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LanguageLinks
Syntax Assessment and Intervention

Margaret Kardos, MS, OTR/L, ATP
Editor, ConnSENSE Bulletin
muncie@connsensebulletin.com

Laureate Learning Systems, Inc.
110 East Spring St.
Winooski, VT 05404-1898
800-562-6801
www.laureatelearning.com

LanguageLinks Syntax Assessment and Intervention is a series of software programs from Laureate designed to teach syntax to children with a range of language impairments. There are six levels to the program with each level having six modules for a total of 36 modules in the complete program.  The program features “"Optimized Intervention" a built-in assessment system that determines the user’'s current level of skill and knowledge in the module and adjusts the presentation of material to match the learning needs.  For example, if the student makes several wrong selections, an additional visual cue is added through a highlight added around the perimeter of the correct selection. If the wrong selection is made during the presentation of the item paired with visual highlighting, the verbal prompt is repeated and the visual highlight blinks. When putting the software to use, “"Optimized Intervention" proved to be quite a unique and helpful feature of the program; by automatically adjusting to the needs of the learner, material is presented at an appropriate level, reducing the threat of abandonment due to the material being too easy and boring, or too difficult and frustrating.

The software installed easily; there are options for organizing class lists by teacher, as well as a number of easy to use and easy to understand settings for file management, report writing, and program settings. The program keeps track of student progress in the student report feature and provides data on the number of sessions completed, the time spent on the session, the sessions in which the criterion for mastery was met, along with the percentage of correct trials in that session. The graphics in the program are clear and well defined, free of extraneous stimuli. The auditory cues are also clear and easy to understand. Some of the children who used the program seemed to have a little difficulty with the gender specific trials (he/she) because they tended to try to differentiate between the pictures of the boys and girls based on facial features alone.  In some of the trials it was really necessary to go beyond the face (and hair) to differentiate by gender, and to consider additional features such as clothing color and style in order to really tell the difference between the boy and the girl. The children who tended to only look at the parts and not the whole seemed to be the most challenged by this particular module. For students who do approach things in that manner, the module provides an opportunity to teach the need to look at the "bigger picture" in addition to teaching syntax. The reinforcement responses (rewards) for correct answers are “"just right," not too distracting, not too frequent to be interfering, and not so overly stimulating that kids click like mad just to generate a response.

I trialed the scanning capability and found it to be consistent and easy to understand. Options for scanning include linear and step methods.  The only feature of the program that I needed to make some adaptations for was the placement of the choices throughout the trials.  In most modules there are two and sometimes three choices that appear in almost the same exact place on the screen in every trial.  For the child who is the “"Continuous Clicker" and begins clicking either prior to, or simultaneously with the movement of the mouse, doubt was cast on the accuracy of the selection.  The action of non-stop clicking can result in a correct selection being made by chance when the correct choice is in the same place two or more trials in a row.  Likewise, an unintentional incorrect selection can also be made due to clicking before moving the mouse off of the wrong choice on to the correct one.  One way to avoid this dilemma is to have the “"Continuous Clicker" use the program with a trackball or a touch screen to ensure accuracy in selection; another alternative is to have the child rest his hands off of the mouse and to have an adult reposition the pointer between trials.

LanguageLinks Syntax Assessment & Intervention by Laureate Learning Systems is a great program that can help students with (and without) language impairments to better understand and master syntax. The program is easy to use and has an excellent data collection feature allowing teachers and related service providers to easily track student progress. Laureate offers a wide variety of educational software designed to promote learning in all children. The website is designed to guide professionals and parents in choosing programs based on the needs of the child; check it out and get a copy of the Free Demo CD; while you're there, sign up for the free newsletter, it’'s always full of great information!  

© 2007 ConnSENSE Bulletin