A model of language abilities in matrix form is described in which areas of language ability are defined in terms of the effects of receptive and expressive language processes on four linguistic levels: phonology, morphology, syntax, and semantics. (Author)

Speech, speechreading, and manual reception skills of 78 deaf students were evaluated over a 2-year interval of residency at the National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID) in order to determine the relative stability of these skills within an integrated environment which stresses the use of amplification and oral-aural instruction. (Author)

The study examined patterns of cognitive ability in 57 cleft lip and palate children (ages 7 to 9) with verbal deficit, but without general intellectual retardation to evaluate whether the verbal disability displayed by these children was related primarily to a specific verbal expression deficit or a more general symbolic mediation problem.…

Maternal ostensive naming was investigated in a cross-sectional study of 12 children. Display, demonstration, and pointing were coded with regard to whether and how coexisting speech referred to gesture focus. Maternal input was found to be significantly correlated with children's reported receptive vocabulary. (Author/JL)

Examined morphosyntax in persons with Williams Syndrome (WS). Analyzed receptive language of English-speaking WS persons and grammatical gender assignment of French-speaking WS persons. Found within-domain dissociations in grammatical gender assignment across several sentence elements and difficulties in understanding embedded sentences, which…

The performance data of individuals with Alzheimer's on language comprehension and expression tests are presented and discussed in the context of possible contributions from impaired working memory functions. It is argued that diminished scores result primarily from attenuated span capacity, difficulty focusing attention, encoding, and activation…

This study compared factors contributing to Quick Incidental Learning of new vocabulary by 50 5-year olds with specific language impairment (SLI) and 2 comparison groups. Although SLI children exhibited a robust representational mapping ability, performance was modulated by a minimum input constraint and apparent problems with storage into…

Lack of gestalt imagery (the ability to create imaged wholes) can contribute to language comprehension disorder characterized by weak reading comprehension, weak oral language comprehension, weak oral language expression, weak written language expression, difficulty following directions, and a weak sense of humor. Sequential stimulation using an…

This study found that 61 children (ages 8-12) with specific language impairment performed more poorly on a comprehension task in which children were questioned about a story, even after taking into account "comprehension age." The effects of mode of presentation (orally or pictorially) and question type were similar for subjects and controls.…

Examination of the impact of English Natural Form Instruction (ENFI) Project activities on deaf students' performance on an English placement test revealed that ENFI students performed better than non-ENFI students in expressive English skills and that ENFI activities seemed to benefit most those students with higher receptive language skills and…

Recommends talking to children to help them develop language skills. Identifies daily routines (mealtime, bath time, dressing, play) as ideal opportunities to engage in parallel talk, describing out loud what the child is seeing, hearing, or thinking during the activity and suggests self-talk as parents perform routine actions around the home.…

Computer-based and standardized administration of the Test of Word Knowledge were compared for 30 adolescent subjects with learning disabilities. The total, receptive, and expressive composites were higher for the standard administration. Results indicated the need for independent norms for computer-based adaptations of standardized language…

This review describes the theory behind two new measures of spoken word recognition for children with sensory aids, the Lexical and the Multisyllabic Lexical Neighborhood Tests. It then summarizes data concerning the tests' word familiarity, interlist equivalency, and test-retest reliability. Results indicate that deaf children with cochlear…

This study examined the relation between language skills, gender, and relational/physical aggression. Language skills of 100 preschoolers were assessed with 3 standardized instruments. Relational/physical aggression was rated by the children's teachers. Results indicated that relational and physical aggression tended to increase as language scores…