Parent-Reported Speech and Language in Early Childhood Is an Early Indicator of Indigenous Australian Children's...

The aim of this study was to longitudinally investigate parent-reported children's speech and language in early childhood as an early indicator of Indigenous Australians' school-age educational outcomes.

Participants were 1,534 children from the Longitudinal Study of Indigenous Children (LSIC) whose parents reported on expressive and receptive speech and language concern (SLC) at 3-5 years using the Parents' Evaluation of Developmental Status. A total of 467 children (30.4%) were identified as having SLC, of whom 308 had only expressive SLC, 65 had only receptive SLC, and 81 had both expressive and receptive SLC. Educational outcomes included (a) National Assessment Program-Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) tests (Grade 3, 8-9 years), (b) teacher-reported literacy and numeracy on the Academic Rating Scale (ARS; 8-9, 9-10 years), and (c) research officer-administered Progressive Achievement Tests in Reading (PAT-Reading; 6-7, 7-8, 8-9, 9-10 years) and Progressive Achievement Tests in Mathematics (PAT-Maths; 8-9, 9-10 years).

After controlling for covariates (child age, sex, having hearing problems, having a disability, speaking an Indigenous language, parent education, family life events, community socioeconomic status, and remoteness), SLC was associated with significantly lower scores on all NAPLAN subtests (Reading, Writing, Spelling, Grammar, Numeracy), teacher-rated ARS for Language and Literacy (9-10 years), and PAT-Reading (6-7 years) and PAT-Maths (9-10 years). Subgroup comparisons indicated that children with both expressive and receptive SLC had the poorest outcomes on NAPLAN and ARS subtests.

Parental reporting of Indigenous Australian children's SLC in early childhood is an important early indicator of education outcomes at school, indicating the importance of families throughout a child's trajectory of learning and development.