An increasing amount of attention is being given to the contribution of language problems to the learning disabilities experienced by children. To be effective, language intervention must be based on valid assessment procedures. This study, which was designed to determine the validity of The Test of Language Development (TOLD), presents information relating to which subtests of the TOLD best discriminate among normal readers, disabled readers, and language delayed children. Practical educational implications of the results are discussed.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
In order to provide a broad index of a child's general language competence, a Language Quotient may be obtained from the scaled scores on the five principal subtests. It was observed that the Language Quotients of the majority of subjects in all three groups fell within the average range of ability. However, inspection of individual profiles on the TOLD indicated clearly that reading disabled and language delayed subjects scored very poorly on Sentence Imitation and Grammatic Completion. The above observation suggests that users of the TOLD should look for specific information on individual TOLD profiles rather than rely on the Language Quotient, which is an index of general language competence.
2.
BerkoJ.The child's learning of English morphology. In SaportaS. (Ed.), Psycholinguistics: A book of readings. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1961.
3.
BlankM.WeiderS.BridgerW.Verbal deficiencies in abstract thinking in early retardation. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 1968, 38, 823–834.
4.
BritainM.Inflectional performance and early reading. Reading Research Quarterly, 1970, 6(1), 34–38.
5.
BryanT.H.BryanJ.H.Understanding learning disabilities. Port Washington, New York: Alfred Publishing Co., Inc., 1975.
6.
ChomskyC.The acquisition of syntax in children from 5 to 10. Cambridge, Mass.: The M. I. T. Press, 1969.
7.
ClayM.Reading errors and self correction behavior. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 1969, 39(1), 47–56.
8.
CromerW.The difference model: A new explanation for some reading difficulties. Journal of Educational Psychology, 1970, 61, 471–483.
9.
De HirschK.JanskyJ.LangfordW.S.Predicting reading failure: A preliminary study. New York: Harper and Row, 1966.
10.
DunnL.MarkwardtF.ThePeabody Individual Achievement Test. Circle Pines, Minnesota: American Guidance Services Incorporated, 1970.
11.
FriedlanderB.Z.Cohen deLara, H. C.Receptive language anomaly and language/reading dysfunction in “normal” primary-grade school children. Psychology in the Schools, 1973, 10, 12–18.
12.
FryM.A.JohnsonC.S.MuehlS.Oral language production in relation to reading achievement among select second graders. In BakkerD.J.SatzP. (Eds.), Specific reading disability. Netherlands: Rotterdam University Press, 1970, 123–159.
13.
GatesA.I.MacGinitieW.H.Gates-MacGinitie reading tests. New York: Teachers College Press, 1965, 1972.
HammillD.D.LarsenS.C.The relationship of selected auditory perceptual skills and reading ability. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 1974a, 1(7), 429–434.
16.
HammillD.D.LarsenS.C.The effectiveness of psycholinguistic training. Exceptional Children, 1974b, 4(1), 5–14.
17.
IllerbrunD.Diagnosis of language disorders in children. Special Education in Canada, 1977, 51(2), 21–25.
18.
KirkS.A.KirkW.D.Psycholinguistic learning disabilities: Diagnosis and remediation. Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1971.
19.
LarsenS.C.RogersD.SowellV.The use of selected perceptual tests in differentiating between normal and learning disabled children. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 1976, 9(2), 32–37.
20.
MageeP.A.NewcomerP.L.The relationship between oral language skills and academic achievement of learning disabled children. Learning Disability Quarterly, 1978, 1, 63–67.
21.
MargeM.The general problem of language disabilities in children. In IrwinJ.V.MargeM. (Eds.), Principles of childhood language disabilities. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts, 1972.
22.
MorrisonF.J.GiordaniB.NagyJ.Reading disability: An information-processing analysis. Science, 1977, 196, 77–79.
23.
NelsonConceptK., Word and sentence: Interrelations in acquisition and development. Psychological Review, 1974, 81, 267–285.
24.
NewcomerP.L.HammillD.The test of language development, TOLD. Austin, Texas: Empiric Press, 1977.
25.
OakenR.WeinerM.CromerW.Identification, organization, and reading comprehension for good and poor readers. Journal of Educational Psychology, 1973, 62, 71–75.
26.
OwenR.W.AdamsP.A.ForrestT.StolzL.M.FisherS.Learning disorders in children: Sibling studies. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, 1971, 36, No. 144.
27.
Peabody Individual Achievement Test. Dunn and Markwardt, 1970.
28.
ReesN.Auditory processing factors in language disorders: The view from Proscutes' bed. Journal of Speech and Hearing Disorders, 1973, 38, 304–315.
29.
RutterM.MartinJ.A. (Eds.). The child with delayed speech. England: The Lavenham Press Ltd., 1972.
30.
SchonnellF.The psychology and teaching of reading. London: Oliver and Boyd, 1952.
31.
SchwartzR.M.Strategic processes in beginning reading. Journal of Reading Behavior, 1977, 9(1), 17–26.
32.
ShankweilerD.LibermanA.M.Misreading: A search for causes. In KavanaghJ.F.MattinglyI.G. (Eds.), Language by ear and by eye: The relationship between speech and reading. Cambridge, Mass: MIT Press, 1972.
SmithM.D.ColemanJ.M.DokeckiP.R.DavisE.E.Recategorized WISC-R scores of learning disabled children. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 1977b, 10(7), 437–443.
35.
SmithP.A.MarxR.W.The factor structure of the revised edition of the Illinois Test of Psycholinguistic Abilities. Psychology in the Schools, 1971, 8(4), 349–356.
36.
TorgesenJ.K.Memorization processes in reading-disabled children. Journal of Educational Psychology, 1977, 69, 571–578.
37.
TuomiS.IvanoffP.Incidence of speech and hearing disorders among kindergarten and grade one children. Special Education in Canada, 1977, 51(4), 5–8.
38.
TyackD.GottslebenR.H.Constructing reading material to match a child's oral language patterns. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 1977, 10(10), 607–611.
39.
VellutinoF.R.Psychological factors in reading disability. Paper presented at the American Education Research Association, Chicago, Illinois, April 1974.
40.
VernonM.D.Backwardness in reading: A study of its nature and origin. Cambridge, Mass.: Cambridge University Press, 1958.
41.
VogelS.A.Morphological ability in normal and dyslexic children. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 1977, 10(1), 41–49.
42.
VogelS.A.Syntactic abilities in normal and dyslexic children. Baltimore, Maryland: University Park Press, 1975.
43.
WallachG.P.GoldsmithS.C.Language-based learning disabilities: Reading is language too. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 1977, 3, 57–62.
44.
WallerG.T.Children's recognition memory for written sentences: A comparison of good and poor readers. Child Development, 1976, 47, 90–95.
45.
WarringtonE.K.The incidence of verbal disability associated with reading retardation. Neuropsychologia, 1967, 5, 175–180.
46.
WeberR.M.A linguistic analysis of first-grade reading errors. Reading Research Quarterly, 1970, 5(1), 427–451.
47.
WechslerD.Wechsler intelligence scale for children-Revised. New York: The Psychological Corporation, 1974.
48.
WeinsteinR.RabonovitchR.D.Sentence structure and retention in good and poor readers. Journal of Educational Psychology, 1971, 62, 25–30.
49.
WiigE.S.SemelE.H.Language disabilities in children and adolescents. Columbus, Ohio: Charles E. Merrill Publishing Company, 1976.
50.
WongB.WongR.FothD.Recall and clustering of verbal materials among normal and poor readers. Bulletin of the Psychonomic Society, 1977, 16(5), 375–378.
