New research and resources to support students’ oral language development
Te Ihuwaka | Education Evaluation Centre
Oral language is the foundation for literacy at school. The Education Review Office (ERO) looked at how well children are developing the oral language skills they need through the early years and into new entrance. We found that while most children’s oral language is developing well, there is a significant group of children who struggle, and Covid-19 has made this worse.
To support oral language development, ERO has released new research and a suite of good practice resources including a short four-page guide for new entrant teachers. These publications look at Aotearoa New Zealand’s challenges and successes with language development, what shifts need to happen to improve outcomes for all children, and strategies that teachers can use in their own classrooms.
What is oral language?
Developing oral language involves developing the skills and knowledge that go into listening and speaking, allowing children to understand and express ideas, knowledge, and feelings. Without these skills, children struggle in their learning for reading and writing.
What we found about oral language development
There is a significant group of children who are behind.
The Growing Up in New Zealand (GUiNZ) study found 80 per cent of children at age 5 are doing well, but 20 per cent are struggling with oral language. New entrant teachers also reported to ERO that a group of children are struggling, and more than half of parents and whānau reported their child has some difficulty with oral language in the early years.
‘Many also have significant delays in the articulation of sounds, are unable to talk in more than a four – to five-word sentence, spend large amounts of time on devices . . . They have had very little interaction with books. Receptive language is very poor alongside expressive language.’ – Teacher
Covid-19 has had a significant impact
Nearly two-thirds of new entrant teachers (65 per cent) report that Covid-19 has impacted children’s language development, particularly their social communication skills. International studies confirm the significant impact of Covid-19 on language development.
‘The majority of students missed ECE and were often at home on devices with very little input from whānau. I do wonder if they were spoken to, as many from this cohort have extremely poor oral language.’ – Teacher
Children from low socio-economic communities are struggling
Evidence both in Aotearoa New Zealand and internationally is clear that children from lower socio-economic communities are more likely to struggle with oral language skills. Concerningly, we found that new entrant teachers we surveyed in schools in low socio-economic communities are nine times more likely to report children being below expected levels of oral language. Parents and whānau with lower qualifications are also more likely to report that their child has difficulty with oral language.
Boys are also having difficulties
Both in Aotearoa New Zealand and internationally, boys have more difficulty developing oral language than girls. Parents and whānau report 70 per cent of boys are not at the expected development level, compared with 56 per cent of girls.
Difficulties with oral language emerge as children develop towards school age
Teachers and parents and whānau report more concerns about children being behind as they become older and start school. For example, 56 per cent of parents and whānau report their child has difficulty as a toddler (aged 18 months to 3 years old), compared to over two-thirds of parents and whānau (70 per cent) reporting that their child has difficulty as a preschooler (aged 3 to 5).
Teachers and parents and whānau reported to us that children who are behind most often struggle with constructing sentences, telling stories, and using social communication to talk about their thoughts and feelings. For example, 43 per cent of parents and whānau report their child has some difficulty with oral grammar, but only 13 per cent report difficulty with gestures.
What this means for students once they’re at school
Children’s early oral language learning is critical for educational achievement later**.** Early measures of language, such as vocabulary at two years old, can predict academic achievement at 12 years of age and in secondary school. Good oral language development links to better outcomes in reading comprehension, articulation of thoughts and ideas, vocabulary, and grammar. Without these vital skills, children can really struggle in their learning and fall further behind.
Additionally, children need oral language to become proficient thinkers, communicators, and learners. It is how we share thoughts and transmit knowledge, and is critical for children to recognise and express their own feelings and needs, and to recognise and respond to the feelings and needs of others. This can negatively impact their behaviour and their learning.
‘A lot of children are not able to communicate their needs. They are difficult to understand when they speak. They are not used to having conversations.’ – Teacher
- Children’s early oral language learning is critical for educational achievement later
- Before children can read and write, they need to be able to understand language
- Children need oral language to become proficient thinkers, communicators, and learners
- Oral language is used for sharing thoughts and transmitting knowledge
What this means for new entrant teachers
Evidence and new entrant teachers tells us that one in five children are struggling with their oral language when they start school. This means that new entrant teachers can face challenges, and also that this is a critical time for oral language teaching.
‘Many are attending ECE, but not being referred early enough once the delay in oral language is noticed. Then . . . the wait times are too long, and the support is inconsistent.’ – Teacher
ERO found that the international and Aotearoa New Zealand evidence is clear about what the best practices that matter for language development are. ERO’s five best practices are:
ERO developed these practice areas from international and local evidence, discussions with experts, and conversations with teachers and leaders. To support new entrant teachers, ERO has produced a short, four page insights guide that highlight the evidence-based practices that matter and provides quality reflective questions to help support new entrant students in their language development (see link at end of this article).
‘We see a change in our playground behaviours. We’ve seen a change in children’s wellbeing. They’re actually expressing their feelings and needs . . . – Leader
New entrant teachers are less confident in certain areas
New entrant teachers are doing a great job, reporting that they use the five key practices very often. There are also some areas we found that could use additional focus and support.
Not all new entrant teachers are confident to assess oral language progress. Of the new entrant teachers we surveyed, a quarter reported not being confident to assess and report on progress.
Being able to assess children’s oral language progress and identify potential difficulties is an important part of teaching young children. However, not all new entrant teachers are confident to identify difficulties in oral language (24 per cent of new entrant teachers surveyed report not being confident).
For children who are struggling, support from specialists, such as speech-language therapists, who can help with oral language development is key. But not all teachers are confident to work with these specialists, with 17 per cent of new entrant teachers surveyed reporting not being confident.
What primary school principals can do to help
To be well set up, teachers need leadership and conditions that prioritise oral language teaching. They also need good professional knowledge and assessment understanding themselves, positive partnerships with parents and whānau, and a clear understanding of how and when to work with specialists around oral language.
ERO has identified four key supports that teachers need to do their best work using the best practices.
The four key supports are:
- Leadership and priorities – providing teachers with the conditions and resources required for quality oral language support.
- Teacher knowledge and assessment – teachers’ professional knowledge about how children’s oral language is developed, taught, assessed, and supported.
- Partnership with parents and whānau – partnerships that need to be in place with parents and whānau, to support oral language development at school and at home.
- Working with specialists – teachers having a good understanding of when and how to work with specialists around oral language support.
Practical steps for principals might be:
- Using evidence-based professional learning to support teachers’ confidence. We heard how professional learning can help teachers overcome feeling ‘awkward’ about using oral language strategies, because they learnt how the strategies are based on strong evidence.
- Having oral language as a regular staff meeting topic, as an opportunity for the team to reflect on what teachers are noticing, and planning next steps.
- Documenting a clear process for staff to follow, including staff discussions, engaging in targeted observations, and gathering evidence, to make decisions about when and whether to seek specialist support.
What’s next?
ERO has identified raising language skills in the early years as a key priority to boost student literacy and has made recommendations to Government, agencies, and schools. These include supporting teachers to use the most effective practices, helping parents to understand where their child is at and how they can support them, investing in timely targeted support for children who are having difficulties, and increasing access and support in language development for children in low-socioeconomic communities. In addition to these higher-level shifts, leaders can take action at their own schools to ensure that good, evidence-based oral language practices are in place in junior classrooms – setting their youngest learners up with this key foundation for learning success.
Would your new entrant teachers benefit from our short, practical guide? Check out .
You can also find Te Ihuwaka – ERO’s Education Evaluation Centre – on , , and , where we share our latest insights on our research and good practice.