English-speaking children scored higher on the TROLL than the Spanish-speaking and bilingual children. Finally, a higher proportion of Spanish-speaking and bilingual children received a TROLL score at or below the 10th percentile. Results suggest that the TROLL did not adequately capture typically developing children’s linguistic and literacy development in a uniform manner across language groups. Caution is recommended when relying upon a single instrument to describe the emergent literacy and language skills of preschool children from Spanish-speaking and bilingual backgrounds.     

An evaluation of the effectiveness of a computer‐assisted reading intervention

Background

A cost‐effective method to address reading delays is to use computer‐assisted learning, but these techniques are not always effective.

Methods

We evaluated a commercially available computer system that uses visual mnemonics, in a randomised controlled trial with 78 English‐speaking children (mean age 7 years) who their schools identified as needing reading support. School‐based individual tutorials usually took place 2–3 times/week. Only the experimental group received the intervention in the first 10 months; thereafter, both the experimental and control groups received the intervention for 6 months.

Results

After 10 months, the experimental group had significantly higher standardised scores than the waiting list control group of decoding, phonological awareness, naming speed, phonological short‐term memory and executive loaded working memory.

Conclusions

The computer‐assisted intervention was effective, and this suggests that this medium can be used for reading interventions with English‐speaking children. What is already known about this topic

• There are comparatively few randomised controlled trial evaluations of computer‐based reading interventions.
• Meta‐analyses report small positive effect sizes for such interventions with English‐speaking children.
• The use of visual mnemonics to improve reading has rarely been investigated.

What this paper adds

• The findings suggest that computer‐based interventions for English‐speaking, struggling readers can be effective.
• The effects extended beyond the targeted abilities, and a longer intervention was more effective than a shorter one.
• Apart from spelling, the mean reading and reading related standardised scores for children at the end of the intervention were above or just below 100.

Implications for theory, policy or practice

• Computer‐based interventions can be used to support English‐speaking, struggling readers, and their effects can go beyond targeted abilities.
• The use of visual mnemonics and the development of the intervention programme over a number of years could have contributed to this success.
• The role of visual mnemonics as a help for struggling readers deserves further investigation.

     

Shared Picture Book Reading Interventions for Child Language Development: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Interventions that train parents to share picture books with children are seen as a strategy for supporting child language development. We conducted meta-analyses using robust variance estimation modeling on results from 19 RCTs (N_total = 2,594; M_childage = 1–6 years). Overall, book-sharing interventions had a small sized effect on both expressive language (d = 0.41) and receptive language (d = 0.26). They had a large effect on caregiver book-sharing competence (d = 1.01). The impact of the intervention on child language was moderated by intervention dosage, with lower dosage associated with a minimal impact. Child age and caregiver education level were unrelated to child outcome. This review and meta-analysis confirms the promise of book-sharing interventions for enhancing and accelerating child language development.     

A Comparison of Responsive Interventions on Kindergarteners’ Early Reading Achievement

This study compared the effects of Tier 2 reading interventions that operated in response‐to‐intervention contexts. Kindergarten children (N = 90) who were identified as at risk for reading difficulties were stratified by school and randomly assigned to receive (a) Early Reading Intervention (ERI; Pearson/Scott Foresman, 2004) modified in response to student performance or (b) their schools’ typical supplemental reading intervention (regrouping and curriculum pacing adjustments). In both conditions, intervention was provided 30 minutes per day in small groups for approximately 100 sessions. Results indicated no statistically significant group differences on any outcome measures. Between‐group effect sizes revealed substantively important differences (Valentine & Cooper, 2003) favoring the ERI responsive condition on multiple measures with effect sizes ranging from .35 to .59. Overall, findings indicated that the majority of students in both Tier 2 intervention conditions performed above the 30th percentile on posttest measures of word reading measures.     

Language‐Focused Interventions on Math Performance for English Learners: A Selective Meta‐Analysis of the Literature

This meta‐analysis synthesized research on math performance outcomes for English learners (EL) as a function of language‐focused (math vocabulary) interventions. We included group and single‐subject design studies with children from kindergarten to 8th grade (3,766 students for group, 30 for single‐subject). Group studies yielded a mean Hedges’ g of 0.26 in favor of the interventions relative to the control conditions, whereas single‐subject studies yielded a mean Percentage of Non‐Overlapping Data of 81.01% and Phi coefficient of .66 relative to baseline. Although group studies yielded small effect sizes (ESs), we found significant moderators for grade level, intervention focus, and length of intervention. Single‐subject studies yielded higher ESs than group studies, and were considered generally effective, with a high ES. This finding was attributed to a direct focus on children with math difficulties and one‐to‐one instruction. The implications for practice and future research are discussed.     

Comparing the effects of different book reading techniques on young children’s language development

The purpose of this research study is to compare the effects of digital, dialogic and traditional reading on children’s language development aged 48–66 months. Fifty-six randomly selected children enrolled in three different classrooms in a public preschool in Turkey participated in the study. The three classrooms were again randomly assigned as digital, dialogic and traditional reading groups. During the reading activities, a total of 24 storybooks were read by each group every three times in 8 weeks. While the children’s language scores (the receptive and expressive language scores) resulted in a significant increase in dialogic reading, the children’s language scores in a digital and traditional reading group slightly changed during the intervention. Alternatively, qualitative data suggested that the interaction between teacher and children and between children and children were very limited in a digital and traditional reading group and that limited interaction during reading was the underlying cause of the insignificant increase in children’s language scores.

     

A close look at the efficacy of Fast ForWord Language for children with academic weaknesses

This study evaluated the efficacy of the computer-assisted intervention program known as Fast ForWord Language in a sample of children in grades 1 through 6 referred for poor academic performance. Fast ForWord Language combines intensive training in multiple receptive language skills with adaptive acoustic waveform lengthening and amplification to remediate deficits in auditory temporal processing that are purported to be the root cause of developmental language disorders and many reading disabilities. Students in the treatment group were matched with students in a no-contact control group and all were assessed in four domains before and immediately after the 4–8 week intervention: (a) oral language competency; (b) phonological processing abilities; (c) basic reading skills; and (d) classroom behavior. Except for performance on a measure of expressive oral language, on which children in the treatment group achieved significantly greater gains than those in the control group, changes in test scores from pretest to posttest were equivalent for the two groups. However, when the lowest performing students in each group were compared, the children in the treatment group demonstrated superior gains in expressive oral language, syllable and sound blending, and reduction in problem behaviors. Thus, Fast ForWord Language had a positive, albeit limited impact on the oral language skills, academic performance, and social behaviors of some children in this study. However, due to methodological weaknesses and limited treatment fidelity, the study results must be interpreted cautiously.     

Identification of Effective Strategies to Promote Language in Deaf Children With Cochlear Implants

Parental involvement and communication are essential for language development in young children. However, hearing parents of deaf children face challenges in providing language input to their children. This study utilized the largest national sample of deaf children receiving cochlear implants, with the aim of identifying effective facilitative language techniques. Ninety‐three deaf children (≤ 2 years) were assessed at 6 implant centers prior to and for 3 years following implantation. All parent–child interactions were videotaped, transcribed, and coded at each assessment. Analyses using bivariate latent difference score modeling indicated that higher versus lower level strategies predicted growth in expressive language and word types predicted growth in receptive language over time. These effective, higher level strategies could be used in early intervention programs.     

Effects of remedial numeracy instruction throughout kindergarten starting at different ages: Evidence from a large-scale longitudinal study

The aims of this study are to investigate the effects of remedial numeracy support throughout kindergarten, and to compare the effects of interventions from different lengths. Support occurred two times per week for either 1.5 (90 sessions: complete condition) or 0.5 school years (28 sessions: short condition). Below-average students were randomly assigned to complete intervention (N = 155), short intervention (N = 105), or control (systematically offered education-as-usual; N = 150). Accounting for achievements at pretest, children who received one of the interventions outperformed the control children in early numeracy at post-test and follow-up, suggesting that children internalized the learned knowledge. Transfer effects on simple arithmetic were only found in the complete support group, whereas both interventions were effective for complex mathematics.     

Bidirectionality in Self‐Regulation and Expressive Vocabulary: Comparisons Between Monolingual and Dual Language Learners in Preschool

Significant differences in language and self‐regulation skills exist among children when they enter formal schooling. Contributing to these language differences is a growing population of dual language learners (DLLs) in the United States. Given evidence linking self‐regulatory processes and language development, this study explored bidirectional associations between English expressive vocabulary and self‐regulation skills for monolingual English and DLL preschool children (N = 250) from mixed‐income families in Los Angeles. Across three time points, findings provide initial support for bidirectionality between these developing skills for both monolinguals and DLLs. Results provide strong empirical support for vocabulary serving as a leading indicator of self‐regulation skills in preschool. Findings also suggest that early self‐regulation skills play a particularly important role for vocabulary development.     

The Effectiveness of a Large‐Scale Language and Preliteracy Intervention: The SPELL Randomized Controlled Trial in Denmark

The present article reports results of a real‐world effectiveness trial conducted in Denmark with six thousand four hundred eighty‐three 3‐ to 6‐year‐olds designed to improve children's language and preliteracy skills. Children in 144 child cares were assigned to a control condition or one of three planned variations of a 20‐week storybook‐based intervention: a base intervention and two enhanced versions featuring extended professional development for educators or a home‐based program for parents. Pre‐ to posttest comparisons revealed a significant impact of all three interventions for preliteracy skills (= .21–.27) but not language skills (d = .04–.16), with little differentiation among the three variations. Fidelity, indexed by number of lessons delivered, was a significant predictor of most outcomes. Implications for real‐world research and practice are considered.     

Improving second language skills of immigrant students: A field trial study evaluating the effects of a summer learning program

Immigrant students’ school success is often hampered by limited second language (L2) proficiency, yet the effectiveness of different approaches to L2 support is unclear. Using a summer camp setting, we tested effects of (1) implicit support focusing on meaning of language by engaging students in language-intensive activities without drawing their attention to rules (operationalization: theatre program) and (2) combined implicit and explicit support focusing students’ attention on both meaning and form of language (operationalization: theatre program and instruction in German as L2). A baseline group received no support. N = 149 third-graders with German as L2 participated. There was no effect for the implicit condition on L2, yet children in the combined condition performed significantly better in grammar and reading after the treatment than the baseline group. The difference for vocabulary did not reach significance. Three months later, a significant effect for the combined condition was only found for reading.     

Evaluating a computer‐based reading programme with children with Intellectual Disabilities: feasibility and pilot research

Increasing evidence indicates that individuals with Intellectual Disabilities (ID) might benefit from phonics‐based reading instruction. However, research and instruction in this field has predominantly focused on sight word reading. Models for complex interventions recommend that feasibility research be conducted prior to conducting randomised studies to assess efficacy of interventions (Thabane et al., 2010). The aim of the current paper is therefore to investigate feasibility questions relating to conducting a full‐scale randomised controlled trial (RCT) evaluation of an online, phonics‐based reading programme (Headsprout^? Early Reading; HER) with children with ID. Employing a randomised pre‐test post‐test group design, this study explores and trials important aspects of a RCT evaluation to inform a full‐scale RCT. We also found that HER had a significant effect on reading skills when compared with ‘education as usual’, with large effect sizes on the main outcome measure. This indicates that further, more robust evaluations using HER with children with ID are a worthwhile pursuit.     

Effectiveness of a heritage educational program for the acquisition of oral and written French and Tahitian in French Polynesia

The research examines the effects of a bilingual pedagogical program (French/Tahitian) on the acquisition of oral and written French as well as the Tahitian language itself in primary schools in French Polynesia. 125 children divided into an experimental group (partially schooled in Tahitian for 300 min per week) and a control group (schooled in French) were followed from the second year of kindergarten to Grade 1 and tested on Tahitian and French language competence. The results show that the program appears to have a positive impact on Tahitian proficiency, without any negative effect on learning of French (oral and reading).     

English expressive vocabulary growth and its unique role in predicting English word reading: A longitudinal study involving Hong Kong Chinese ESL children

This longitudinal study examined the developmental trajectory of English expressive vocabulary and its relationship to English word reading in a sample of 141 Hong Kong children learning English as a second language (ESL). The children were observed six times at 3-month intervals over 15 months, from the spring of their second year of kindergarten (K2) to the end of their third year (K3). The development of English expressive vocabulary was nonlinear during the assessment period. With age, nonverbal IQ, English phonological awareness, letter knowledge and Chinese character reading controlled, the initial level of expressive vocabulary predicted English word reading 15 months later. More importantly, the expressive vocabulary growth rate during the 15 months also predicted English word reading. Our findings underscore the predictive power of the growth trajectory of expressive vocabulary in Hong Kong ESL children. Practical implications of the study are discussed.     

Linking Quality and Quantity of Parental Linguistic Input to Child Language Skills: A Meta-Analysis

This meta-analysis examined associations between the quantity and quality of parental linguistic input and children’s language. Pooled effect size for quality (i.e., vocabulary diversity and syntactic complexity; k = 35; N = 1,958; r = .33) was more robust than for quantity (i.e., number of words/tokens/utterances; k = 33; N = 1,411; r = .20) of linguistic input. For quality and quantity of parental linguistic input, effect sizes were stronger when input was observed in naturalistic contexts compared to free play tasks. For quality of parental linguistic input, effect sizes also increased as child age and observation length increased. Effect sizes were not moderated by socioeconomic status or child gender. Findings highlight parental linguistic input as a key environmental factor in children’s language skills.