Decline and fall:a biological, developmental, and psycholinguistic account of deliberative language processes and ageing

Background: This paper reviews the role of deliberative processes in language: those language processes that require central resources, in contrast to the automatic processes of lexicalisation, word retrieval, and parsing. 10 Aims: We describe types of deliberative processing, and show how these processes underpin high-level processes that feature strongly in language. We focus on metalin- guistic processing, strategic processing, inhibition, and planning. We relate them to frontal-lobe function and the development of the fronto-striate loop. We then focus on the role of deliberative processes in normal and pathological development and ageing, 15 and show how these processes are particularly susceptible to deterioration with age. In particular, many of the commonly observed language impairments encountered in ageing result from a decline in deliberative processing skills rather than in automatic language processes. Main Contribution: We argue that central processing plays a larger and more important 20 role in language processing and acquisition than is often credited. Conclusions: Deliberative language processes permeate language use across the lifespan. They are particularly prone to age-related loss. We conclude by discussing implications for therapy

EFFECTIVE INTERVENTIONS FOR PRESCHOOL CHILDREN WITH SPECIFIC LANGUAGE IMPAIRMENT

Within the present landscape of interventions for children with specific language impairment (SLI), there are many different hypotheses regarding appropriate treatment techniques. Interventions that are designed to improve language deficits associated with SLI are generally described as rule or meaning-based. While neither form of therapy is considered to be more efficacious than the other, many feel that rule-based therapy may not allow for generalization of language to outside settings, and meaning-based therapy may help language rules to emerge over time. Through thorough review of evidence for each form of intervention, one can see the benefits and drawbacks of each and how they may be tailored to clinical practice

THE EFFECTIVENESS OF USING COMMUNICATION-CENTERED INTERVENTION TO FACILITATE PHONOLOGICAL LEARNING IN YOUNG CHILDREN

A phonological disorder is a communication disorder of the speech sound system characterized by an impaired ability to use developmentally expected speech sounds and sound patterns to communicate with others (Bauman-Waengler, 2004). This impairment affects the clarity of a child\u27s speech and how easily a child\u27s speech can be understood. As stated in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) (American Psychiatric Association, 1994), difficulties with speech sound production may interfere with academic achievement, social communication, or future occupational achievement. Children with phonological impairments are generally viewed as being at risk for reading difficulties (American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, 2001).Clinicians and researchers in speech-language pathology agree that efficient treatment of children who have moderate to severe phonological disorders is critical. Although imitation and structured practice are primary strategies employed by speech- language pathologists for practicing speech production, using communicative tasks to facilitate generalization during phonological intervention has been suggested in the literature.The purpose of this study was to determine if communication-centered phonological intervention would be effective in improving speech production in preschool children with moderate to severe phonological disorders. A single subject multiple probe across subjects research design (Horner andamp; Baer, 1978) was used to assess the effectiveness of communication-centered phonological intervention with three preschool children. The communication-centered phonological intervention in this investigation consisted of the combined application of focused stimulation of key words during joint storybook reading and interactive practice of key words using communicative feedback.All three subjects demonstrated some type of phonological improvement following the communication-centered intervention. Two out of the three subjects demonstrated improvement in the use of the target phonological patterns during theintervention sessions with one of these participants demonstrating generalization of the target phonological pattern to conversational speech. Although the third subject did not demonstrate improvement during the intervention period, follow-up testing revealed some system-wide changes in his phonology that may be attributed to the intervention. Further investigation of communication-centered phonological intervention is warranted

Phonological and Language Improvements in Preschool Children: A Comparison of Phonological Process Targeting and Whole Language Training.

This study compared phonological and language changes that occurred in preschool phonologically-impaired children following treatment via a discrete phonological process targeting approach or a whole language approach. It was hypothesized that a treatment program utilizing a communication-based, whole language approach would result in improvements in various language domains (e.g., phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, and pragmatics), while treatment targeting a specific aspect of language, that is, phonology, would result in improvements limited to that specific domain. Subjects were eight preschool children, 3-4 years of age, exhibiting multiple articulation errors, and randomly assigned to one of two intervention programs for a six-week period. The phonological process approach targeted the most salient error pattern exhibited by subjects in this group (i.e., Consonant Cluster Reduction or Fronting) through practice in production and perception of affected minimal pair contrasts. The whole language approach focused on improving the child\u27s ability to formulate and express useful language in a communicative setting through production of narratives, while expanding and increasing complexity of narrative structure. Pretreatment and posttreatment measures of phonological and language performance were used to compare the efficacy of the two treatment approaches. The assessment battery included assessment of single word performance on tests administered, connected speech performance on various tasks (e.g., storytelling; relating familiar experiences) and higher level language performance, including syntactic, semantic, and pragmatic measures. Data analysis revealed that while all subjects demonstrated improved phonological performance, subjects in the whole language group demonstrated a greater degree of improvement than those in the phonological process group. In addition, the whole language group showed larger gains in syntactic, morphological, semantic, and pragmatic expression. These results suggest the need for further studies that evaluate treatment efficacy by utilizing a whole language approach as compared to a discrete phonological approach with young phonologically-impaired children