Peculiarities of interaction with peers in play activity of preschoolers with general speech underdevelopment

Abstract

Introduction. Humanisation of remedial/developmental education and upbringing of children with disabilities is a major task of modern education. In this regard, the process of optimal socialisation of this group of children arouses great interest. Child’s interaction with other people is a prerequisite for primary socialisation of the personality. Poor speech development hinders children’s full cooperation in playing. Therefore, comprehensive in-depth research of specific interaction between preschool children with speech impairments and their peers as well as the child’s capabilities as a subject of communication is required. The purpose of the study is to explore the development level and specific features of interaction of preschoolers having general speech underdevelopment with peers in play activities. Materials and methods. The research was implemented on the basis of some preschool educational organisations of Kirov (Kirov region, Russian Federation). The empirical part of the work was carried out on a sample of 96 preschool children, including 48 preschoolers with normal mental development and 48 children with general speech underdevelopment. The following methods were used: “Playroom”, “Study of playing preferences”, “Specific features of socio-dramatic play”, diagnostics of socio-communicative competence. Mathematical statistics method – Pearson’s chi-square test. Results. It was experimentally revealed that preschool children with general speech underdevelopment are characterised by prevalently low level of interaction with peers in play activities. When considering the level-specific split of preschoolers with normal mental development and those with general speech underdevelopment, a number of differences were revealed for all components: motivational (χ2 =10.948; p≤0.01), target-oriented (χ2 =11.844, p≤0.01), activity-based (χ2 =11.044, p≤0.01) and evaluative (χ2 =9.85, p≤0.01). Conclusion. The play activity interaction of preschool children having general speech underdevelopment is characterised by the following factors: such children do not show initiative in choosing a game; they prefer subject-based games to plot-based games not requiring a large number of players; they do not have permanent game partners; they choose only one game partner, normally the one who is younger; their communication, play and speech skills are not well formed; in conflict situations they either show aggression or avoid conflicts. The research prospect lies in the development of special methodological tools aimed to develop motivation and initiative in communication; formation of communicative and playing skills; teaching children to resolve conflict situations through constructive devices.