Study on the Potential for Narrative Learning in School-Aged Children with Down Syndrome Using Dynamic Assessment

Ku, Ji-Hye; Kim, Young Tae

ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Commun Sci Disord. 2009;14(3): 288-302.

Ji-Hye Ku^` , and Young Tae Kim^`

구지혜(Ji-Hye Ku)| 김영태(Young Tae Kim)

ABSTRACT

Background & Objectives
The purpose of this study was to understand the potential for narrative learning using dynamic assessment for school-aged children with Down Syndrome.
Methods
The targets of this study were 15 school-aged children with Down Syndrome whose linguistic ages (LA) were between 4 and 6 years. We also included 15 normal children with linguistic abilities equal to those of the Down children. The dynamic assessment in this study consisted of a first evaluation, which included three sessions of short-term learning through MLE (mediated learning experience), and also a second evaluation.
Results
First, children with Down Syndrome showed significantly lower abilities in syntactic complexity using MLC-w, story components and episode structure than did normal children. Second, as a result of evaluating the potential for narrative learning in children with Down Syndrome, the potential for syntactic learning did not show meaningful results, while story components and episode structure did. Third, when the narrative learning potentials for the children with Down Syndrome and normal children were compared, potential for syntactic learning using MLC-w and episode structure did not show a significant difference, whereas the potential for story components learning did have a meaningful difference.
Discussion & Conclusion
Although children with Down Syndrome lack narrative expression abilities compared to normal children, our study found that they have the potential for narrative learning. Our results provided an important reference for evaluating the narrative abilities of children with Down Syndrome and suggest possible future interventions for these children

Keywords: 역동적 평가 | 이야기 학습 | 다운증후군 dynamic assessment | narrative learning | Down Syndrome