A multi-study examination of the role of repeated spaced retrieval in the word learning of children with developmental language disorder

Laurence B Leonard,Christine Weber,Patricia Deevy,Sharon L Christ,Sofía Souto,Eileen Haebig,Jeffrey D Karpicke,Windi Krok,Justin B Kueser

doi:10.1186/s11689-021-09368-z

Abstract

BackgroundMany children with developmental language disorders (DLD) have well-documented weaknesses in vocabulary. In recent years, investigators have explored the nature of these weaknesses through the use of novel word learning paradigms. These studies have begun to uncover specific areas of difficulty and have provided hints about possible intervention strategies that might help these children learn words more accurately and efficiently. Among the studies of this type are those that incorporate repeated spaced retrieval activities in the learning procedures.MethodsIn this study, we examined the data from four of these studies that employed the same types of participants (4- and 5-year-old children with DLD and same-age children with typical language development), research design, and outcome measures. The studies differed primarily in the type of learning condition that was being compared to a spaced retrieval condition. A mixed-effects modeling framework was used, enabling the data from the four studies and different outcome measures to be aggregated.ResultsAcross the studies, more words in the repeated spaced retrieval condition were recalled than those in the comparison conditions. This was true regardless of outcome measure. Children with typical language development recalled more words than the children with DLD. Both groups benefited from spaced retrieval, though effects were larger for the group with DLD. Children recalled words as accurately 1 week after learning as they did at the 5-min mark; the two groups were essentially identical in this respect.ConclusionsOverall, the findings support the continued refinement of these types of repeated spaced retrieval procedures, as they may have potential to serve as effective approaches to intervention.

Highlights

Many children with developmental language disorders (DLD) have well-documented weaknesses in vocabulary
Analysis of the aggregated data across our four studies provides reason to be encouraged about the potential benefits of repeated spaced retrieval (RSR) for word learning in children with DLD
In these controlled laboratory studies, different variations of RSR were associated with greater recall than learning conditions that had merit but yielded results of lower magnitude

Summary

Introduction

Many children with developmental language disorders (DLD) have well-documented weaknesses in vocabulary. A longstanding finding in the memory literature is that when learners regularly test their recall of information during the learning process, their retention of the information improves [1,2,3,4] Implied in this observation is that instead of being only a measure of what has already been learned, testing appears to create learning. Individuals with DLD exhibit normal hearing, they show no evidence of neurological damage or disease, and they do not display the behavioral symptoms indicative of autism spectrum disorder As a group, these individuals score slightly below their age mates from the same community on tests of nonverbal intelligence, yet their scores are reliably above the level of intellectual disability

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