ERIC Number: EJ1146865
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2017-Jul
Pages: 13
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1081-4159
EISSN: N/A
The Effect of Word Frequency on Phonemic Accuracy in Children with Cochlear Implants and Peers with Typical Levels of Hearing
Faes, Jolien; Gillis, Joris; Gillis, Steven
Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education, v22 n3 p290-302 Jul 2017
The frequency of occurrence of words and sounds has a pervasive influence on typically developing children's language acquisition. For instance, highly frequent words appear earliest in a child's lexicon, and highly frequent phonemes are produced more accurately. This study evaluates (a) whether word frequency influences word accuracy and (b) whether this is also the case for children with a history of auditory deprivation. More specifically, the influence of word frequency on phonemic accuracy is examined in deaf children with a cochlear implant (CI), and compared to age-matched children with typical hearing, between word onset and age 7. Results show that highly frequent words are produced more accurately, except for words in the highest frequency regions (i.e., predominantly closed-class words). This effect is more pronounced in children with typical hearing when compared with children with CI. Thus, children with CI are sensitive to word frequency, but to a lesser extent than peers with typical hearing.
Descriptors: Phonemics, Word Frequency, Accuracy, Pronunciation, Language Acquisition, Assistive Technology, Deafness, Matched Groups, Comparative Analysis
Oxford University Press. Great Clarendon Street, Oxford, OX2 6DP, UK. Tel: +44-1865-353907; Fax: +44-1865-353485; e-mail: jnls.cust.serv@oxfordjournals.org; Web site: http://jdsde.oxfordjournals.org/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A