By Sara Finegan
When I first started teaching, I thought that the school’s Speech /Language Pathologist was pulling kids out of the classroom once or twice a week to work on things like stuttering, lisps, and other impediments. It was several years before I caught on to the fact that more and more kids these days, both in and out of special education, have expressive and receptive language deficits, which is quite different from my initial perceptions.
That was back when I had no idea what the different types of learning disabilities were. (Isn’t it odd that in the entire body of coursework we follow to get certificated in special education, most of us are never explicitly taught what each of the disabilities are? When was the last time you discussed the nature of “Specific Learning Disability” or “Non-verbal Learning Disorder,” or “auditory memory weaknesses”? It’s the weirdest thing, and one that if we’re smart, we’ll address on our own by doing simple research and talking to our Speech/Language and Psychology experts.)
Language deficits defined
Expressive language deficits mean that a child experiences difficulty retrieving and using the words and grammar necessary to convey ideas. Receptive language deficits means that a child struggles to understand language, the meaning of words, and the intent of the speaker.
I have a theory about these deficits; that they involve both biological and sociological factors. Hear me out.
Think about the generation we’re working with. Both parents generally work at least one job, sometimes two. In-depth conversations, where adults model interactive communication and their thinking processes as they address world and family issues, conflict, and decision-making, tend to be less frequent and often non-existent when the family schedule is filled with activities, work, and time constraints. What passes for conversation in many of our homes is really just direction-giving and reporting-out:
-
“Put the eggs in the fridge and watch your brother.”
-
“Get dressed. You don’t want to be late for school. I don’t have time to drive you.”
-
“You pick up Timmy today, right? I have to work late.”
For kids who already have difficulty with language, this is not a scenario designed to support improvement. Kids don’t have much opportunity to talk and be engaged in discussions. Parents don’t have time to think aloud or model how they think about what they do, read, or see on TV. As a result, an area of need quickly becomes and remains a weakness which impairs not just communication, but learning.
These deficits are rather unobtrusive and you won’t notice them right away, often not until it’s time for a child to talk or write about what s/he is learning. Even then, if you accept language like “he got some stuff at the store” instead of “while he was at the store, he bought three oranges and a can of tomato sauce”, you’re not going to be pay much attention to it.
And there’s the key: Too many of us accept vague language and do not demand specificity and the use of powerful vocabulary, because we either don’t realize what’s going on, or don’t have time to figure out how to change things, or figure that expressive and/or receptive language deficits are something the Speech Pathologist is going to handle.
Demand specific and powerful vocabulary
In a demanding classroom, specific vocabulary is taught and used, word choice is emphasized, and instruction provides daily opportunities to talk meaningfully and practice expressing and understanding one another in every subject area.
I’ll be writing about some things that have worked in my classroom. I want to hear what you do as well. It’s good to have a library of terrific ideas to pull out and select from each year.
demanding classroom · expressive language · high expectations · language deficits · learning disabilities · learning disabled · receptive language · rigor · rigorous instruction · Sara Finegan · special education · speech pathology · standards · vocabulary
