SBIR Phase I: Science-Backed Games to Enhance Early Language Acquisition

SBIR第一阶段项目是为儿童开发促进第一语言习得的数字应用程序。研究表明，早期的语言发展会影响未来的结果：蹒跚学步的孩子的词汇量可以预测他几年后的语言技能和未来的学习成绩。父母会追踪与语言相关的里程碑，如果孩子落后了，他们往往会得出最糟糕的结论。该项目旨在通过开发科学支持的应用程序来加速早期语言习得，从而减少父母的焦虑。由于幼儿越来越多地使用触摸屏设备，以及对高质量儿童应用程序的相应需求，该项目有可能在商业和社会层面产生可观的回报。现有市场缺乏既具有教育意义又能吸引幼儿的应用程序，而拟议中的应用程序旨在填补这一空白。虽然这些应用程序是为所有儿童设计的，但作为一种治疗晚说话者和患有语言障碍的儿童的方法，其影响可能最为显著。这些应用程序还可以补充目前针对在家语言能力有限的儿童的干预项目。这个项目与现有的语言相关的教育应用程序不同，利用了发展心理学的进步。现有的产品通过大量练习来教授新单词，但往往效果不佳。相比之下，拟议的应用程序基于“从学到学”（L2L）的原则：教授高级抽象概念，帮助孩子们学习大量的新单词。通过教授原则而不是单独的单词，孩子们以他们最好的学习方式成为更有效的学习者：在家里通过与父母和照顾者的正常互动。先前的研究表明，早期指导孩子正确的L2L原则可以加速词汇量的增长，通过与科学家的合作，该项目旨在将这项研究转化为商业产品。第一阶段项目将通过随机对照研究进行评估，测试第一个L2L应用程序在加速早期词汇增长方面的有效性。该项目的范围还包括开发额外的“学到学”应用程序，以指导儿童学习单词的其他重要原则。拟议的应用程序将被设计和严格评估，以最好地支持早期学习者，对最需要它的孩子产生最大的潜在影响。

This SBIR Phase I project is developing digital apps for children that promote first language acquisition. Research shows that early language development impacts future outcomes: A toddler's vocabulary size predicts language skills years later as well as future academic performance. Parents keep track of language-related milestones, and if a child falls behind, they tend to jump to the worst conclusions. This project aims to reduce parental anxiety by developing science-backed apps to accelerate early language acquisition. Due to the growing use of touchscreen devices by young children and the corresponding need for high-quality children's apps, this project has the potential to generate significant returns on commercial and social levels. The existing market has a dearth of apps that are equal parts educational and engaging for a young child, and the proposed apps aim to fill this gap. While these apps are designed for use by all children, the impact could be most significant as a therapy for late talkers and for children with language-related disorders. The apps could also supplement current intervention programs for children with limited linguistic enrichment at home.This project departs from existing language-related educational apps by leveraging advances in developmental psychology. Existing products teach new words through mass practice, often with dubious success. In contrast, the proposed apps are based on the principle of learning-to-learn (L2L): teaching high-level abstractions that help children learn broad classes of new words. By teaching principles rather than individual words, children become more efficient learners in the way they learn best: at home through normal interactions with their parents and caregivers. Previous studies have shown that guiding children to the right L2L principles early can accelerate vocabulary growth, and through partnerships with the scientists, this project aims to translate this research into commercial products. This Phase I project will be evaluated through a randomized control study, testing the effectiveness of the first L2L app for accelerating early vocabulary growth. The project scope also includes the development of additional learning-to-learn apps that guide children towards other important principles of word learning. The proposed apps will be designed, and rigorously evaluated, to best support early learners, with the largest potential impact for the children who need it most.