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: En studie om ordförrådsutvecklande undervisning för elever med språkstörning

Abstract

The purpose of this qualitative study is to provide further knowledge regarding vocabulary development of students with Developmental Language Disorder (DLD). It is based on the feedback from class teachers, learning support teachers and educational speech therapists. Students with DLD do not advance in their language skills at the same rate as their peers and vocabulary development is a common area of difficulty for these students. Vocabulary plays a crucial role in the process of learning and therefore poses a risk of not reaching the students full potential. The theoretical framework for this study consists of theories of lexical networks and sociocultural theory. The study approach is phenomenographic and the empirical evidence was obtained through semi-structured interviews. The results outline the assessors descriptions of how the challenges with vocabulary manifest itself whilst outlining how to create language-accessible learning environments. They also define how the development of vocabulary can be stimulated and supported, both in the classroom and through individualised learning. The assessors describe that students with DLD may have some difficulty expressing themselves, pronouncing and mobilising their words in certain situations. Their difficulties with linguistic comprehension affects the ability to understand the content of the teaching, instructions and texts. Results include examples of general adaptations in ordinary teaching that can increase language accessibility; a clear lesson structure, oral and written instructions, visualisation, symbol support, concrete material and digital learning tools. This study gives examples of what vocabulary teaching may look like when supporting students with DLD, like reading aloud, shared reading and reading groups where new words are explained and linked to the students experiences. In-depth work with specific and interdisciplinary words means that the word is explained and linked to an image, item or experience and used in linguistic activities. Prior understanding, increased exposure and repetition are all beneficial. When writing, word mobilisation can be facilitated by pictures, starting sentences, word banks, thesaurus lists and word prediction programs. End results show that students with DLD need a lot of support, both in the classroom and individually. The learning support teacher's role will be to bring attention to any language difficulties, support the teacher with vocabulary teaching in the classroom, create a linguistically accessible learning environment and provide individualised support to aid vocabulary development.