None listed
Conditions
Brief summary
There is currently a lack of research investigating interventions which target oral inferential comprehension in children with specific language impairment (SLI). This is despite the knowledge that children with SLI demonstrate poor oral inferential comprehension, and the evidence showing the importance of this skill for later reading comprehension and learning. Therefore, this study will involve developing and piloting an intervention targeted at improving oral inferential comprehension in a small randomised controlled trial of children with specific language impairment. The intervention is evidence-based, designed based on the intervention principles pertaining to the large body of research in speech pathology journals regarding interventions for children with specific language impairment . The findings will therefore add to the evidence-base of interventions and effective practice in the area of language comprehension, leading to improved long-term language and literacy outcomes for children with specific language impairment. The participants will be randomly allocated to one of two intervention groups (the inferential comprehension intervention or the comparison intervention targeting phonological awareness). The participants will then take part in the intervention, implemented by the researcher. The intervention will involve small group (4 children) activities, for approximately 30 minutes, twice per week for 8 weeks over the course of one Term. It is anticipated that the participants receiving the inferential comprehension intervention will demonstrate a significant improvement in their oral inferential comprehension compared to the participants receiving the phonological awareness intervention. It is also anticipated that the participants receiving the phonological awareness intervention will demonstrate a significant increase in their phonological awareness skills compared to the participants receiving the inferential comprehension intervention. This finding will provide preliminary support for the effectiveness of oral inferential comprehension intervention with this age group and population, and inform the practice of speech pathologists and educators working with children with SLI.
Interventions
The participants will be randomly allocated to one of two intervention groups (the oral inferential comprehension (OIC) intervention or the comparison intervention targeting phonological awareness (PA)). The participants will then take part in the intervention, implemented by the researcher.
The intervention will run over an 8 week period during Term 3, 2015, from Week 2 to Week 9. During this time, the intervention will be provided to each group of four children two times per week, for sessions
The participants will be randomly allocated to one of two intervention groups (the oral inferential comprehension (OIC) intervention or the comparison intervention targeting phonological awareness (PA)). The participants will then take part in the intervention, implemented by the researcher. The intervention will run over an 8 week period during Term 3, 2015, from Week 2 to Week 9. During this time, the intervention will be provided to each group of four children two times per week, for sessions of approximately 30 minutes. The interventions will be run by the researcher (a qualified speech pathologist) and will be included as a part of the weekly classroom activities for the participants involved. The OIC intervention sessions will focus on the explicit instruction and practice of narrative macrostructure (drawing on components of a commercial programme: Braidy the StoryBraid (Trademark) ) (Moreau & Zagula, 2002) and narrative microstructure concepts. The intervention has been designed based on the intervention principles pertaining to the large body of research in speech pathology journals regarding interventions for children with specific language impairment (e.g. duration and intensity of intervention sessions, appropriacy of intervention activities, etc). As such, the activities involved in the intervention will be appropriate for the age and the population and will be highly engaging and rewarding for the participants (e.g. small group interactive reading of storybooks, role-playing with puppets, etc).
Sponsors
Curtin University
Study design
Allocation
Randomised controlled trial
Intervention model
Parallel
Primary purpose
Treatment
Masking
Blinded (masking used) (Outcomes Assessor)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
4 Years to 6 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
The participants in this study will be recruited from a Language Development Centre (LDC) in metropolitan Perth and therefore have a diagnosis of specific language impairment. Participants will be both male and female and will be in pre-primary (aged 4;6 to 5;6, years;months). The study will recruit a minimum of 40 children as participants. In addition to their current enrolment in pre-primary at an LDC, participants will meet the following selection criteria: 1. English as a primary language (identified by parents on the consent form). 2. Intelligible speech at discourse level
Exclusion criteria
Exclusion criteria = evidence of significant hearing, vision, behavioural, language and educational or medical issues.
Outcome results
None listed