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JenniferLundine.Dissertation.2016.pdf (728.46 KB)

ETD Abstract Container

Abstract Header

The Language of Learning: Expository Discourse and the Influences of Cognition and Language

Lundine, Jennifer Peterson
http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9113-7875
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1466118192

Abstract Details

2016, Doctor of Philosophy, Ohio State University, Speech and Hearing Science.
Exposition is an important discourse genre that allows individuals to share facts and information, and its mastery is critical for academic success. Students of all ages must demonstrate proficiency in expository reading, writing, speaking and listening, in different subject areas, and regardless of expository subtype. Yet expository discourse remains an understudied area of language development. These manuscripts present background information about expository discourse development in children and adolescents and suggest reasons that children with language and learning difficulties might have particular difficulty producing and comprehending expository content. Two studies are presented that address foundational research needs. In the first, 50 adolescents with typical development were asked to summarize a cause-effect and compare-contrast expository lecture. Their performance on cognitive and language testing was analyzed as a possible contributing factor to summary quality. In the second study, a small group of adolescents with traumatic brain injury (TBI) participated in these same tasks. Their performance was compared between the two lectures and to the group of adolescents with typical development. Overall results indicate that adolescents may rely on cognitive skills differentially when summarizing different types of exposition. Language scores from a standardized measure of expressive syntax did not contribute to any model. For these studies, adolescents with typical development appeared able to respond to a more cognitively taxing task by increasing the quality of their summaries for the cause-effect lecture. Adolescents with TBI demonstrated the opposite trend, suggesting that they were unable to access the cognitive skills necessary to respond to the expository lecture that was more dependent on those specific abilities. Particularly because the students with TBI demonstrated overall average language scores, these results have important implications for students who might perform well on standardized tests of language, but struggle with classroom discourse, nonetheless. Future work is needed to explore the performance of adolescents with typical development on other expository discourse tasks and to use this information to provide a comparison for students who exhibit language or learning difficulties. Additional research with students who have identified language-learning disorders or those with TBI will promote the development of assessment and intervention techniques to support those students in managing the language of the classroom.
Rebecca McCauley, PhD (Advisor)
Stacy Harnish, PhD (Advisor)
Robert Fox, PhD (Committee Member)
185 p.
Education; Language; Language Arts
expository, adolescent, discourse, language, TBI

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Lundine, J. P. (2016). The Language of Learning: Expository Discourse and the Influences of Cognition and Language [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1466118192

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Lundine, Jennifer. The Language of Learning: Expository Discourse and the Influences of Cognition and Language. 2016. Ohio State University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1466118192.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Lundine, Jennifer. "The Language of Learning: Expository Discourse and the Influences of Cognition and Language." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University, 2016. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1466118192

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1466118192
907
© 2016, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.