In my diploma thesis I focus on the role of parents and preschool teachers in speech and language development of preschool children. My focus is further directed at the assessment of speech-language impairments. In the theoretical part of my thesis I have specified and defined speech, language, language ability and communication. I have further dealt with and reflected on language, speech and communication development in preschool children. I have also included speech and language developmental milestones as well as factors influencing speech and language development of a child, the latter being sociocultural background of speech development, influence of preschool education, education of the parents, quality of the family environment and parent-child shared reading). I have also described the role of parents and preschool teachers, on the one hand, in encouraging speech and language development and communication in children, on the other hand, in recognition and assessment of speech-language impairments, where parent-teacher personal and professional relationships and expertise are of significant importance. I also explain speech-language impairments and disorders.
In the empirical part of my thesis I have researched the role of preschool teachers and parents in the process of identifying speech-language impairments as well as their role in encouraging speech and language development and communication in preschool children. I have included 94 parents and 71 preschool teachers and assistant teachers in my research, which I conducted in accordance with the quantitative research paradigm. I used the descriptive method and the causal analysis of non-experimental method in educational research. To establish statistically significant results among the two groups I used the suitable parametric i.e. non-parametric method (t-test). I have further interpreted the results based on basic descriptive statistics using graphs, tables and summaries. The analysis has shown that I can reject hypothesis 1, 2 and 5 while the rest I can accept, except hypothesis 4, which can neither be accepted nor rejected. This research has enabled me to throw light on the current situation and highlight the key problems, which the preschool teachers and parents are facing with in the process of assessment of speech-language impairments and in the process of encouraging speech and language development.
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