The Power of Peers: Effects of Peer Interaction on Language Development in Early Intervention Classrooms

• In Event: 2-051 - Learning Before School

Integrative Statement

Previous literature has established the positive relationship between the quality and quantity of caregiver language input and advancements in children’s subsequent language development. However, during the early years of development, even before entering school, children are exposed to many different social partners other than caregivers. In fact, approximately a quarter of children under 5 years of age are currently enrolled in center-based child-care in the U.S. where they interact with their peers. Peers are a potentially important source of language input; interacting with a more advanced peer can provide opportunities to hear new words and grammatical constructions. Yet, relatively little is known about the role of peer language and social interactions in language development, particularly in at-risk populations and children with communication disorders and delays. We employed objective, continuous measurements in two studies of early intervention classrooms to examine the influence of peer interactions on children’s language.

Study 1. We used LENAs (Language ENvironment Analysis) to collect day-long recordings, once a week for 42 weeks in a center-based early intervention program for children (n=13, M=38.7, SD=4.1) from low-SES, at-risk families. A mixed effects linear regression model controlling for time in study showed that children exposed to more peer vocalizations vocalized more than children who were exposed to fewer peer vocalizations, b=.34, se=.04, t=8.48, X2(1)=62.63, p<.001 (Figure 1A). In addition, linear regressions indicated that peer speech was positively related to both children’s concurrent vocabulary, b=1.29 (SE=.35), t(1,12)=3.81, p=.009 (Figure 1B) and vocabulary growth over 3 MCDI assessments, b=1.10 (SE=.32), t(1,12)=3.41, p=.014 (Figure 1C). In sum, individual children’s exposure to peer speech was associated with increased vocalizations and vocabulary development. A critical unanswered question, however, is how interactions with specific peers influence children’s vocalizations.

Study 2. Data were collected weekly over ten consecutive weeks in an inclusive intervention classroom of seven Deaf/Hard-of-Hearing children with cochlear implants and three typically hearing peers (Mage=36.8 months, SD=3.3 months). Continuous, objective measurements of infants’ language environment, location, and orientation were collected using LENAs and Ubisense system. The classroom was outfitted with four Ubisense sensors that tracked active tags worn by children to identify location within the classroom and orientation towards a peer. Synchronized LENA and Ubisense measurements indicated when children were in social contact and vocalizing. Mixed effects linear regression models showed that the amount of input children received from each of their social partners positively predicted the amount of vocalizations they produced when interacting with those same peers the following week, b=0.36, se=0.11, t=3.30, X2(1)=10.77, p<0.01 (Figure 2). Critically, after controlling for peer input, we found no main effects of hearing status on vocalizing—suggesting that peer interaction is crucial for this at-risk population.

Overall our data reveals the importance of peer interactions in early language production and development. Peers and social interactions are an important source of learning well before children start school. This experience may be especially crucial for at-risk populations, and intervention classrooms that create and promote this experience hold promise for addressing the early gaps among children from different backgrounds.

Authors

• Stephanie Custode, University of Miami
  Presenting Author

• Lynn K Perry, University of Miami
  Non-Presenting Author

• Samantha Mitsven, University of Miami
  Non-Presenting Author

• Laura Vitale, University of Miami
  Non-Presenting Author

• Adriana Valtierra, University of Miami
  Non-Presenting Author

• Chaoming Song, University of Miami
  Non-Presenting Author

• Daniel Messinger, University of Miami
  Non-Presenting Author