Getting the Word Out

Language ability entails our capacity to express ourselves and to understand what others are saying. For school-aged children, language competence underpins the ability to contribute to class discussions, engage in verbal reasoning, and understand subject content ‒ all integral components of school curricula. Many different terms are used to describe language difficulties. For example, speech, language and communication needs, language delay, specific language impairment, and more recently development language disorder. Language difficulties are often ‘invisible’ and can be difficult to identify, but they are also common, affecting up to 10 percent of children. This figure can rise to over 50 percent of children from areas of socio-economic disadvantage. Language difficulties can have a negative impact on children’s academic achievement, social skills, emotional regulation, and behavioural skills. There is growing evidence that the potential negative impact of language difficulties can be minimized through implementing universal, preventative, and targeted language enrichment interventions in inclusive classrooms. This chapter provides an overview of language difficulties and how they can be identified in the classroom setting. It also outlines language enrichment interventions and strategies that can be integrated into inclusive classrooms to support children in reaching their communicative potential.