This article describes assessment and management strategies for infants and toddlers with normal hearing or fluctuating conductive hearing loss, who are identified as having central auditory impairment and/or judged to have abnormal auditory behavior. Management strategies include audiologic, medical, and speech and language management. Three case…

Tested three competing structural equation models concerning auditory inspection time (AIT) and cognitive ability. Found that auditory inspection times near age 11 correlate most strongly with later high IQ. (ET)

This paper describes changes in speech perception performance of deaf children using cochlear implants, tactile aids, or conventional hearing aids over a three-year period. Eleven of the 13 children with cochlear implants were able to identify words on the basis of auditory consonant cues. Significant lipreading enhancement was also achieved with…

This article discusses the development of an orientation and mobility screening measure suitable for use with children having severe visual impairments (and possibly additional impairments) from birth through five years of age. Twenty instructors rated the measures as being useful. The two forms of the measure (for either ambulatory or…

Asserts that the acoustical environment of the classroom is an important variable in the listening and psychoeducational function, both for children with hearing loss and those with normal hearing. Reports the results of a test of a sound amplification system in two primary classes; indicates the benefits of the system. (DSK)

Investigated the perceptual learning style preferences (auditory, visual, kinesthetic, and tactile) and preferences for group and individual learning of Southeast Asian students compared to white students. Surveys indicated significant differences in learning style preferences between Southeast Asian and white students and between the diverse…

Identifies a function generator as an instrument that produces time-varying electrical signals of frequency, wavelength, and amplitude. Sending these signals to a speaker or a light-emitting diode can demonstrate how specific characteristics of auditory or visual stimuli relate to perceptual experiences. Provides specific instructions for using…

This article reviews some relevant events in the development of acoustical standards for classrooms, describes classroom challenges to providing clear acoustical signals to children in classrooms, and outlines amplification solutions to some of those classroom challenges. Solutions include personal amplification devices and use of signal-to-noise…

This article discusses the lack of an acoustic standard in classrooms and an effort by a broad-based coalition of engineers, audiologists, parents, architects, and educators to develop a standard for acoustics that would then be referenced in the Americans with Disabilities Act. The benefits to all children are emphasized. (Contains six…

This closing article on a clinical forum exploring negative effects of classroom noise on learning discusses the need to make structural changes to classrooms to provide a high-quality acoustical environment for learning. The efforts of the Classroom Acoustics Working Group to develop acoustic standards for classrooms is highlighted. (Contains one…

This draft standard developed by the Classroom Acoustics Working Group provides acoustical performance criteria and accompanying design guidelines intended to ensure good speech communication among students and teachers in learning spaces. To ensure the noise limits are not exceeded, adequate sound isolation between classrooms and adjacent spaces…

In this brief article we share with our colleagues around the world the British impact on the development of music education and psychology of music research in Brazil and Argentina. Although both countries are pursuing similar research policies, their research areas differ. Brazilian research on music education has had its focus on curriculum…

It has been 20 years since Bever's (1982) and Strauss and Stavy's (1982) books on U-shaped functions in human development were published. The three target articles in this issue describe several old and new U-shaped functions and new theoretical explanations for their existence. In this article, the authors will comment on two aspects of U-shaped…

The purposes of this paper are to examine the degree of ethnic diversity that exists among children with hearing loss; to review how this affects implementation of auditory-based intervention for children with many needs; and to suggest ways that auditory-based therapists can respect and respond to diversity for the improvement of services to…

Native language affects the perception of segmental phonetic structure, of stress, and of semantic and pragmatic effects of intonation. Similarly, native language might influence the perception of similarities and differences among intonation contours. To test this hypothesis, a cross-language experiment was conducted. An English utterance was…