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Language Interventions for School-Aged Children Who Are d/Deaf and Hard of Hearing: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

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Title: Language Interventions for School-Aged Children Who Are d/Deaf and Hard of Hearing: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Language: English
Authors: Andréa Chanell Jønsberg (ORCID 0009-0004-0001-0249), Tine Hovland, Tobias Busch (ORCID 0000-0002-8390-7892), Ona Bø Wie (ORCID 0000-0001-7479-6134), Janne von Koss Torkildsen (ORCID 0000-0001-6574-456X)
Source: Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research. 2025 68(5):2634-2655.
Availability: American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. 2200 Research Blvd #250, Rockville, MD 20850. Tel: 301-296-5700; Fax: 301-296-8580; e-mail: slhr@asha.org; Web site: http://jslhr.pubs.asha.org
Peer Reviewed: Y
Page Count: 22
Publication Date: 2025
Document Type: Journal Articles
Information Analyses
Descriptors: Deafness, Hard of Hearing, Children, Intervention, Vocabulary, Grammar, Story Telling, Native Language Instruction, Program Effectiveness, Educational Research, Bias
DOI: 10.1044/2025_JSLHR-24-00456
ISSN: 1092-4388
1558-9102
Abstract: Purpose: The main aim of the systematic review and meta-analysis was to evaluate the effectiveness of language interventions for school-aged children who are d/Deaf and hard of hearing (DHH). We focused on studies targeting meaning-based aspects of language, such as vocabulary, grammar, and narrative skills. We included randomized controlled trials and quasi-experiments with a control group and a pre-post design. A secondary aim was to describe the characteristics of effective interventions identified in the systematic review. Method: The review was preregistered in PROSPERO (ID CRD42021236085). We searched 10 academic databases for peer-reviewed journal articles reporting language interventions for children who are DHH aged 6-12 years. We assessed the quality of included studies using Critical Appraisal Skills Programme checklists. A meta-analysis was conducted on the overall effect of interventions. In addition, we calculated separate effect sizes for vocabulary and morphosyntactic knowledge. Results: We identified 14 studies totaling 794 children. Quality assessment revealed concerns of risk of bias in most studies because study characteristics were not comprehensively reported. The meta-analyses of language interventions revealed a large main effect of g = 0.79. Subdomain analyses revealed similar effects for morphosyntactic knowledge g = 0.81 and vocabulary g = 0.71. Conclusions: Few high-quality studies examine the effects of language interventions for children who are DHH. However, the studies that exist reveal robust effects, especially for morphosyntactic abilities. Intervention approaches were diverse, and the largest intervention effects were found in studies with a randomized controlled design and near-transfer outcome measures closely aligned with the intervention content. Future studies should adhere to established guidelines for reporting results from controlled experimental study designs.
Abstractor: As Provided
Notes: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/view/CRD42021236085
Entry Date: 2025
Accession Number: EJ1472818
Database: ERIC
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  Data: Language Interventions for School-Aged Children Who Are d/Deaf and Hard of Hearing: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
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  Data: English
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  Group: Au
  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Andréa+Chanell+Jønsberg%22">Andréa Chanell Jønsberg</searchLink> (ORCID <externalLink term="https://orcid.org/0009-0004-0001-0249">0009-0004-0001-0249</externalLink>)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Tine+Hovland%22">Tine Hovland</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Tobias+Busch%22">Tobias Busch</searchLink> (ORCID <externalLink term="https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8390-7892">0000-0002-8390-7892</externalLink>)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Ona+Bø+Wie%22">Ona Bø Wie</searchLink> (ORCID <externalLink term="https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7479-6134">0000-0001-7479-6134</externalLink>)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Janne+von+Koss+Torkildsen%22">Janne von Koss Torkildsen</searchLink> (ORCID <externalLink term="https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6574-456X">0000-0001-6574-456X</externalLink>)
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="SO" term="%22Journal+of+Speech%2C+Language%2C+and+Hearing+Research%22"><i>Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research</i></searchLink>. 2025 68(5):2634-2655.
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  Data: American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. 2200 Research Blvd #250, Rockville, MD 20850. Tel: 301-296-5700; Fax: 301-296-8580; e-mail: slhr@asha.org; Web site: http://jslhr.pubs.asha.org
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  Data: 22
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  Data: 2025
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  Data: Journal Articles<br />Information Analyses
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Deafness%22">Deafness</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Hard+of+Hearing%22">Hard of Hearing</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Children%22">Children</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Intervention%22">Intervention</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Vocabulary%22">Vocabulary</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Grammar%22">Grammar</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Story+Telling%22">Story Telling</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Native+Language+Instruction%22">Native Language Instruction</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Program+Effectiveness%22">Program Effectiveness</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Educational+Research%22">Educational Research</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Bias%22">Bias</searchLink>
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  Data: 10.1044/2025_JSLHR-24-00456
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  Label: ISSN
  Group: ISSN
  Data: 1092-4388<br />1558-9102
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: Purpose: The main aim of the systematic review and meta-analysis was to evaluate the effectiveness of language interventions for school-aged children who are d/Deaf and hard of hearing (DHH). We focused on studies targeting meaning-based aspects of language, such as vocabulary, grammar, and narrative skills. We included randomized controlled trials and quasi-experiments with a control group and a pre-post design. A secondary aim was to describe the characteristics of effective interventions identified in the systematic review. Method: The review was preregistered in PROSPERO (ID CRD42021236085). We searched 10 academic databases for peer-reviewed journal articles reporting language interventions for children who are DHH aged 6-12 years. We assessed the quality of included studies using Critical Appraisal Skills Programme checklists. A meta-analysis was conducted on the overall effect of interventions. In addition, we calculated separate effect sizes for vocabulary and morphosyntactic knowledge. Results: We identified 14 studies totaling 794 children. Quality assessment revealed concerns of risk of bias in most studies because study characteristics were not comprehensively reported. The meta-analyses of language interventions revealed a large main effect of g = 0.79. Subdomain analyses revealed similar effects for morphosyntactic knowledge g = 0.81 and vocabulary g = 0.71. Conclusions: Few high-quality studies examine the effects of language interventions for children who are DHH. However, the studies that exist reveal robust effects, especially for morphosyntactic abilities. Intervention approaches were diverse, and the largest intervention effects were found in studies with a randomized controlled design and near-transfer outcome measures closely aligned with the intervention content. Future studies should adhere to established guidelines for reporting results from controlled experimental study designs.
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  Data: As Provided
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  Data: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/view/CRD42021236085
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  Data: 2025
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        Value: 10.1044/2025_JSLHR-24-00456
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      – Text: English
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        PageCount: 22
        StartPage: 2634
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Deafness
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Hard of Hearing
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      – SubjectFull: Children
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      – SubjectFull: Intervention
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      – SubjectFull: Vocabulary
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      – SubjectFull: Grammar
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      – SubjectFull: Story Telling
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      – SubjectFull: Native Language Instruction
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      – SubjectFull: Program Effectiveness
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      – SubjectFull: Educational Research
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      – SubjectFull: Bias
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      – TitleFull: Language Interventions for School-Aged Children Who Are d/Deaf and Hard of Hearing: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
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