Sign Language Delays in Deaf 3- to 5-Year-Olds with Hearing Parents

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  • Author(s): Donna A. Morere; Thomas E. Allen (ORCID Thomas E. Allen (ORCID 0000-0002-1545-8853)
  • Language:
    English
  • Source:
    Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education. 2025 30(1):41-59.
  • Publication Date:
    2025
  • Document Type:
    Journal Articles
    Reports - Research
  • Additional Information
    • Availability:
      Oxford University Press. Great Clarendon Street, Oxford, OX2 6DP, UK. Tel: +44-1865-353907; Fax: +44-1865-353485; e-mail: [email protected]; Web site: http://jdsde.oxfordjournals.org/
    • Peer Reviewed:
      Y
    • Source:
      19
    • Sponsoring Agency:
      National Science Foundation (NSF)
    • Contract Number:
      SBE1041725
    • Education Level:
      Early Childhood Education
    • Subject Terms:
      Deafness; American Sign Language; Parents with Disabilities; Students with Disabilities; Parents; Developmental Delays; Skill Development; Nonverbal Communication; Language Skills; Language Acquisition; Hearing (Physiology); Parent Attitudes; Speech Communication; Visual Learning; Early Childhood Education; Check Lists; Preschool Children; Toddlers; Infants; Access to Education
    • Accession Number:
      10.1093/jdsade/enae041
    • ISSN:
      1081-4159
      1465-7325
    • Abstract:
      Deaf children of hearing parents (DOH) are at risk for early language delays (ELD) due to environmental and etiological factors, compounding the previously reported higher incidence of ELD in deaf children of deaf parents (DOD) compared to the general population. Archival data from the online database of the Visual Communication and Sign Language Checklist yielded 147 ratings of DOH 3- to 5-year-old children whose parents reported American sign language (ASL) being used in the home at least equally to spoken language. Research goals included (1) examining the incidence of ELD in this cohort, (2) investigating differences in outcomes based on the scaling method used, (3) exploring patterns among the ratings of DOH children identified with ELD, (4) comparing the DOH outcomes to published DOD data, and (5) investigating differences between ratings and individual children. The DOH outcomes suggested an incidence of ELD twice that of the previous DOD sample, with a higher percentage of more severe delays. Even DOH children not identified with ELD demonstrated less well-developed ASL skills than their DOD peers. This emphasizes the need for ongoing monitoring of early ASL skills to allow for early identification of needs and adjustment of interventions to address ASL development.
    • Abstract:
      As Provided
    • Publication Date:
      2025
    • Accession Number:
      EJ1457174