Late Talkers

Rhea Paul, Ph.D., received her bachelor's degree from Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts, in 1971, her master's degree from Harvard Graduate School of Education in 1975, and her doctorate in communication disorders from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1981. Dr. Paul has published more than 90 journal articles, 40 book chapters, and 8 books. Her research on language development in toddlers with delayed language acquisition was funded by the National Institutes of Health. She has also held grants from the Meyer Memorial Trust, the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) Foundation, the Medical Research Foundation, and the National Association for Autism Research. Dr. Paul has been a fellow of ASHA since 1991 and received the 1996 Editor's Award from the American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology. In September 1997, she accepted a joint appointment in the Communication Disorders Department at Southern Connecticut State University and the Child Study Center at Yale University. She spent the summer of 1998 as a visiting professor at the University of Sydney in Australia. Dr. Paul received a Yale Mellon Fellowship for 1998-1999 and the Southern Connecticut State University Faculty Scholar Award for 1999. She was recently awarded an Erskine Fellowship to spend a semester as a visiting scholar at Canterbury University in Christchurch, New Zealand. The second edition of her textbook, Language Disorders from Infancy Through Adolescence: Assessment and Intervention, was published in 2001 by Mosby in St. Louis, Missouri. Dr. Paul has been teaching child language development and disorders courses for 20 years. Barbara Zurer Pearson, Ph.D., Research Associate, Department of Linguistics, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 226 South College, 150 Hicks Way, Amherst MA 01003 Barbara Zurer Pearson received her Ph.D. from the University of Miami, where she was the coordinator of the Bilingualism Study Group for 10 years and a major contributor to Language and Literacy in Bilingual Children (Oller & Eilers; Multilingual Matters, 2002). She is currently a research associate and codirector of the Language Acquisition Research Center at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Her book for a popular audience, Raising a Bilingual Child (Random House, 2008), has been published in Spanish and Polish and is being translated into Chinese. Nan Bernstein Ratner, Ed.D., Professor and Chair, Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences, The University of Maryland, College Park, 0100 Lefrak Hall, College Park, MD 20742 Nan Bernstein Ratner is Professor and Chair, Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences, The University of Maryland, College Park. She has published widely in the areas of typical and atypical language development, fluency and stuttering, and parent-child interaction. She is the coauthor of the texts Psycholinguistics (Harcourt Brace College Publishers, 1998) and The Development of Language, Eighth Edition (Pearson, 2012), both with Jean Berko Gleason, and A Handbook on Stuttering, Sixth Edition (Delmar Cengage Learning, 2008), with the late Oliver Bloodstein. She is a Fellow of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Dr. Rice received her doctoral degree from the University of Kansas, where she is University Distinguished Professor of Speech-Language-Hearing and Director of the Child Language Doctoral Program and the Merrill Advanced Studies Center. She has held Visiting Scientist appointments at the Center for Cognitive Science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She has extensive research and clinical experience with children with specific language impairment (SLI). Early in her career she worked as a speech-language pathologist in public schools. In collaboration with Kim A. Wilcox, she established the demonstration Language Acquisition Preschool (LAP) at the University of Kansas. Her current research addresses several aspects of the condition of SLI: social and academic consequences, morphology, lexical learning, and preschool language intervention. Her publications include the edited volumes The Teachability of Language and Toward a Genetics of Language, as well as numerous journal articles and invited chapters. Richard G. Schwartz, Ph.D., Presidential Professor, Ph.D. Program in Speech- Language-Hearing Sciences, The Graduate Center, The City University of New York, 365 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10016 Richard G. Schwartz is a speech-language pathologist who has conducted research on typical and atypical language acquisition in toddlers and school-age children. His research interests have included early phonology and lexical acquisition in children with specifi c language impairment (SLI), lexical and sentence processing in children with SLI, children with auditory processing disorders, and the neurological bases of childhood language impairments. He has published extensively in these areas. Donna J. Thal, Ph.D., holds a master of science degree in speech pathology and audiology from Brooklyn College and a doctorate in speech and hearing sciences from the Graduate School and University Center of the City University of New York (CUNY). She has been a postdoctoral fellow at the Center for Research in Language at UCSD, an assistant professor at Hofstra University, and an assistant professor at Queens College of CUNY. Dr. Thal is a developmental psycholinguist and a certified and licensed speech-language pathologist who has conducted research in a number of areas, including normal and disordered development of language and cognition, children with focal brain injury, and children with delayed onset of language. She has also carried out studies of language development in Spanish-speaking infants and toddlers. Her most recent work focuses on early identification of risk for clinically significant language impairment and is funded by a grant from the National Institute of Deafness and Other Communicative Disorders (NIDCD), within the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Thal is an editorial consultant for language for the Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research and the American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology. She was the California State nominee for the American Speech-Language-Hearing Foundation Outstanding Clinical Achievement Award in 1996, received the Monty Distinguished Faculty Award from SDSU 1998 and the Albert W. Johnson Research Lecturer Award from SDSU in 1999, and was the Wang Family Excellence Award nominee from SDSU in 2000. She served a 4-year term on the Communicative Disorders Review Committee for the NIDCD from 1998 to 2002. Dr. Thal is a co-author of the MacArthur Communicative Development Inventories. J. Bruce Tomblin, Ph.D., D.C. Spriestersbach Distinguished Professor, Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242 J. Bruce Tomblin is a Fellow and Honors recipient of the American Speech-Language- Hearing-Association. He also received the Callier Prize in Communication Disorders. He is a speech-language pathologist holding the Certifi cate of Clinical Competence in Speech-Language Pathology. His research has been concerned with the causes, course, and consequences of developmental language impairments. This research has focused on children with specifi c language impairment and children with hearing loss. Werner Vach, Ph.D., Professor, Clinical Epidemiology, University Medical Center Freiburg, Germany, Stefan-Meier-Str. 26, D-79104 Freiburg, Germany Werner Vach is statistician with a diploma and a Ph.D. from the Department of Statistics, University of Dortmund, Germany. He has been a professor of statistics at the Faculty of Medicine and at the Faculty of Humanities, University of Southern Denmark. Currently he is a professor of clinical epidemiology at the University of Freiburg. He has worked together with researchers from medicine, linguistics, archeology, and anthropology on both applied projects and methodological issues. Susan Ellis Weismer, Ph.D., Oros-Bascom Professor, Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Associate Dean for Research, College of Letters and Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1500 Highland Avenue, Madison, Wisconsin 53705 Susan Ellis Weismer is Oros-Bascom Professor of Communication Sciences and Disorders and Principal Investigator at the Waisman Center. Her program of research focuses on understanding the developmental course and mechanisms underlying language acquisition in late talkers, specific language impairment, and autism spectrum disorders. Her research has been funded by the National Institutes of Health for more than 25 years. Elaine Weitzman, M.Ed., Adjunct Professor, Department of Speech-Language Pathology, University of Toronto; Executive Director, The Hanen Centre, 1075 Bay Street, Suite 515, Toronto, ON M5S 2B1, Canada Elaine Weitzman is Executive Director of The Hanen Centre, Toronto, Canada, and Adjunct Professor in the Department of Speech-Language Pathology at the University of Toronto. Ms. Weitzman is coauthor of three resources for caregivers on how to facilitate childrena (TM)s language and literacy development: It Takes Two to Talk: A Practical Guide for Parents of Children with Language Delays (The Hanen Centre, 2004); Learning Language and Loving It: A Guide to Promoting Childrena (TM)s Social, Language, and Literacy Development in Early Childhood Settings (The Hanen Centre, 2002); and ABC and Beyond: Building Emergent Literacy in Early Childhood Settings (The Hanen Centre, 2010). Her research has focused on the effi cacy of caregiver-implemented early language intervention. Stephen R. Zubrick, Ph.D., Winthrop Professor, Centre for Child Health Research, The University of Western Australia, Telethon Institute for Child Health Research, 100 Roberts Road, Subiaco, Western Australia 6008, Australia Stephen R. Zubrick is Winthrop Professor of Research at The University of Western Australia. Trained at the University of Michigan in audiology, speech pathology, and psychology, he is one of the founding investigators of the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children and is a leading expert in population studies of child development. For the past decade, he has been the Head of the Division of Population Science at the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research. Catherine L. Taylor, Ph.D., PGradDipHlthSc, BAppSc, Professor, The University of Western Australia, Telethon Institute for Child Health Research, 100 Roberts Road, Subiaco, Western Australia 6008, Australia Catherine L. Taylora (TM)s primary research is in language development and disorders in childhood and related developmental outcomes, such as school readiness, school achievement, and social and emotional well-being. Her research investigates individual differences in language and literacy development, what factors account for these differences, and what these differences mean for childrena (TM)s progress at school and through life. The overarching aim of this research is to contribute to the evidence base that delivers equitable developmental opportunities for children, particularly in the early years. Leslie A. Rescorla, Ph.D., is Professor of Psychology and Director of the Child Study Institute and the Thorne Early Childhood Programs at Bryn Mawr College. Educated at Radcliffe, the London School of Economics, and Yale, she obtained clinical training at the Yale Child Study Center, the Philadelphia Child Guidance Center, and the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. Dr. Rescorla's research interests include language delays in young children, longitudinal patterns of school achievement, and empirically based assessment of emotional and behavioral problems. Philip S. Dale, Ph.D., is Professor in Departments of Psychology, Linguistics, and Speech and Hearing Sciences at University of Washington. Dr. Dale's research interests include assessment of young children's language, language development in exceptional populations including linguistically precocious children, early language and cognition, and the effects of various models of intervention for young children with disabilities. Edith L. Bavin, Ph.D., Honorary Professor, School of Psychological Science, Faculty of Science, Technology and Engineering, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Victoria 3086, Australia Edith L. Bavin obtained her Ph.D. at the University of Buffalo. Her early research was on the acquisition of Warlpiri, an indigenous language spoken in central Australia. More recent research has been on specifi c language impairment, focusing on memory. She is a chief investigator on the Early Language in Victoria Study, a longitudinal study on the natural history of language impairment and literacy development. Other current research is the language processing of children with autism using eye tracking and the language and the cognitive development of young children with cochlear implants. She served as editor of the Journal of Child Language 2006--2012 and edited the Cambridge Handbook of Child Language, published by Cambridge University Press in 2009. Dorthe Bleses, Ph.D., Professor, Center Director, Center for Child Language, Institute for Language and Communication, University of Southern Denmark, Campusvej 55, DK-5230 Odense M, Denmark Dorthe Bleses is a linguist and applied researcher in early childhood language and literacy development, educational interventions, and development of assessment tools. She directs the Center for Child Language at the University of Southern Denmark. Lesley Bretherton, Ph.D., Associate Professor, University of Melbourne, Head of Clinical Psychology, Psychology Service, The Royal Childrena (TM)s Hospital, Flemington Road, Parkville, Victoria 3052, Australia Lesley Bretherton is a child and adolescent clinical psychologist. She is currently Head of Clinical Psychology at The Royal Childrena (TM)s Hospital, Clinical Associate Professor in Psychological Sciences at the University of Melbourne, and Honorary Fellow at Murdoch Childrens Research Institute. Her research interests include child language and cognitive development and child psychopathology. She undertook study leave with Professor Dorothy Bishop at the University of Oxford and is a reviewer of research project grants and manuscripts for a variety of journals and for the National Health and Medical Research Council. She has been a member of the Early Language in Victoria Study since 2000. Stephen Camarata, Ph.D., Professor, Hearing and Speech Sciences, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, 1215 21st Avenue South, Suite 8310, Nashville, TN 37232 Stephen Camarata is a nationally and internationally renowned clinician-scientist who studies late-talking children. His research focuses on the assessment and treatment of speech and language disorders in children with disabilities such as autism, Down syndrome, and specific language impairment. He also studies children whose late onset of talking appears to be a natural developmental stage rather than a symptom of a broader developmental disability. Christine Dollaghan, Ph.D, Professor, Callier Center for Communication Disorders, University of Texas at Dallas, 1966 Inwood Road, A.128, Dallas, TX 75235 Christine Dollaghan is a professor at the University of Texas at Dallas. Her research interests include child language development and disorders, the validity of diagnostic measures, and the latent structure of diagnostic categories. Her publications include The Handbook of Evidence-Based Practice in Communication Disorders (Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., 2007). She was awarded the Honors of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association in 2012. Cindy Earle, M.A., Speech-Language Pathologist, The Hanen Centre, 1075 Bay Street, Suite 515, Toronto, ON M5S 2B1, Canada Cindy Earle has worked as a speech-language pathologist with The Hanen Centre for more than 30 years. She is the program director for Target Word--The Hanen Program for Parents of Children who are Late Talkers and the author of the Target Word--Making Hanen Happen Leaders Guide (The Hanen Centre, 2011) and the Target Word Parent Handbook, Third Edition (The Hanen Centre, 2011). Anne Fernald, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Josephine Knotts Knowles Professor of Human Biology, Department of Psychology, Stanford University, 450 Serra Mall, Stanford, CA 94305 Anne Fernald has done pioneering research on the early development of skill in language processing, developing high-resolution measures of the time course of infantsa (TM) understanding as they learn to interpret language from moment to moment. In longitudinal studies with English- and Spanish-learning children from advantaged and disadvantaged families, this research reveals the vital role of early language experience in strengthening speech processing effi ciency, which in turn facilitates language learning. A central goal of this research program is to help parents understand that they play a crucial role in providing their infant with early linguistic nutrition and language exercise. Marc E. Fey, Ph.D., Professor, Hearing and Speech Department, University of Kansas Medical Center, 3901 Rainbow Boulevard, Kansas City, Kansas 66160 Dr. Fey's primary research and clinical interests include the role of input on children's speech and language development and disorders and the efficacy and effectiveness of speech and language intervention with children. Dr. Fey was editor of the American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology from 1996 to 1998 and was chair of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association Publications Board from 2003 to 2005. Along with his many publications, including articles, chapters, and software programs, he has published three other books on language intervention--Language Intervention with Young Children (Allyn & Bacon, 1986) and Language Intervention: Preschool Through the Elementary Years (co-edited with Jennifer Windsor & Steven F. Warren; Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., 1995), and Treatment of Language Disorders in Children (co-edited with Rebecca McCauley; Paul H. Brookes Publishing Company, 2006). Dr. Fey received the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association's Kawana Award for Lifetime Achievement in Publication in 2010 and the Honors of the Association in 2011. Lizbeth H. Finestack, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Speech- Language-Hearing Sciences, University of Minnesota, Room 54 Shevlin Hall, 164 Pillsbury Drive SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455 Lizbeth H. Finestack is an assistant professor in the Department of Speech- Language-Hearing Sciences at the University of Minnesota. Her research focuses on identifying effective language interventions for children and adolescents with significant language impairment. She is currently examining the efficacy of using an explicit teaching approach to target grammatical forms when working with children with primary language impairment. Luigi Girolametto, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Speech-Language Pathology, University of Toronto, 500 University Avenue #160, Toronto, Ontario M5G 1V7, Canada Luigi Girolametto is a professor in the Department of Speech-Language Pathology at the University of Toronto. He teaches child language disorders and intervention. Current research in his Child Language Lab focuses on 1) parent-focused language intervention, 2) the development of emergent literacy skills in preschoolers, and 3) language acquisition in bilingual preschoolers. Dr. Girolametto's interests include the efficacy of language intervention and professional development. Marianna E. Hayiou-Thomas, D.Phil. (Oxon), Department of Psychology, University of York, Heslington, York, YO10 5DD, United Kingdom Following completion of her doctoral work at the University of Oxford on cognitive processing in children with specifi c language impairment, Marianna E. Hayiou-Thomas joined the Twins Early Development Study for her postdoctoral training in behavioral genetics. Since then, she has combined her work in behavioral genetics with experimental approaches in order to examine the etiology of language impairment over the course of development, as well as its relationship to literacy. James Law, Ph.D., Professor of Speech and Language Science, Institute of Health and Society, School of Education, Communication and Language Sciences, Newcastle University, Victoria Road, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, NEI 7RU, United Kingdom James Law graduated with a degree in linguistics before qualifying as a speech and language therapist. His principal research interests are child language and language learning diffi culties, evidence-based practice and intervention, and mapping longitudinal outcomes for children with language diffi culties. He has had a wide range of research funding, most recently as a principal investigator on the AGBP1.5m Better Communication Research Programme in the United Kingdom and the Centre for Research Excellence in Child Language in Victoria, Australia. Michelle MacRoy-Higgins, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Hunter College, The City University of New York, Brookdale Campus, 425 East 25th Street, Mailbox #727, New York, NY 10010 Michelle MacRoy-Higgins is Speech-Language Pathologist and Assistant Professor at Hunter College, The City University of New York. Her research and clinical interests include language and phonological development and disorders in children and children with autism spectrum disorders. Virginia A. Marchman, Ph.D., is Associate Professor in School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences at the University of Texas at Dallas, Richardson, Texas. Dr. Marchman holds a master of arts degree and a doctorate in developmental psychology from the University of California, Berkeley. She has been an assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and a postdoctoral fellow at the Center for Research in Language at the University of California, San Diego. She has conducted research in several areas of language and cognitive development, language disorders, and early childhood development. Her most recent work focuses on the identification of precursors of language delay and individual differences in lexical and morphological development in monolingual English and bilingual (Spanish and English) speakers. She is on the editorial board of the Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research and was named Distinguished Scholar at the Callier Center for Communication Disorders. Dr. Marchman has worked on the MacArthur Communicative Development Inventories and the MacArthur Inventarios del Desarrollo de Habilidades Comunicativas for the last 15 years. She is author of the CDI Scoring Program.