Sign Language and Spoken Language for Children With Hearing Loss: A Systematic Review
Pediatrics
Fitzpatrick, E. M., Hamel, C., et al. (2016).
Pediatrics, 137(1), e20151974.
This systematic review compares the effect of early sign and oral language intervention to the effect of oral language intervention only on spoken language development outcomes in children, 18 years or younger, with early onset hearing loss who use hearing aids and/or cochlear implants (excluding developmental disabilities).
Canadian Institutes of Health Research
1995 - June 2013
Randomized controlled trials; controlled clinical trials; other quasi-experimental designs that include comparator groups;
prospective cohort studies; retrospective cohort studies
11
"To date, there is no evidence that adding sign language facilitates spoken language acquisition. However, this review also found no conclusive evidence that adding sign language interferes with spoken language development" (p. 14). "When rated according to GRADE criteria, the overall quality of the evidence per outcome is very low" (p. 13).
