Poster #56 - Investigating the Links Between Relative Language Proficiency and Conceptual Vocabulary Knowledge

• In Event: Poster Session 18

Abstract

Obtaining an accurate measure of bilingual children’s language proficiency requires assessment and evaluation that accounts for both languages. However, there are few language measures standardized for bilingual children. Common practice among researchers and educators is to use language measures standardized for monolingual children. However, these may not measure bilingual children’s language proficiency to its full extent since it evaluates each language as a separate entity rather than as parts of a whole lexicon. The inability to measure bilingual children’s language proficiency accurately has practical implications. Bilingual children may be disproportionately over- or under-referred to special education or other support services. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relation between relative levels of proficiency in Spanish and English and conceptual vocabulary knowledge of bilingual children.

One hundred seventy-eight Spanish-English kindergarteners (mage = 71.81 months) were assessed on measures of vocabulary and morphosyntax in the spring. Each assessment was administered in English and Spanish, consistent with recommendations from prior research (Anaya et al., 2018; Gross et al., 2014), during separate sessions. Vocabulary was measured using the Expressive One-Word Picture Vocabulary Test Spanish-Bilingual Edition (EOWPVT-4 SBE; Martin, 2013). Vocabulary scores from the EOWPVT-4 SBE were indexed as language scores (Spanish-only and English-only expressive vocabulary), conceptual scores, and total scores. Morphosyntax was measured using the Bilingual English-Spanish Assessment (BESA) sentence repetition task (Peña et al., 2014). Morphosyntax scores were separated into Spanish-only, English-only, and best language sentence repetition. Relative language knowledge was computed using both the EOWPVT and BESA sentence repetition in Spanish and English.

Results of the analyses show a linear relation between relative language and single-language vocabulary scores, but no relation between relative language and total vocabulary. Additionally, there was a negative linear relation between conceptual vocabulary and relative language, but a positive quadratic relation. Finally, there was no linear relation but rather a positive quadratic relation for best language sentence repetition.

No relation between relative language and total vocabulary may indicate total vocabulary operates similarly for different subgroups of bilingual children. Conceptual vocabulary has a negative linear relation, and a positive quadratic relation. This pattern of results indicates that conceptual vocabulary scores are systematically lower for children who are who are relatively balanced in their two languages. To a somewhat lesser degree, examination of the plots suggests somewhat lower scores for Spanish-dominant children when compared to English-dominant children. For best language sentence repetition, the pattern of results indicated that scores were higher for Spanish-dominant than for other groups. These results have important implications for bilingual language assessment, as certain assessment approaches may underestimate the overall language proficiency of certain groups of bilingual children (e.g., relatively balanced bilinguals).

Authors

• Lauren Thayer, Texas A&M University - College Station
  Presenting Author

• John Marc Goodrich, University of Nebraska - Lincoln

• Lisa Fitton, University of South Carolina