2027 Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Conference
March 22-24, 2027 • Bellevue, WA
3/17/2026 | 3:00 PM - 3:30 PM | Basic Concepts Development for Young DHH Children: Anything But Basic | City Terrace 12
Basic Concepts Development for Young DHH Children: Anything But Basic
Basic concepts refers to the understanding of words that represent space, time, and quantity (e.g., “across,” “finished,” “many”) (Bracken, 1984). Basic-concepts knowledge in preschool strongly predicts school readiness and academic achievement in elementary school for typically hearing children (Bracken & Brown, 2008). While overall receptive vocabulary has been widely studied in DHH children, basic concepts are rarely included in general vocabulary assessments. Thus, little is known about how DHH children develop these critical skills in early childhood.
46 DHH preschoolers learning spoken English (M age = 4.2 years) were assessed using the Boehm-3 Preschool Test of Basic Concepts (BTBC-3). 26 concepts were each assessed twice using live voice. Participants responded by pointing to one of four pictures. General receptive vocabulary was assessed with the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-4 (PPVT-4).
Overall receptive vocabulary was in the average range. Basic-concepts scores were in the low average range. An item-by-item analysis of basic-concepts performance revealed that participants developed concepts in roughly the same order as typically hearing preschoolers, with “longest” and “smallest” (classified as “very easy” by BTBC-3) mastered by nearly all participants, and “least” and “last” (“very difficult”) mastered by only a few. Many participants mastered advanced concepts later than the test’s typically hearing sample. Quantity concepts were better understood than space concepts.
The importance of vocabulary development for DHH children is widely recognized, but basic concepts have largely been ignored. The results of this study suggest that, while DHH preschoolers develop basic concepts in roughly the same order as typically hearing children, many have not mastered more advanced concepts before the end of preschool. These children may be at risk for academic delays and difficulty following classroom instructions in kindergarten, which may have cascading effects as elementary school progresses. Suggestions for targeting basic concepts during the EHDI period will be discussed.
- Define basic concepts in the context of language and academic development.
- Describe the relative strengths and needs of DHH toddlers and preschoolers in developing basic concepts.
- Discuss developmentally appropriate activities that promote basic concepts in auditory-based intervention.
Presentation:
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Handouts:
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Transcripts:
CART transcripts are NOT YET available, but will be posted shortly after the conference
Presenters/Authors
Elaine Smolen
(Primary Presenter), Teachers College, Columbia University, es3519@tc.columbia.edu;
Elaine Smolen, PhD, CED, LSLS Cert. AVEd, is an Assistant Professor of Teaching in the Special Education: Deaf and Hard of Hearing program at Teachers College, Columbia University. Her research work centers around language and literacy development for young deaf and hard of hearing children who use listening and spoken language. Smolen received her PhD in deaf and hard of hearing education from Columbia as a National Leadership Consortium in Sensory Disabilities scholar. An experienced teacher of the deaf and certified Listening and Spoken Language Specialist, Smolen has served young children with hearing loss and their families as a head classroom teacher and in an itinerant role. She is proud to be hard of hearing.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
• Receives Salary for Employment from Teachers College, Columbia University.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
AAA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
Financial relationship with Teachers College, Columbia University.
Nature: salary.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
Maria Hartman
(Co-Presenter), Teachers College, Columbia University, mch33@columbia.edu;
Maria Hartman, PhD, is the Director of the Program for the Education of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing at Teachers College, Columbia University, where she teaches graduate level courses in language and literacy development as well as courses in assessment and teaching methods. Dr Hartman also supervises pre-service teachers in schools, clinics and agencies that serve deaf and hard of hearing children throughout the New York City area. At Teachers College, her research and publications focus on language and literacy development. Dr. Hartman is a NYS certified Teacher of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing with many years of classroom teaching experience.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
No relevant financial relationship exists.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
AAA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
No relevant financial relationship exists.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
Carrie Davenport
(Co-Presenter), Building Bridges Consulting, LLC, carrietdavenport@gmail.com;
Carrie Davenport, Ph.D. is the founder of Building Bridges Consulting, LLC, a company focuses on projects that create connections across fields, disciplines, and the people that touch the lives of children who are deaf/hard-of-hearing (D/HH) and their families. Prior, she was a postdoctoral research scholar in the Department of Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery at the Wexner Medical Center. She has a doctorate in Special Education from The Ohio State University and master’s degree in Family-Centered Early Education from Gallaudet University. She completed the Educational Consultant Training Program in cochlear implants at the California Ear Institute. She was a teacher of the deaf in Prince George’s County, Maryland, and the Early Childhood Consultant for the Center for Outreach Services at the Ohio School for the Deaf. She co-founded Ohio Hands & Voices and a statewide community collaborative, Children’s Hearing and Language Development Resource Network [CHLDRN] of Ohio. Her research centers on early parent-child interaction and language development in deaf/hard-of-hearing children and parental self-efficacy. She is particularly interested in using a community-based participatory research approach to addressing the needs of D/HH children and their families.Currently, she is adjunct faculty in the Early Intervention Services program at Gallaudet University.
ASHA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
No relevant financial relationship exists.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.
AAA DISCLOSURE:
Financial -
No relevant financial relationship exists.
Nonfinancial -
No relevant nonfinancial relationship exists.