Activity

Understand how a language disorder can affect a student’s receptive language and subsequent ability to understand class discussions and course content.

Language is complicated. Many rules must be applied correctly if effective communication is to occur. A student with a language impairment has difficulty mastering (or the inability to master) the various systems of rules in language, which then interferes with communication. Language impairments involve difficulties with at least one of the following:

• Expressive language—the ability to convey one’s thoughts, feelings, and ideas through speaking or writing
• Receptive language—the ability to receive information, usually through reading or listening
• Pragmatics—the appropriate use of language in social contexts

This activity will focus on receptive language. Students who have difficulty with receptive language could struggle to understand what is spoken to them or to comprehend what they read. Language-based factors, such as complicated sentence structure and unfamiliar vocabulary, can increase the frustration that these students experience in the classroom.

Because students with other disabilities (e.g., learning disabilities, autism) often have coexisting language disorders, teachers must be aware of how their learning might be affected and must plan classroom assignments and activities with this in mind. Consider the following examples.

Example A

Maddie reads the following passage from The Witch of Blackbird Pond (1958), an assigned book for her eighth-grade language arts class.

This passage is confusing to Maddie for several reasons. First, she does not know what the words in bold mean, significantly decreasing her reading comprehension. Second, she mistakes the word piles in the second paragraph for the word piled in the first and imagines something being piled in the river. Third, she associates the term alien with science fiction and beings from outer space, resulting in a misinterpretation of that sentence. Finally, although the passage contains relatively uncomplicated sentences, some of the phrasing confuses her. For example, she mistakenly thinks “two of the men lowered over the side” means that two men were lowered over the side.

Example B

Carter’s language disorder makes it difficult for him to understand what information is being requested of him. Although he has the knowledge and skills to do well in school, his language disorder often causes him to misinterpret questions, thus he frequently gives the wrong answer. For example, Carter reads the following word problem in math class:

On a social studies test, Carter must look at a population density map and identify three cities with populations over 100,000. Instead of listing three cities, Carter draws the map symbol representing populations over 100,000.

Example C

Myron’s teacher asks him to help her put some photographs of leaves on a bulletin board. The pictures are part of a learning center in which the students will have to look at the photos and identify key characteristics. Myron’s teacher tells him, “I wouldn’t put the photos up so high that students can’t view them easily.” The teacher’s choice of words confuses Myron; he isn’t sure whether he should put the photos up high and whether the students should be able to view them easily.

Now complete the following.

1. Find a passage from a textbook, novel, or website that you would use in a lesson.
   1. Identify words and phrases that could be confusing to students like Maddie.
   2. What can you do as a teacher to help students with language disorders comprehend the material and avoid confusion?
2. Review Example B.
   1. Why do you think Carter misunderstood the math question?
   2. Why do you think Carter misunderstood the social studies question?
   3. What strategy could Carter use to help interpret the questions correctly?
3. Review Example C.
   1. Why do you think Myron was confused by his teacher’s instructions?
   2. Write two to three instructions that would be similarly confusing.
   3. Restate those two to three statements, as well as that of Myron’s teacher, to be more easily understood.