An exploratory study of the interaction between language teaching methods and child characteristics.

Area of Science:

• Developmental Psychology
• Speech-Language Pathology
• Special Education

Background:

• Individual differences in children significantly impact treatment outcomes.
• Understanding subject-by-treatment interactions is crucial for effective language interventions.
• Previous research suggests variability in response to different language teaching methods.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if pretreatment subject characteristics predict the efficacy of two language teaching methods.
• To identify which language teaching method is more effective for different subgroups of handicapped preschoolers.
• To explore subject-by-treatment interactions in language intervention research.

Main Methods:

• Forty handicapped preschoolers were randomly assigned to either Milieu Teaching or the Communication Training Program.
• Pretreatment subject characteristics were analyzed as potential predictors of treatment outcome.
• Statistical analyses examined main effects of treatment and interactions between subject characteristics and treatment method.

Main Results:

• No significant main effects of either language teaching method were observed.
• Seven significant interactions between pretreatment subject characteristics and language teaching method were identified.
• Lower-functioning children demonstrated greater benefits from Milieu Teaching.
• Higher-functioning children showed more improvement with the Communication Training Program.

Conclusions:

• The efficacy of language teaching methods is dependent on individual pretreatment subject characteristics.
• Milieu Teaching appears more beneficial for lower-functioning handicapped preschoolers.
• The Communication Training Program is more effective for higher-functioning handicapped preschoolers.
• Future research should focus on replication and refining subject selection criteria for language interventions.