The development of language and cognition in oral bilingual deaf children

英国约有5万名聋哑儿童，其中12%至28%的儿童使用两种口语（口语双语）。新生儿听力筛查计划和人工耳蜗植入（CI）技术的医学进步改善了聋哑儿童的语言效果。关于语言和其他认知技能如何在使用一种口头语言（口头单语）的聋儿中发展的研究很多;但是在英国没有研究调查过口头双语聋儿的语言发展。双语听力儿童在心理理论（Theory of Mind，ToM）和执行功能（Executive Function，EF）等认知技能方面具有优势，而单语聋儿在同一组认知技能方面存在劣势。我们还不知道口头双语是否可以弥补聋儿认知技能的缺陷。这是相关的，因为它可能与向父母提供的关于培养孩子讲两种语言的建议有关。大多数聋哑儿童出生于听力正常的父母，他们对耳聋知之甚少或一无所知。因此，专业人员在有关儿童的决定中可以发挥很大的影响力。在英国以外进行的研究报告说，父母经常被建议只和孩子说英语。然而，英语能力不足，无法提供丰富的语言模型，可能会对儿童的语言发展产生重大影响。尽管专业人士可以有影响力，没有确定的研究在英国探讨了专业人士给父母的意见，就一个聋哑儿童的能力，以获得两种口语language.Objectives：这项研究将调查接受和表达的词汇和语法能力，在英语的口头双语聋哑儿童相比，年龄匹配的口头单语聋人，单语听力和双语听力儿童。孩子们的母语将通过家长问卷间接评估。该研究还将检查口双语聋儿的心理理论和执行功能的技能相比，年龄匹配的口单语聋人，单语听力和双语听力的同龄人。通过在2x2设计中交叉双语和耳聋维度，我们将评估每个维度对儿童语言和认知技能的贡献。我们目前知道，双语能力可能会在心理理论和执行功能技能方面带来优势，而耳聋则会产生不利影响。一个悬而未决的问题是，双语是否对聋哑儿童有保护作用。作为一个补充链，该项目将提供一个全面的概述，由英国的专业人士给聋哑儿童的双语父母的意见，他们的沟通选择，以及他们的专业意见，聋哑儿童是否可以获得一个以上的口语。为了确定在英国的专业人士在双语环境中抚养聋哑儿童的建议，将设计两个调查，一个是聋哑儿童的双语父母，一个是与聋哑儿童一起工作的专业人士。这项研究将至关重要地告知我们对双语聋哑儿童语言和认知发展的理解，这可能会影响目前给父母的建议。

Approximately 50,000 deaf children live in the UK, and between 12 to 28% of these children use two spoken languages (oral bilingual). The newborn hearing screening programme and medical advances in Cochlear Implant (CI) technology have resulted in improved language outcomes for deaf children. Ample research exists on how language and other cognitive skills develop in deaf children who use one spoken language (oral monolingual); however no research conducted in the UK has investigated language development in oral bilingual deaf children. Advantages in some cognitive skills such as Theory of Mind (ToM) and Executive Function (EF) are reported in bilingual hearing children, but disadvantages in the same set of cognitive skills are reported in oral monolingual deaf children. We do not yet know if oral bilingualism might compensate for the disadvantage in cognitive skills in deaf children. This is relevant because it may be related to advice given to parents on raising their child to speak two languages. The majority of deaf children are born to hearing parents with little or no knowledge of deafness. Therefore, professionals can be highly influential in decisions regarding the child. Research conducted outside the UK reports that parents are often advised to only speak English with their child. However, insufficient proficiency in English to provide rich language models can have significant implications for a child's language development. Despite the influence professionals can have, no identified studies in the UK have explored the advice professionals give to parents regarding a deaf child's ability to acquire two spoken languages.Objectives: The study will investigate receptive and expressive lexical and grammatical abilities in the English of oral bilingual deaf children compared to age-matched oral monolingual deaf, monolingual hearing and bilingual hearing children. The children's home language will be assessed indirectly via parental questionnaires. The study will also examine ToM and EF skills in oral bilingual deaf children compared to age-matched oral monolingual deaf, monolingual hearing and bilingual hearing peers. By crossing the bilingualism and the deafness dimensions in a 2x2 design we will assess the contribution of each to the children's language and cognitive skills. We currently know that bilingualism may confer an advantage in ToM and EF skills and that deafness has a detrimental effect. An outstanding question is whether bilingualism may have a protective effect in the case of deaf children. As a complementary strand, the project will provide a comprehensive overview of the advice given by UK professionals to bilingual parents of deaf children on their communication choices, and their professional opinion on whether a deaf child can acquire more than one spoken language. To identify what advice professionals in the UK give on raising a deaf child in a bilingual environment, two surveys will be designed, one for bilingual parents of deaf children and one for professionals who work with deaf children.This study will crucially inform our understanding of the development of language and cognition in oral bilingual deaf children which could potentially impact the current advice given to parents.