Receptive and productive speech and language abilities in hearing-impaired children with German as a second language.

OBJECTIVES: Many studies examining early bilingualism in migrant populations focus on the development of the first language. As language acquisition is closely related to the hearing development, there is a critical need to investigate language development in hearing-impaired children being raised bilingually who were fitted with cochlear implants and/or hearing aids. Therefore, this research project aimed to study the linguistic development of hearing-impaired children being raised with German as a second language who were provided with hearing aids or cochlear implants. Further, the language development of these children is compared with that of hearing-impaired children being raised in a monolingual environment and with normal-hearing children being raised bilingually. METHODS: In this prospective study, we analyzed data from 95 typically developing children with hearing loss (43 bilingual and 52 monolingual) aged 3;0 to 10;11 (years; months) on four language measures in German: receptive vocabulary, productive vocabulary, receptive grammar, productive grammar (sentence repetition). Additionally, 30 bilingual children with normal hearing were included in this study. RESULTS: 44 children were provided with hearing aids in both ears; 34 used cochlear implants bilaterally and 17 were fitted bimodally. Statistical analysis showed that bilingual hearing-impaired children scored significantly poorer than monolingual hearing-impaired children. CONCLUSION: Hearing-impaired children being raised bilingually should have speech and language examinations on a regular basis. An examination of both languages would be desirable in order to be able to fully assess speech and language acquisition.

Validation of the second version of the LittlEARS® Early Speech Production Questionnaire (LEESPQ) in German-speaking children with normal hearing.

INTRODUCTION: The introduction of neonatal hearing screening and the increasingly early age at which children can receive a cochlear implant has intensified the need for a validated questionnaire to assess the speech production of children aged 0‒18. Such a questionnaire has been created, the LittlEARS® Early Speech Production Questionnaire (LEESPQ). This study aimed to validate a second, revised edition of the LEESPQ. METHODS AND MATERIALS: Questionnaires were returned for 362 children with normal hearing. Completed questionnaires were analysed to determine if the LEESPQ is reliable, prognostically accurate, internally consistent, and if gender or multilingualism affects total scores. RESULTS: Total scores correlated positively with age. The LEESPQ is reliable, accurate, and consistent, and independent of gender or lingual status. A norm curve was created. DISCUSSION: This second version of the LEESPQ is a valid tool to assess the speech production development of children with normal hearing, aged 0‒18, regardless of their gender. As such, the LEESPQ may be a useful tool to monitor the development of paediatric hearing device users. CONCLUSION: The second version of the LEESPQ is a valid instrument for assessing early speech production of children aged 0‒18 months.