Determining optimal Spanish words for inclusion in assessments that evaluate children’s phonological patterns
Date
2007-04-27Author
Prezas, Raúl Francisco
Hodson, Barbara Williams, 1937-
Metadata
Show full item recordCitation
Prezas, Raúl & Hodson, Barbara. (2007). Determining optimal Spanish words for inclusion in assessments that evaluate children’s phonological patterns. In Proceedings : 3rd Annual Symposium : Graduate Research and Scholarly Projects. Wichita, KS : Wichita State University, p.33-34
Abstract
A critical need exists for unbiased speech/language assessment instruments for all children, but especially for children who speak
a language other than English (e.g., Spanish). According to the National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition &
Language Instruction Educational Programs, the number of English Language Learners (ELL) in U.S. schools has more than
doubled from 2,030,451 in 1990 to 5,119,561 in 2005. Of the total ELL population, 80% are reported as being Spanish speakers.
This has created a demand for Spanish speech/language services. Currently, published phonological assessment instruments in
Spanish are sparse. A major issue pertains to the selection of optimal words for eliciting speech samples. Sixty stimuli were
presented to 20 typically developing Spanish-speaking 3- and 4-year-old children of Mexican descent to determine which
Spanish words are known best by young Spanish-speaking children. The results indicate that body parts and food/drink items
were identified most readily by participants. Colors and numbers were named first in English more often than in Spanish. This
analysis will provide additional data regarding differences found from a previous study involving children’s abilities to recognize
pictures of words and objects in Spanish. Results will be used for the selection of optimal words for future Spanish phonological assessment protocols.
Description
Paper presented to the 3rd Annual Symposium on Graduate Research and Scholarly Projects (GRASP) held at the Hughes Metropolitan Complex, Wichita State University, April 27, 2007.
Research completed at the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, College of Health Professions