Abstract:

Understanding teacher perspectives on communication can contribute to a more comprehensive characterization of children’s communication skills and can prepare SLPs for effective collaboration with teachers. In this study, teacher perspectives on young children’s communication were examined. Teachers of preschool children in a Head Start program serving a bilingual population described children’s language and communication in ethnographic interviews. The participants were two Latina teachers and the interviews focused on five Latino 4-year-old children with varied experience with Spanish and English. The major themes in the teacher interviews were the children’s personal characteristics and their participation in preschool activities. A third theme, bilingual and second language matters, was discussed by the teachers within the participation and personal characteristics framework. Implications of these themes for collaboration within a multidimensional framework are discussed.

Author: Janet L. Patterson