Increased self-esteem may also contribute to the child's motivation in learning to talk. Intelligence alone is not a good indicator of a child's ability to develop spoken English skills, however a bright child may be able to make more sense of the distorted signal that he or she receives. It is often difficult to determine at an early age how much potential each child has to develop spoken language skills. Some children whose hearing loss does not bar auditory access to English will develop their skills in ways similar to their hearing peers. Other students have the potential to be taught these skills.
All children have the goal and potential of achieving communicative competence.
Following the Lead One Child at a Time There are no concrete and objective tests that determine how skilled a child will become in spoken language. The audiogram is limited to measuring how well a child hears pure tones and yields no information about how well a child comprehends spoken language within a communicative context. I have seen children with moderate losses have less success in speaking than children with severe losses. Different children respond differently to amplification. If children are exposed to American Sign Language and spoken English at an early age, they have the opportunity to develop both languages to their utmost individual potential.