Ten African-American children, aged five to six, who speak Black English Vernacular were administered three standard English articulation tests. Results showed that a failure to take the issue of dialect variation into account substantially increased the likelihood of misdiagnosing normally speaking African-American children as having articulation…

This study compared the responses of 28 Detroit (Michigan) low income African-American preschoolers who were speakers of Black English (BE) on the Arizona Articulation Proficiency Scale, using a standard English and a BE scoring procedure. Findings indicated that this test does not require a BE scoring adjustment for northern BE speakers.…

Word lists spoken in Castillian, Caribbean, and Mexican dialects were compared to identify speech reception thresholds in 12 Spanish-speaking, Puerto Rican children (ages 6-7). No statistically significant differences were found among the dialects. (Author/DB)

This article addresses the educational need for knowledge about language differences and the role that school-based speech-language pathologists can play in mainstream education about language differences. A pilot language awareness program for fourth and fifth graders, which includes humanistic, scientific, and cultural objectives, is described.…

This case study describes a criterion-referenced method of assessing the speech and language of a young child who speaks an uncommon or unfamiliar English dialect. The method, Parent Child Comparative Analysis, involves administering an identical test battery to parent and child and interpreting the child's performance in relation to the parent's.…

An adaptation of the Hannah-Gardner Test of Verbal and Nonverbal Language Functioning was developed to be used in screening the language skills of 540 low-income Black, English-dominant Hispanic, and Anglo preschool children. The procedures used to calculate local norms and other issues involved in screening minority populations are discussed.…