Children with language impairment

In the earliest years of life, language acquisition is considered one of the most remarkable milestones in children’s development and can be a basis for psychological and cognitive development (Varanda et al, 2019). Therefore, children who suffer from language disorders might experience a range of other successive developmental issues, which negatively affect their transition to adulthood. Unfortunately, language difficulties were reported to be amongst the most common developmental issues in early childhood which were calculated to be between 7 to 17 percent in prevalence (Law, Boyle, Harris, Harkness, & Nye, 1999; Reilly et al. , 2010; Cronin et al. , 2016). Generally, children who have difficulties in verbal communication, are kindergarten children around 5 to 6 years of age (Beitchman et al. , 1986; Tomblin et al. , 1997; Norbury et al. , 2016; Lindsay & Strand, 2016). In the following essay, the insightful understanding of developmental language disorders along with the recommended treatment and therapy will be discussed. According to the National Institute on Deafness and other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) (2019), children who do not struggle with hearing or intellectual disabilities but whose developmental language skills are delayed due to their communication disorders can be identified as Specific Language Impairment (SLI). McDevitt and other researchers (2019) have asserted that infants normally start forming and saying their first few simple and recognizable words at about 12 months of age. Furthermore, many nativists believed that there is an innate language ability in the early ages which actively demonstrates that during a child’s early experience, he can naturally acquire the language despite no specific instruction is given (McDevitt et al. , 2019). Chomsky (1959) called this biologically in-built mechanism a “language acquisition device” which supports children’s language learning (McDevitt et al. , 2019). However, it is diagnosed that a child with SLI might be able to talk later than those who are also at a similar developmental stage (NIDCD, 2019). Possibly, to some extent, there is a disorder or delay in this child’s language acquisition device. Therefore, it is critical to identify children with language difficulties within the classroom settings and have appropriate teaching along with pedagogical approaches to support and facilitate their needs. SLI can be determined via many common symptoms that occur in early childhood such as having difficulties in adopting new words, putting words in order to make a complete sentence or conversation, and making frequent grammatical errors, as described in the NIDCD’s fact sheet (2019). Consequently, if no appropriate and opportune treatment is presented, this impairment might become a lifelong condition for a child. For example, it might persistently influence children’s adulthood by restricting their ability to construct complex sentences or disordering their literacy skills in later educational contexts (NIDCD, 2019). Considering the disadvantaged consequences, it is widely discerned that children with language disorders might undergo numerous long-term outcomes including social, behavioral, and emotional challenges in their daily functioning (Schoon, Parsons, Rush, & Law, 2010). Among these difficulties, emotional development plays an essential part in children’s general development since it encompasses how children understand, express, and adjust their emotions (Margetts & Woolfolk, 2018). Most importantly, language development connects intensely to emotional development in early childhood (Durkin & Conti-Ramsden, 2010). Indeed, children with SLI are reported to be at greater risk of emotional difficulties so their depression and anxiety levels might be higher than those who typically develop (Conti-Ramsden & Botting, 2008). For instance, typical peers might have more curiosity and want to explore deeper about emotions than children having language difficulties. This example can be better explained through Spackman’s and other researchers’ practical methods (2006) in exploring reactions of children with SLI and typically developing children. Through the depiction of different emotions including happiness, sadness, excitement, or anger from a specific character, they came to deduce that children with SLI reflected and identified emotions not as accurate as other typical peers (Spackman et al. , 2006). Another equally concerning outcome is the deficiency in literacy skills found in children with SLI throughout their academic education. It is well acknowledged in empirical studies that children having difficulties with language might experience barriers to literacy which covers reading, word coding, and also writing skills (Botting, Simkin & Conti-Ramsden, 2006; Lindsay & Strand, 2016). In particular, based on the study of literacy development in children, encountering preschool language impairments might lead children to be at higher risk of dyslexia which is defined as a low ability in reading comprehension (Hulme, et al. , 2015). Furthermore, language disorders result in a low level of self-concept which means one’s lack of awareness and beliefs about self like not believing how well they can grasp knowledge at school. There is evidence that the academic self-concept of children with language difficulties is less developed than typically developing children (Lindsay et al. , 2008). According to Margetts and Hoy (2018), self-concept in academic areas such as verbal, mathematics, problem-solving, art or computers, contributes tremendously to children’s actions and motivations in learning. Thus, once children with language difficulties lack their self-concept, it might reduce their productivity, effectiveness and motivation in academic achievement. Recognizing the vulnerability of children with SLI, practical and clinical interventions are urgently necessary. Since parents are the ones who have the most intimate relationship with their children, parental roles and participation in improving children’s language skills are vital. As reported by Colmar (2014) followed by the original works of Hoff and Tian (2005), frequent natural conversations initiated by parents using child-directed speech (CDS) provide vast communicative opportunities for children with language difficulties to practice language learning. This supportive approach can be implemented in different naturalistic contexts like play activities where children can contribute initiatives and parents can actively respond to these opinions to boost up communicative interaction. It is worth emphasizing that through book-reading activities, parents can likewise promote children’s language skills by asking them open-ended questions in correlation to the shared stories. Books are approved to contain potential debatable themes, diversified and new vocabulary which are advantageous to construct parental-child conversations (Barachetti & Lavelli, 2011; Colmar, 2014). Hence, children displaying language disorders can engage in language learning and strengthen their reading skills for later education through book-reading activities. Besides that, Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory can be applied to get children to use language to interact with not only their parents but also other people. Many sociocultural theorists explain sociocultural theory by observing children’s language acquisition via the process of letting them socialize and interact within social contexts (McDevitt et al. , 2019). This progression is understood as language socialization which comprises both direct and indirect communication ways that children are taught to be competent in the language and verbal behaviors in their culture (McDevitt et al. , 2019). Therefore, creating social-communicative contexts combined with the regularity of natural communicative interaction initiated by parents can gain children’s proactive communication and be progressively optimal for children’s language advancement. In many theorists’ perspectives, children’s learning might be fostered through the frequency of language use and nonverbal communications (Bavin, 2009; Chater & Manning, 2006; Werker & Curtin, 2005; McDevitt et al. , 2019). In fact, in pre-school ages, children’s brains are supposed to be developing for skill acquisition to support their academic learning later on (Barrett & Hammond, 2008). Thereby, another efficient method to involve children with poor language skills in socio-emotional functioning is having early systematic interventions. Providing high-quality emotional support in learning contexts, for example, can enhance children’s language development and early reading comprehension. As reinforced by the studies of McGinty and Justice (2009) when they involved mothers and children with SLI in book-reading activities (cited in Biancone et al. , 2014). The result anticipated to be successful in awakening children’s emergent literacy skills via the application of maternal emotional and instructional support into the activities (Biancone et al. , 2014). As a result, an emotionally supportive environment plays a significant dimension in extending children’s social interactions. In conclusion, language skills are remarkably crucial for children since they supplement other developments in children such as cognition, emotion, or social adaptation. Although children who exhibited a delay in language skills suffer several disadvantages in emotional expressions, the ability to either read or write, and self-concept, various supportive recommendations are emphasized to accelerate their special needs. Importantly, parental roles are highly suggested to be critical in accommodating and equipping children with language skills for lifelong development. Additionally, early interventions like emotional and instructional supports are likely to assist children with SLI in reinforcing their literacy skills and social functioning. The emphasis of this essay also consists of the importance of Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory in children’s language acquisition which explains how children absorb language in social contexts. If early resolutions are implemented, it can reduce unexpected risks that might be barriers to children’s transition to adulthood. The results of these supportive recommendations are supported with evidence to be effective in acceleration to children’s language skills as mentioned above.