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ABSTRACT INFORMATION
Title: 'Child Vocalizations as Indicators of Sensory Aid Benefit'
Track: 3-Early Intervention and Beyond
Audience: Primary Audience: Early Intervention Provider
Secondary Audience: Family of a child with hearing loss
Tertiary Audeince: State Education Agency
Keyword(s): hearing loss, speech, vocal development, children
Learning Objectives: By the end of this session, participants will have increased their knowledge of research in prelinguistic vocal development, gained an understanding (though audio- and video-examples) of a three-level classification system for assessing vocalizations, become acquainted with ways to stimulate vocal development, and acquired print and internet resources.

Abstract:

Prelinguistic vocal development is a universal process by which typically developing infants produce increasingly diverse and speech-like utterances before they say words on a regular basis (Nathani, Ertmer, & Stark, 2006). Prior to the implementation of newborn hearing screening, children with bilateral, severe - profound hearing losses were found to have deficits in vocal development compared to typically developing infants and toddlers. For example, vocal development in children with hearing loss has been characterized by the late onset of and less-frequent production of canonical babbling (Moeller, 2007a; Oller & Eilers 1988; Stark, 1983), comparatively small consonant, vowel, and syllable shape inventories (Moeller, 2007b; Stoel-Gammon, 1988), and a lack of jargon and protowords (Stark, 1983). These deficits can have negative impacts on phonological development and the eventual attainment of intelligible speech (Ertmer & Stark, 1995). Newborn hearing screening has made it possible to identify children with hearing loss within the first few months of life and to fit them with sensory aids shortly after. If infants and toddlers receive robust access to conversational speech models via their hearing aids or cochlear implants, their vocalizations should become more diverse and speech-like. This presentation is intended to help early interventionists recognize the kinds of vocalizations that indicate that hearing is guiding speech development. By the end of this session, participants will have increased their knowledge of research in prelinguistic vocal development, gained an understanding (though audio- and video-examples) of a three-level classification system for assessing vocalizations, become acquainted with ways to stimulate vocal development, and acquired print and internet resources.
Presentation(s): Not Available
Handouts: Not Available
SPEAKER INFORMATION
PRESENTER(S):
David Ertmer - Purdue University
     Credentials: Ph.D., CCC-SLP
     Other Affiliations: American Speech-Language and Hearing Association
      David J. Ertmer is former Professor in Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana. He received a B.S. from Marquette University, a M. S. from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and a Ph.D. from Purdue University, all in the field of Communication Disorders. His clinical career includes 17 years as a school speech pathologist in Wisconsin and Colorado. He has conducted research in early speech and language development in young children who are deaf or hard of hearing and taught courses in aural rehabilitation to graduate and undergraduate students.
 
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