bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Making Evidence-Based Decisions About Child Language Intervention in Schools
Authors: Gillam Sandra Laing , Gillam Ronald B. 
Published: May 2007

Purpose
The results of recent survey studies suggest that speech-language pathologists base most of their clinical decisions on information they were taught during their graduate programs, their clinical experience, and the opinions of colleagues (T. Wolf & J. Balderson, 2005; R. Zipoli & M. Kennedy, 2005). This is contrary to the principles of evidence-based practice (EBP), in which clinical decisions arise from the integration of scientific evidence, clinician experience, and client needs. Our field’s interest in EBP is relatively young. Currently, there are no published committee-derived EBP guidelines for providing language intervention services for children with language disorders. Until national or international organizations publish recommendations from EBP guideline writing panels, clinicians will need to make personal evidence-based decisions with relatively little assistance from outside sources. The purpose of this article is to summarize a seven-step process for making local EBP decisions.

Method
The authors provide information about a method for forming clinical questions, finding relevant scientific studies, and evaluating those studies that requires relatively little time and few external resources. The authors also provide a system for integrating scientific evidence with their own expertise and training within the context of their employment settings. Finally, an example is provided to show clinicians how to use the evidence-based decision-making process to answer a clinical question about clinical methods for improving grammatical morphology in children with speech-language impairment.

Conclusion
It is possible for clinicians to make time- and resource-efficient evidence-based decisions that integrate scientific evidence, clinical expertise, and student–parent preferences.
Speech and Articulatory Rates of School-Age Children in Conversation and Narrative Contexts
Authors: Sturm Jennifer A. , Seery Carol H. 
Published: May 2007

PurposeThis study provides preliminary reference data for speech and articulatory rates of school-age children in conversational and narrative speaking contexts.MethodParticipants included 36 typically developing children in 3 groups of 12 participants at ages 7, 9, and 11 years. Conversational and narrative speech rates were measured in words per minute, syllables per minute, and syllables per second.ResultsSpeaking rates increased with age between ages 7 and 9, but rates were similar between ages 9 and 11. Between contexts, only the words per minute measure was significantly higher (faster) in narrative than in conversation.ImplicationsThese results are important to the assessment, treatment, and management of children with communication disorders in clinical or school settings.
The Effects of In-Service Education to Promote Emergent Literacy in Child Care Centers: A Feasibility Study
Authors: Girolametto Luigi , Weitzman Elaine , Lefebvre Pascal , Greenberg Janice 
Published: May 2007

PurposeThe purpose of this study was to determine the feasibility of a 2-day in-service education program for (a) promoting the use of two emergent literacy strategies by early childhood educators and (b) increasing children’s responses to these strategies.MethodSixteen early childhood educators were randomly assigned to an experimental and a control group. The experimental in-service program sought to increase educators' use of abstract utterances and print references. Educators were videotaped with small groups of preschoolers during storybook reading and a post-story craft activity. Pretest and posttest videotapes were coded to yield rates of abstract language, verbal print references, and children’s responses.ResultsIn comparison to the control group, educators in the experimental program used more abstract utterances that elicited talk about emotions and children’s past experiences during storybook reading. They also used significantly more print references during a post-story craft activity. In addition, children in the experimental group responded more often with appropriate responses to abstract utterances and print references in comparison to children in the control group.ConclusionA 2-day in-service education program resulted in short-term behavioral changes in educators' use of abstract language and print references. Suggestions for improving instruction include providing opportunities for classroom practice with feedback, modeling the use of strategies in classroom routines, and long-term mentoring of educators to promote retention of gains.
Sensory Modulation Disorders Among Children With a History of Trauma: A Frame of Reference for Speech-Language Pathologists
Authors: Atchison Ben J. 
Published: May 2007

Purpose
The purpose of this article is to present definitions and concepts about sensory modulation, illustrate behavioral aspects of sensory modulation disorders, describe a framework for assessment and intervention, and present advances in research.

Method
A review of descriptive and evidence-based literature related to the impact of exposure to both prenatal and postnatal trauma on sensory modulation is provided, with additional information gleaned from recent assessment data on children with a history of trauma who are served by the Southwest Michigan Children’s Trauma Assessment Center (CTAC).

Clinical Implications
The review of the literature indicates support for the presence of sensory modulation disorders among traumatized children. In addition, the emerging data now being gathered on children who have been assessed by CTAC indicate a significant prevalence of sensory modulation disorders among children with a history of trauma alone, and those with both trauma and a diagnosis of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). Awareness, recognition, and identification of behaviors associated with this disorder, and referral to appropriate professionals, is essential to ensure effective preventive and intervention services.
Child Maltreatment: A Global Issue
Authors: Westby Carol E. 
Published: May 2007

PurposeThis article explains why children with speech and language impairments are at increased risk for having experienced abuse, neglect, and trauma and how maltreatment may vary across cultures.MethodInternational literature on maltreatment is reviewed in order to provide frameworks for identifying what constitutes maltreatment across cultures; how cultural variations in discipline practices impact maltreatment; and professionals' roles in treatment when they encounter children who have experienced abuse, neglect, or trauma.ConclusionSpeech-language pathologists and audiologists are required to document and report any instance of suspected child abuse. To intervene effectively with children and families from diverse cultures who experience maltreatment, professionals must understand when a practice causes harm and be able to modify childrearing practices in culturally acceptable ways.
The Personalized Cueing Method: From the Laboratory to the Clinic
Authors: Marshall Robert C. , Freed Donald B. 
Published: May 2007

PurposeThe personalized cueing method is a novel procedure for treating naming deficits of persons with aphasia that is relatively unfamiliar to most speech-language pathologists. The goal of this article is to introduce the personalized cueing method to clinicians so that it might be expanded and improved upon. It is also hoped that this article will promote further research in the treatment of naming deficits of clients with aphasia.MethodThis clinical focus article (a) describes the origins of the personalized cueing method, the steps involved in creating personalized cues, and training and assessment procedures used with the personalized cueing method; (b) summarizes the published research supporting the use of the personalized cueing method; and (c) highlights some of the clinical advantages of this novel naming treatment for clients and clinicians.ResultsResearch with the personalized cueing method indicates that durability (long-term naming accuracy) for items trained with the personalized cueing method exceeds that for items trained with phonological cueing and other methods. It further shows that as the stimuli used to train naming in the personalized cueing experiments have become more realistic, durability of personalized cueing has increased.ConclusionPersonalized cueing is a parsimonious approach for treatment of naming deficits of persons with aphasia that has shown positive treatment effects in 8–12 training sessions.
Developmental Relationships Between Language and Theory of Mind
Authors: Miller Carol A. 
Published: May 2007

PurposeThis tutorial is intended to inform readers about the development of theory of mind (understanding of mental states) and to discuss relationships between theory of mind and language development.MethodA narrative review of selected literature on language and theory of mind is presented. Theory of mind is defined, and commonly used measures of theory of mind are described. Developmental relationships between language and theory of mind in typical and atypical populations are discussed. Literature-based suggestions for clinical assessment and intervention are provided, using a hypothetical case study.ConclusionsThe article serves as an introduction to current research about language and theory of mind, and emphasizes their interdependence in development. Implications of the relationships between theory of mind and language development for language assessment and intervention are discussed, and an argument is made that taking theory of mind into account will help clinicians enhance children’s communication and language development.
The Index of Narrative Microstructure: A Clinical Tool for Analyzing School-Age Children’s Narrative Performances
Authors: Justice Laura M. , Bowles Ryan P. , Kaderavek Joan N. , Ukrainetz Teresa A. , Eisenberg Sarita L. , Gillam Ronald B. 
Published: May 2007

Purpose
This research was conducted to develop a clinical tool—the Index of Narrative Microstructure (INMIS)—that would parsimoniously account for important microstructural aspects of narrative production for school-age children. The study provides field test age- and grade-based INMIS values to aid clinicians in making normative judgments about microstructural aspects of pupils’ narrative performance.

Method
Narrative samples using a single-picture elicitation context were collected from 250 children age 5–12 years and then transcribed and segmented into T-units. A T-unit consists of a single main clause and any dependent constituents. The narrative transcripts were then coded and analyzed to document a comprehensive set of microstructural indices.

Results
Factor analysis indicated that narrative microstructure consisted of 2 moderately related factors. The Productivity factor primarily comprised measures of word output, lexical diversity, and T-unit output. The Complexity factor comprised measures of syntactic organization, with mean length of T-units in words and proportion of complex T-units loading most strongly. Principal components analysis was used to provide a linear combination of 8 variables to approximate the 2 factors. Formulas for calculating a student’s performance on the 2 factors using 8 narrative measures are provided.

Conclusions
This study provided a method for professionals to calculate INMIS scores for narrative Productivity and Complexity for comparison against field test data for age (5- to 12-year-old) or grade (kindergarten to Grade 6) groupings. INMIS scores complement other tools in evaluating a child’s narrative performance specifically and language abilities more generally.
Comparison of Meaning and Graphophonemic Feedback Strategies for Guided Reading Instruction of Children With Language Delays
Authors: Kouri Theresa A. , Selle Carrie A. , Riley Sarah A. 
Published: May 2007

PurposeGuided reading is a common practice recommended for children in the early stages of literacy development. While experts agree that oral reading facilitates literacy skills, controversy exists concerning which corrective feedback strategies are most effective. The purpose of this study was to compare feedback procedures stemming from 2 different theoretical perspectives on literacy development.MethodFourteen children with specific language impairment (SLI) and 21 with typically developing language read aloud 2 stories to an adult examiner who presented corrective feedback prompts when reading miscues (errors) occurred. One type of feedback based on whole language principles emphasized meaning aspects of a text. The other type consisted of graphophonemic (GP) word-decoding strategies. Before reading, participants were provided instruction on 5 key words taken from each story text. This instruction emphasized either meaning or GP aspects of specific key words. Story comprehension questions followed readings.ResultsFindings indicated that more miscued words were corrected overall through the use of GP feedback cues; however, some meaning-based instructional advantages were indicated for key word identifications for children with SLI. Higher story comprehension scores were yielded in the GP condition for both groups.ConclusionsBoth meaning-based and phonemic key word reviews, prior to oral reading, appear to be effective strategies for children with SLI. The use of GP word-decoding cues may be more effective than meaning-based cues for facilitating correction of reading miscues during children’s oral readings. Further research findings are discussed along with clinical implications for using corrective feedback procedures.
The Composition of Normative Groups and Diagnostic Decision Making: Shooting Ourselves in the Foot
Authors: Peña Elizabeth D. , Spaulding Tammie J. , Plante Elena 
Published: May 2007

PurposeThe normative group of a norm-referenced test is intended to provide a basis for interpreting test scores. However, the composition of the normative group may facilitate or impede different types of diagnostic interpretations. This article considers who should be included in a normative sample and how this decision must be made relative to the purpose for which a test is intended.MethodThe way in which the composition of the normative sample affects classification accuracy is demonstrated through a test review followed by a simulation study. The test review examined the descriptions of the normative group in a sample of 32 child language tests. The mean performance reported in the test manual for the sample of language impaired children was compared with the sample’s norms, which either included or excluded children with language impairment. For the simulation, 2 contrasting normative procedures were modeled. The first procedure included a mixed group of representative cases (language impaired and normal cases). The second procedure excluded the language impaired cases from the norm.ResultsBoth the data obtained from test manuals and the data simulation based on population characteristics supported our claim that use of mixed normative groups decreases the ability to accurately identify language impairment. Tests that used mixed norms had smaller differences between the normative and language impaired groups in comparison with tests that excluded children with impairment within the normative sample. The simulation demonstrated mixed norms that lowered the group mean and increased the standard deviation, resulting in decreased classification accuracy.ConclusionsWhen the purpose of testing is to identify children with impaired language skills, including children with language impairment in the normative sample can reduce identification accuracy.
Stuttering Treatment Research 1970–2005: I. Systematic Review Incorporating Trial Quality Assessment of Behavioral, Cognitive, and Related Approaches
Authors: Bothe Anne K. , Davidow Jason H. , Bramlett Robin E. , Ingham Roger J. 
Published: May 2007

Purpose
To complete a systematic review, with trial quality assessment, of published research about behavioral, cognitive, and related treatments for developmental stuttering. Goals included the identification of treatment recommendations and research needs based on the available high-quality evidence about stuttering treatment for preschoolers, school-age children, adolescents, and adults.

Method
Multiple readers reviewed 162 articles published between 1970 and 2005, using a written data extraction instrument developed as a synthesis of existing standards and recommendations. Articles were then assessed using 5 methodological criteria and 4 outcomes criteria, also developed from previously published recommendations.

Results
Analyses found 39 articles that met at least 4 of the 5 methodological criteria and were considered to have met a trial quality inclusion criterion for the purposes of this review. Analysis of those articles identified a range of stuttering treatments that met speech-related and/or social, emotional, or cognitive outcomes criteria.

Conclusions
Review of studies that met the trial quality inclusion criterion established for this review suggested that response-contingent principles are the predominant feature of the most powerful treatment procedures for young children who stutter. The most powerful treatments for adults, with respect to both speech outcomes and social, emotional, or cognitive outcomes, appear to combine variants of prolonged speech, self-management, response contingencies, and other infrastructural variables. Other specific clinical recommendations for each age group are provided, as are suggestions for future research.
Communication in Young Children With Fragile X Syndrome: A Qualitative Study of Mothers' Perspectives
Authors: Brady Nancy , Skinner Debra , Roberts Joanne , Hennon Elizabeth 
Published: May 2007

PurposeTo provide descriptive and qualitative information about communication in young children with fragile X syndrome (FXS) and about how families react to and accommodate communication differences in their children.MethodIn-depth interviews were conducted with 55 mothers of young children with FXS. Interviewers asked mothers to describe their children’s communication, strategies they used to help promote their children’s communication, communication-related frustrations, their expectations for their children, and the roles that they perceive for themselves.ResultsOver half the children were nonverbal and learning to communicate with augmentative and alternative communication. Mothers reported using strategies that were developmentally appropriate and recommended by early childhood experts, such as reading and talking to their children. Many mothers identified challenges faced in helping their child to communicate, and some cited difficulty obtaining speech-language services as a challenge. Mothers identified their roles as caregiver, teacher, therapist, and advocate.ConclusionsThe perspectives offered by mothers are valuable because they indicate how children with FXS communicate in natural contexts. Information about mothers' expectations and roles may help clinicians to be sensitive to variables that will affect working with young children and their families.
Predicting Lexical Density Growth Rate in Young Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders
Authors: Yoder Paul J. 
Published: May 2007

Purpose
The purpose of this longitudinal correlational study was to test whether an environmental variable and 4 child variables predicted growth rate of number of different nonimitative words used (i.e., lexical density).

Method
Thirty-five young (age range = 21–54 months) children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) who were initially nonverbal or low verbal participated in the study. Lexical density was measured at 3 times: at entry into the study as well as 6 months and 12 months after entry into the study. Growth curve analysis was used to test the associations. The predictive value of the putative predictors in the model was tested after controlling for initial expressive language impairment.

Results

Initial frequency of intentional communication and diversity of object play were predictors of lexical density growth above and beyond initial expressive language impairment (both pseudo
R
2
s = .14).

Conclusions
Intentional communication and diversity of object play may represent important prelinguistic goals for young children with ASD. These skills not only have been shown to be malleable through treatment, but they also provide a context for linguistic input from others that may facilitate language development.
Complexity in Treatment of Syntactic Deficits
Authors: Thompson Cynthia K. , Shapiro Lewis P. 
Published: May 2007

PurposeThis article addresses complexity in the context of treatment for sentence structural impairments in agrammatic aphasia, with emphasis on noncanonical sentences involving linguistic movement and their related counterparts. Extensions of the complexity effect to recovery of canonical sentences also are discussed, stressing the linguistic properties of verbs as well as grammatical morphology in building complexity hierarchies.MethodA number of variables to consider in developing complexity hierarchies in the syntactic domain are addressed, and a series of studies using single-subject controlled experimental analysis are discussed.ResultsFindings across studies show that training complex sentences results in improvement of simpler structures when, and only when, the underlying linguistic properties are shared by both. The opposite approach, training simple structures first and building to more complex ones, does not provide the full benefit of treatment, in that little or no generalization occurs across structures.ConclusionUsing complex language material as a starting point for treatment of sentence structural deficits in aphasia results in cascading generalization to simpler, linguistically related material and expands spontaneous language production in many language-disordered adults with aphasia. Clinicians are, therefore, urged to adopt this approach in clinical practice, even though it is counterintuitive and departs significantly from conventional treatment methods.
Validity of the MacArthur–Bates Communicative Development Inventories for Measuring Language Abilities in Children With Cochlear Implants
Authors: Thal Donna , DesJardin Jean L. , Eisenberg Laurie S. 
Published: May 2007

Purpose
To examine the validity of the MacArthur–Bates Communicative Development Inventories (CDI) for measuring language abilities in children with profound hearing loss who are using cochlear implants.

Method
Twenty-four children with cochlear implants and their mothers participated in this study. Children ranged in age from 32 months to 86 months (the majority were 32 to 66 months old). The number of months postimplantation ranged from 3 to 60 (the majority were around 24 months). Mothers completed the CDI before behavioral testing. Behavioral measures included the Reynell Developmental Language Scales and measures of vocabulary and grammar from a spontaneous language sample.

Results
Both the Words and Gestures and the Words and Sentences forms of the CDI were shown to have excellent validity for this sample of children, if they had language that was in the range measured by the instrument. Correlations with behavioral measures ranged from .41 to .93 and were comparable to those reported for children with typical development.

Conclusions
The CDI forms are valid tools to use with children who are using cochlear implants and who are in the early stages of language development, even if they are older than the norming sample. Age-equivalence may be obtained if children score below the median for the oldest age norms. They may also be used to describe the language of children who are not at ceiling. Specific recommendations for interventionists are provided.