Is there a “theory” Has the “theory” been proven How do you use it to improve practice?

1. Is there a “theory” Has the “theory” been provenHow do you use it to improve practice? Christine Yoshinaga-Itano University of Colorado, Boulder

2. Is there a “theory”? • There is a sensitive period for acquisition of language and communication • Earlier access to language and communication • Sensitive period means that the probability of success decreases significantly after that time, but it is not impossible

3. Sensitive Periods of Development • Sensitive period means that the acquisition of language is more natural, more automatic, and requires less structured intervention techniques • Earlier access benefits language learning through all modes of communication and for all aspects of language: semantics, syntax, pragmatics, phonology

4. “Earlier is better” • For all modes of communication • For all aspects of communication • For all socio-economic levels • For children with hearing loss only • For children with multiple disabilities

5. Language/Communication development should be commensurate with cognitive ability • Deaf and hard-of-hearing children haave the right and the potential to develop communication skills at the level of their intellectual potential measured most commonly through non-verbal cognitive development • We should not be satisfied with “gaps” between cognitive/intellectual potential and communication development

6. Non-verbal symbolic play (birth through about six) is highly related to semantic language learning and social-emotional development • Especially for multiply disabled children, enhancing symbolic play development has complementary advantages in language development • For later-identified children • For non-English speaking children

7. Auditory development, speech development and language development are highly related to syntax development • Auditory development should be a focus option for the first six years of life • Speech development is predominantly established in the first five years of life and is highly related to degree of hearing loss and amplification benefit • Sensitive period for speech and auditory development primarily within the first five years of life. • Sensitive period for basic syntax skills are three to 7-8 years

8. Even when semantic language is strong, students still struggle with pragmatic language development and higher level language skills • There are no standardized tests that assess these higher level language skills

9. Different strategies work for different children • Deaf/HH only, Multiply disabled, non-English speaking, by age, by degree of hearing loss, by mode of communication etc. • Different strategies are appropriate for different ages • Different strategies work for different outcomes: vocabulary, syntax, speech, spoken language, literacy, written language, social-emotional, etc.

10. Different goals are appropriate for different ages • Infancy: Parent-child interaction (bonding, social-emotional, language interaction skills) (newborn) • Access to normal language development (oral and/or signed) • End of first year – second year – Semantic foundation • Middle second through 5-6 years – Syntax/morphology, continued semantics • 3-6 – Simultaneous emphasis on pragmatics • 3-6 Refining phonology

11. School-age • Age appropriate semantics – expansion of language concepts – schema development – semantic networking – organization of semantic memory structures • Conversational syntax established by 5 years of age • Higher level embedding – syntax to 7-8 years • Syntax development – in written language • Pragmatics/Semantics/Cognitive development - intertwined

12. Are we studying important questions Funded researchers are often not teachers, educators, intervention providers who have worked in educational settings with deaf or hard-of-hearing students – psychologists, physicists, biologists, physicians, rarely teachers

13. Are the questions applicable to everyday life and classroom issues? Funded research like random assignment to intervention- Simple focused designs - ignore interactions across domains - i.e. study audition without language, study language without social-emotional or cognition…..

14. Does the research address a real issue? Most researchers are not knowledgeable with systems, are not teachers, prefer to study children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing without additional issues, such as multiple disabilities, non-English speaking environments, socio-economic issues

15. Contact Information • Christine Yoshinaga-Itano, Ph.D. • University of Colorado, Boulder • Campus Box 409 • Boulder, Colorado 80309-0409 • Email: Christie.Yoshi@colorado.edu • Phone: 303 492-3050 • FAX: 303 492-3274