Deaf children's spoken language output with a hearing peer and with a hearing mother

Knowledge of how deaf children use speech outside the classroom or therapy room many enhance our ability to improve their speech in a variety of situations and with a variety of communication partners. Past research has shown that deaf children's interactions in informal settings with their mothers and hearing peers create situations that can foster improved linguistic skills. In the current study, the amount and intelligibility of spoken language output in 15 deaf children ages 4-5 to 9-8 years during 15 minutes of free play with their mothers was compared with output and intelligibility during a similar session with a self-selected hearing peer. The results, which indicated that significantly more speech was produced during the children's interaction with their mothers, are discussed in terms of future research.