Vocaldevelopment.com : An Interactive Web Site for Instruction in Prelinguistic Speech Development David J. Ertmer Audiology and Speech Sciences Purdue University West Lafayette, IN USA [email protected]

Abstract: Knowledge of prelinguistic vocal development is essential for the early

identification of infants and toddlers who have speech and language delays. Vocaldevelopment.com is an interactive Web site that provides students, professionals, and parents with access to audio -recordings of a range of infant vocalizations. The main purpose of the site is to help users learn to classify prelinguistic vocalizations according to three developmental levels. Video clips of parents using speech and language intervention strategies, research findings regarding vocal development in young deaf children with cochlear implants, and related readings are also available.

Background During the 1980s, researchers determined that prelinguistic speech development could be characterized by the predictable emergence of increasingly complex and speech-like vocalizations (Oller, 1980; Stark, 1980). A young child’s ability to produce a wide range of vocalizations is now recognized as fundamental to the development of meaningful speech (Vihman, 1996). Professionals in Communication Disorders who understand this process can identify speech delays within the first 18 months of life – even before children say their first words. Early identification can, in turn, lead to the promp t provision of intervention services for infants and toddlers who are delayed in speech and language development.

The Problem Infant vocalizations are particularly difficult to conceptualize because they often fail to conform to mature speech patterns. Evaluating vocal development can be especially problematic for those who have not heard a full range of vocalization types during academic preparation. That is, students and professionals may have read about “cooing,” “babbling,” or “jargon” but never heard audio recordings of these kinds of vocalizations. Recordings of infant vocalizations are seldom included in undergraduate or graduate coursework in Communication Disorders because they have been made for research purposes and have not been distributed for classroom instruction. Without first-hand listening experience, the identification of speech problems in very young children may be delayed simply because professionals are unable to recognize the hallmarks of vocal development and determine when they are overdue. This distribution problem has been apparent to instructors in Communication Disorders for years but, until the advent of the Internet, no viable solution was available.

The Internet: A Distribution Solution The advent of the Internet opened opportunities for sharing information on vocal development with a worldwide audience. Because the Internet can convey audio and video clips, as well as text and images, it is

an ideal medium for providing personal listening experiences with a wide range of vocalizations. The current version of Vocaldevelopment.com has five main sections: 1)

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Development pages present audio examples of a variety of vocalization types. These pages also describe a classification scheme to help users learn how to identify three basic levels of vocal development: Precanonical, Canonical, and Postcanonical. A self-check page provides a way to evaluate learning. Visitors to the Web site can assess their classification skills as they listen to a variety of vocalizations and determine the level of development associated with each. Feedback is provided after ten responses. Research pages contain information regarding early speech development in deaf children who receive cochlear implants at a young age and descriptions of a more research-oriented system for examining vocal development. Intervention pages focus on a new program for stimulating vocal development (Short Period of Prelinguistic Input [SPPI]) and descriptions of language stimulation techniques. Video clips show parents using language facilitation strategies with their young children. A Related Readings page provides references for additional readings about prelinguistic vocal development, speech development in hearing-impaired children, and intervention approaches.

Visiting Vocaldevelopment.com will allow university instructors, speech-language pathologists, special educators, and early education specialists to explore the potential of the Internet for promoting learning through auditory and visual experiences.

References Oller, D. K. (1980). The emergence of the sounds of speech in infancy. In G. Yeni-Komshian, J. Kavanaugh, & C. Ferguson (Eds.), Child Phonology (pp. 93-112). New York: Academic Press. Stark, R. E. (1980). Stages of speech development in the first year of life. In G. Yeni-Komshian, J. Kavanaugh, & C. Ferguson (Eds.), Child Phonology (pp. 73-92). New York: Academic Press. Vihman, M. (1996). Phonological development: The origins of language in the child. Cambridge, MA: Blackwell Publis hers.

Acknowledgements Vocaldevelopment.com was created through a grant from the Multimedia Instructional Development Center at Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, and developed by Jason Galster, M.S.