Participation in cooperative learning activities by children with specific language impairment

This study examined the involvement of children with specific language impairment (SLI) in a cooperative group task. Subjects consisted of 6 target children with SLI (ages 8;10 to 12;5), 6 target children matched for chronological age (CA), and 6 target children with similar language skills (LS). Each target subject interacted with 2 peers of the same age and gender. This resulted in 54 subjects participating in 18 triadic interactions (each involving 1 target subject and 2 partners). Each triad of children worked together to build a cardboard periscope. Verbal and nonverbal collaborative activity were analyzed during the interactions. All members of the CA and LS triads were highly collaborative and worked and talked together while assembling the periscope. Four of the children with SLI played very minor roles in the cooperative work within their triads. Their verbal contributions were limited, and their nonverbal activity was minimal. When children with SLI did collaborate in building the periscope, they performed less specialized tasks than did their partners.