This study examines the impact of repeated exposures on word learning of preschool children with and without hearing loss (HL) in quiet and noise conditions. Participants were 19 children with HL and 17 peers with normal hearing (NH). Children were introduced to 16 words: 8 in quiet and 8 in noise conditions. Production and identification scores were collected after single exposures to words and following three exposures through individual training sessions. A significant main effect for Exposure was found for identification with significant Hearing Status × Exposure interaction, with children in the NH outperforming the HL group when only one exposure to the target words was provided. Repeated exposures to target words provide benefits to both groups of preschool children, but offer additional benefits to children with HL, particularly younger children. This provides additional support for speech–language pathologists to preview and review vocabulary introduced in classroom settings.
American National Standards Institute. (1989). Specifications for audiometers (ANSI S3.6-1989). New York, NY: Author.
2.
American Speech–Language–Hearing Association. (2005). Acoustics in educational settings: Technical report (Tech. Rep.). Retrieved from www.asha.org/policy
3.
BessF. H. (1999). Classroom acoustics: An overview. Volta Review, 101, 1–11.
4.
BloomP. (2000). How children learn the meanings of words. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.
5.
BrysbaertM.NewB. (2009). Moving beyond Kučera and Francis: A critical evaluation of current word frequency norms and the introduction of a new and improved word frequency measure for American English. Behavior Research Methods, 41, 977–990. doi:10.3758/BRM.41.4.977
6.
CareyS. (Ed.). (1978). The child as a word learner. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.
7.
ClarkE. (1995). Later lexical development and word formation. In FletcherP.MacWhinneyB. (Eds.), The handbook of child language (pp. 393–412). Oxford, UK: Basil Blackwell.
8.
ConnorC. M.CraigH. K.RaudenbushS. W.HeavnerK.ZwolanT. A. (2006). The age at which young deaf children receive cochlear implants and their vocabulary and speech-production growth: Is there an added value for early implantation?Ear and Hearing, 27, 628–644.
9.
CrandellC.SmaldinoJ. (1994). The importance of room acoustics. In TylerR.SchumD. (Eds.), Assistive listening devices for the hearing impaired (pp. 142–164). Baltimore, MD: Williams & Wilkins.
10.
DockrellJ. E.ShieldB. M. (2006). Acoustical barriers in classrooms: The impact of noise on performance in the classroom. British Educational Research Journal, 32, 509–525.
11.
DormanM. F.LoizouP. C.FitzkeJ. (1998). The identification of speech in noise by cochlear implant patients and normal-hearing listeners using 6-channel signal processors. Ear and Hearing, 19, 481–484.
12.
DunnL.DunnL. (1981). Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test–Revised. Circle Pines, MN: American Guidance Service.
13.
DunnL.DunnL. (1997). Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test–III. Circle Pines, MN: American Guidance Service.
14.
ElliotL. L. (1979). Performance of children aged 9 to 17 years on a test of speech intelligibility in noise using sentence material with controlled word predictability. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 66, 651–653.
15.
Ellis WeismerS.EvansJ. (2002). The role of processing limitations in early identification of specific language impairment. Topics in Language Disorders, 22, 15–29.
16.
FallonM.TrehubS. E.SchneiderB. A. (2000). Children’s perception of speech in multi-talker babble. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 108, 3023–3029. doi:10.1093/deafed/enm023
17.
Finitzo-HeiberT.TillmanT. W. (1978). Room acoustic effects on monosyllabic word discrimination ability for normal and hearing impaired children. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 21, 440–448.
Gershkoff-StoweL.HahnG. (2007). Fast mapping skills in the developing lexicon. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 50, 682–697. doi:10.1044/1092-4388(2007/048)
20.
GreenS. B.SalkindN. J. (2013). Using SPSS for Windows and Macintosh (7th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NH: Pearson.
21.
Grieco-CalubT. M.SaffranJ.LitovskyR. (2009). Spoken word recognition in toddlers who use cochlear implants. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 52, 1390–1400. doi:10.1044/1092-4388(2009/08-0154)
22.
HayesH.GeersA. E.TreimanR.MoogJ. S. (2009). Receptive vocabulary development in deaf children with cochlear implants: Achievement in an intensive auditory-oral educational setting. Ear and Hearing, 30, 128–135. doi:10.1093/deafed/enn046
23.
HeilbeckT. H.MarkmanE. M. (1987). Word learning in children: An Examination of fast mapping. Child Development, 58, 1021–1034.
24.
HoustonD. M.CarterA. K.PisoniD. B.KirkK. I.YingE. A. (2005). Word learning in children following cochlear implantation. Volta Review, 105, 41–72.
25.
JohnsonC.GoswamiU. (2010). Phonological awareness, vocabulary, and reading in deaf children who use cochlear implants. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 53, 237–261.
26.
JusticeL.MeierJ.WalpoleS. (2005). Learning new words from storybooks: An efficacy study with at-risk kindergartners. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 36, 17–32.
27.
KanP.KohnertK. (2008). Fast mapping by developing bilinguals in L1 and L2. Journal of Child Language, 35, 495–514. doi:10.1017/S0305000907008604
28.
KohnertK.KanP. F. (2007). Lexical skills in young children. In CentenoJ. G.AndersonR. T.OblerL. K. (Eds.), Communication disorders in Spanish speakers (pp. 156–168). Tonawanda, NY: Multilingual Matters.
29.
LederbergA.PrezbindowskiA.SpencerP. (2000). Word-learning skills of deaf preschoolers: The development of novel mapping and rapid word-learning strategies. Child Development, 71, 1571–1585. doi:10.1111/1467-8624.00249
30.
LitovskyR. Y.JohnstoneP. M.GodarS. P. (2006). Benefits of bilateral cochlear implants and/or hearing aids in children. International Journal of Audiology, 45(Suppl. 1), S78-S91. doi:10.1097/01.aud.0000194515.28023.4b
31.
LombardÉ. (1911). The sign of voice rise. Annales des Maladies de L’Oreille et du Larynx, 37, 101–109.
32.
MayneA. (1998). Expressive vocabulary development of infants and toddlers who are deaf or hard of hearing. Volta Review, 100, 1–28.
33.
McAnallyP. L.RoseS.QuigleyS. P. (1994). Language learning practices with deaf children. Boston, MA: College Hill Press.
34.
McGregorK.ShengL.BallT. (2007). Complexities of expressive word learning over time. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 38, 353–364. doi:10.1044/0161-1461
35.
NelsonP. B.SoliS. (2000). Acoustical barriers to learning: Children at risk in every classroom. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 31, 356–361.
36.
NicholasJ. G.GeersA. E. (2008). Expected test scores for preschoolers with a cochlear implant who use spoken language. American Journal of Speech–Language Pathology, 17, 121–136. doi:10.1044/1058-0360(2008/013)
37.
PicardM.BradleyJ. S. (2001). Revisiting speech interference in classrooms. Audiology, 40, 221–224.
38.
SimpsonS. A.CookeM. (2005). Consonant identification in N-talker babble is nonmonotonic function of N. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 118, 2775–2778.
39.
SmaldinoJ. J.CrandellC. C. (1999). Speech perception in the classroom. Volta Review, 101, 15–19.
40.
StelmachowiczP. G.PittmanA. L.HooverB. M.LewisD. L. (2004). Novel word learning in normal-hearing and hearing-impaired children. Ear and Hearing, 25, 47–56. doi:10.1097/01.AUD.0000111258.98509.DE
41.
StickneyG. S.ZengF. G.LitovskyR.AssmannP. (2004). Cochlear implant speech recognition with speech maskers. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 116, 1081–1091. doi:10.1121/1.1772399
42.
StudebakerG. A. (1985). A “rationalized” arcsine transformation. Journal of Speech and Hearing Research, 28, 455–462.
43.
TomblinB.BarkerB.HubbsS. (2007). Developmental constraints on language development in children with cochlear implants. International Journal of Audiology, 46, 512–523.
44.
WalkerE.McGregorK. (2013). Word learning processes with children with cochlear implants. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 56, 375–387. doi:10.1044/1092-4388(2012/11-0343)
45.
WernerL. A.BoikeK. (2001). Infants sensitivity to broadband noise. Journal of Acoustic Society of America, 109, 2103–2111. doi:10.1121/1.1365112
46.
Yoshinaga-ItanoC. (1994). Language assessment of infants and toddlers with significant hearing loss. Seminars in Hearing, 15, 128–147.
47.
ZimmermanI.SteinerV.PondR. (2002). Preschool Language Scale–4. San Antonio, TX: The Psychological Corporation.
