Word Learning and Vocabulary Development in Blind Children
Lindsay Harris, an associate professor at Northern Illinois University (NIU), has received a four-year, $745,000 grant from National Institutes of Health, via its National Eye Institute to study how children who are blind or visually impaired acquire vocabulary compared with sighted peers. The study will recruit 100 blind or visually impaired children and 100 sighted children (ages 5–12) to test their ability to define words presented auditorily and to explore how they developed their understanding (through language context or direct experience). Researchers hope to determine whether lack of visual experience affects semantic knowledge and vocabulary size, and whether vocabulary limitations might contribute to reading delays in blind children so that information that could guide educational and intervention strategies.
For more specific information about the project and the NIH research grant that is funding this research, please read Lindsay Harris Wins NIH Grant to Study Word Learning in Children Who Are Blind.
Your child is eligible to participate if they:
- Are age 5-14 at the time of the research session
- Were completely blind by age 1, with no more than light perception
- Reside in the United States or Canada and speak a variety of American or Canadian English as their primary language
- Hear English at least 3 hours a day
- Have access to a computer with camera, microphone, and internet connection.
Your child is not eligible to participate if they:
- Have diagnosed or suspected Intellectual Disability, Hearing Loss or Deafness or Deaf-blindness
- Are unable to sit and respond to questions for 10-15 minutes at a time
Go to the PenLAB website sign up for the study, and please forward the link to anyone you know who is eligible (or has a child who is eligible) to participate!