Anita S. McGinty

Relations Among Maternal Literacy Beliefs, Home Literacy Practices, and the Emergent Literacy Skills of Preschoolers With Specific Language Impairment

Self-reported maternal literacy beliefs and home literacy practices were compared for families of children with typicially developing language skills (TL, n = 52) and specific language impairment (SLI, n = 56). Additionally, the present work examined whether maternal beliefs and practices predicted childrens print-related knowledge. Mothers filled out 2 questionnaires asking about their literacy beliefs and practices while childrens print-related knowledge was assessed directly. Results indicated that mothers of children with SLI held somewhat less positive beliefs about literacy and reported engaging in fewer literacy practices compared to mothers of children with TL. For the entire sample, maternal literacy practices and beliefs predicted childrens print-related knowledge, although much of this association was accounted for by maternal education. Subgroup analyses focused specifically on children with SLI showed there to be no relation between maternal literacy beliefs and practices and childrens print-related knowledge. The present findings suggest that the home literacy experiences of children with SLI, and the way that these experiences impact print-related knowledge, may differ in important ways from typical peers.

Emergent literacy profiles of preschool-age children with specific language impairment

The primary aim of the present study was to explore the heterogeneity of emergent literacy skills among preschool-age children with specific language impairment (SLI) through examination of profiles of performance. Fifty-nine children with SLI were assessed on a battery of emergent literacy skills (i.e., alphabet knowledge, print concepts, emergent writing, rhyme awareness) and oral language skills (i.e., receptive/expressive vocabulary and grammar). Cluster analysis techniques identified three emergent literacy profiles: (1) Highest Emergent Literacy, Strength in Alphabet Knowledge; (2) Average Emergent Literacy, Strength in Print Concepts; and (3) Lowest Emergent Literacy across Skills. After taking into account the contribution of child age, receptive and expressive language skills made a small contribution to the prediction of profile membership. The present findings, which may be characterized as exploratory given the relatively modest sample size, suggest that preschool-age children with SLI display substantial individual differences with regard to their emergent literacy skills and that these differences cannot be fully determined by childrens age or oral language performance. Replication of the present findings with a larger sample of children is needed.

How Often and How Much?: Intensity of Print Referencing Intervention

This article describes the current state of evidence regarding treatment intensity of print referencing intervention. Although studies of print referencing intervention demonstrate overall net positive impacts for childrens emergent literacy development, researchers have yet to identify explicitly how often children should experience print referencing for these positive impacts to occur. Six print referencing intervention studies are identified in the literature and reviewed for differences in how often and how much print referencing intervention is delivered. Using the framework set out by S. F. Warren, M. E. Fey, and P. J. Yoder (2007), this article specifically discusses and compares variations in 5 treatment intensity variables (dose, dose form, dose frequency, total intervention duration, and cumulative intervention intensity) for the 6 studies of print referencing intervention. Effect-size estimates suggest a trend toward moderate effects of more intensive print referencing intervention and large effects for relatively less intensive print referencing intervention. This trend however is likely confounded by other contextual, individual, and treatment intensity factors. Therefore, suggestions for ongoing research exploring the differential effects of intensity of print referencing intervention are presented.

Implementation of Responsiveness to Intervention in Early Education Settings

This article provides an overview of how response to intervention (RTI) may be used effectively within early childhood settings. Discussion is organized to address such issues regarding RTI implementation as (1) how to design and implement a high-quality Tier 1 learning environment that systematically improves childrens language and literacy outcomes, (2) how to design and implement a high-quality Tier 2 supplemental learning intervention that systematically improves the language and literacy outcomes of children who are unresponsive to Tier 1, and (3) how to design and implement a comprehensive and cohesive assessment system that appropriately identifies children who show inadequate response to the Tier 1 and Tier 2 learning opportunities. A model for implementing RTI using the supplemental curriculum by Justice and McGinty, READ IT AGAIN-PREK! (2008), is presented. This tool was developed to meet the needs of early childhood programs as they seek to implement RIA in a cost-effective and scalable manner.

Methodological quality of intervention research in speech–language pathology: Analysis of 10 years of group-design studies

The aim of this work was to critically examine the methodological quality of recent treatment research in speech–language pathology, focusing specifically on group-design studies (randomized, controlled trials and quasi-experimental-design studies). We also considered whether methodological quality differed as a function of a particular studys treatment focus (i.e. literacy, language, speech, fluency, voice), the age group studied (pre-school-age child; school-age child; adult), the year of publication, or the publishing journal. In total, 53 treatment studies published in the last 10 years in three journals of the American Speech–Language–Hearing Association (ASHA) were selected for analysis using Downs and Blacks (1998) reliable, valid rating tool for examining methodological quality. The results indicated that the quality of the treatment studies was highly variable in terms of the 25 indicators of quality studied, and that there were few systematic differences in quality attributable to treatment focus, age group studied, year of publication, or the publishing journal. Implications for evidence-based practice and study reporting are discussed.

The Impacts of a Scalable Intervention on the Language and Literacy Development of Rural Pre-Kindergartners

Read It Again (RIA) is a curriculum for pre-kindergarten (pre-K) classrooms that targets childrens development of language and literacy skills. A cluster randomized trial was conducted in which 104 pre-K classrooms in the Appalachian region of the United States were randomly assigned to one of three study conditions: Control (n = 30), RIA only (n = 35), or RIA with expanded professional development components (n = 39). This study tested the impacts of RIA on six measures of childrens (n = 506) language and literacy development. There was a significant positive impact of RIA on print concepts, and the impacts of RIA on print knowledge and alphabet knowledge were significantly stronger in classrooms with lower-quality literacy instruction. There were no impacts of RIA on childrens language development and no impacts of the professional development components. Implications of the findings for implementing scalable, effective strategies to improve key school readiness outcomes for children from economically-disadvantaged backgrounds are discussed.

The Role of Relational and Instructional Classroom Supports in the Language Development of At-Risk Preschoolers

The present study examined the extent to which preschool classroom supports—relational support (RS) and instructional support (IS)—are associated with childrens language development and whether these associations vary as a function of childrens language ability. The language skills of 360 children within 95 classrooms were assessed using an expressive narrative task in the fall and spring of the preschool year, teachers rated RS in the fall, and observations of IS were collected across the year. Research Findings: Hierarchical linear models revealed main effects of IS, but not RS, on preschoolers’ development of expressive language skills. In addition, the associations between RS and IS on childrens expressive language development were moderated by childrens fall language ability. Specifically, the association between IS and language development was stronger for children with stronger expressive language skills, and the association between RS and language development was stronger for children with weaker expressive language skills. Practice or Policy: These findings suggest that professional development for preschool teachers might focus on aligning classroom supports with the needs of children with weaker language skills who are at risk for difficulty acquiring literacy.

Teachers’ Use of High- and Low-Support Scaffolding Strategies to Differentiate Language Instruction in High-Risk/Economically Disadvantaged Settings:

The focus of the present work was to examine teachers’ use of dynamic processes when implementing static language lesson plans that explicitly required teachers to employ scaffolding strategies so as to differentiate instruction. Participants were 37 preschool teachers and 177 children in their classrooms. Videotaped classroom observations were carried out and coded for the frequency of teachers’ use for six types of scaffolds. Children were assessed on measures of language skills. Study findings indicated that teachers utilized scaffolding strategies at relatively low rates and that they utilized low-support scaffolding strategies more frequently than high-support strategies. Furthermore, results suggested that the use of certain types of scaffolding strategies may be beneficial for children’s development of language skills. Findings from this work suggest that teachers may benefit from professional development opportunities focusing on the use of dynamic features of language interventions, such as scaffolding strategies, in the preschool classroom.