RARE VOCABULARY USE IN THE NARRATIVES OF AFRICAN AMERICAN CHILDREN
Publication Date
4-5-2019
Document Type
Poster
Degree Type
Undergraduate
Department
Communication Sciences and Disorders
Mentor
Jamie Mahurin-Smith
Mentor Department
Communication Sciences and Disorders
Abstract
Children who are raised in low-income backgrounds are frequently underrepresented in gifted education and overrepresented in special education (Hamilton 2018). The purpose of this research was to describe a tool for dialect-neutral assessment of language abilities. Specifically, a child's academic success stems from the language skills they have cultivated; however, some standardized language assessments may penalize African American children because their dialect may be Nonmainstream American English (NMAE). The aim of this project was to understand whether the utilization of rare vocabulary increased with age, if it was associated with performance on standardized tests, and if there was a relationship between NMAE and rare vocabulary. Results indicated that rare vocabulary use grows with age and is correlated with standardized test scores but is not associated with dialect use. This project highlighted the importance of the role educators and speech-language pathologists play by observing best practices of evaluating language in school-age African American children using culturally fair strategies to limit overrepresentation in special education classrooms.
Recommended Citation
Delia, Gianna, "RARE VOCABULARY USE IN THE NARRATIVES OF AFRICAN AMERICAN CHILDREN" (2019). University Research Symposium. 180.
https://ir.library.illinoisstate.edu/rsp_urs/180