Development of speech sounds and syllable structure of words in Zulu-speaking children

Abstract

This study investigated development of speech sounds and syllable structure of words in 18 Zulu-speaking children between the ages of 3.0 and 6.2. A 100-word spontaneous conversational sample was elicited from each subject. All samples were transcribed phonetically by a stringent transcription procedure. The UNIBET was used to code the transcription into computer recognisablesymbols. The Phonetic Calculator Program (PCP) analysed the samples in terms of speech sound inventory, syllable structure of words and the frequency of occurrence of speech sounds and syllable structures. The data were processed to allow for the comparison of the findings at three age levels, namely 3.0-4.0 (Group 1), 4.1-5.1 (Group 2) and 5.2-6.2 (Group 3). There was developmental progression, but much speech and syllable structure development seems to occur before the age of 3.0. However, the speech sound inventory and syllable structure inventory were incomplete by the age of 6.2. The nasals, plosives, approximants and fricatives were found to develop earlier than the affricates, clicks and prenasalised consonant sounds. The shorter syllable strings were found to develop earlier than the longer syllable strings. The phonetically more complex sounds and syllable structures were produced more frequently by the older subjects, demonstrating developmental progression. The findings have important clinical implications for the speech-language therapist.

Language Development in Sub-Saharan Africa

“…Xhosa-speaking children made fewer errors at comparable ages to English-speaking children (and this difference was significant when comparing phonemes that exist in both languages), but the same phonemes (largely fricatives and liquids) were errorful for both groups. Naidoo (2003) also found that Zulu-speaking children aged 3 to 6 produced longer and more accurate strings of syllables than their English-speaking peers. Both Xhosa and Zulu have more long, multisyllabic words, but with simpler syllabic structure within the syllables (fewer clusters and fewer closed syllables, ending in a consonant) than English.…”

“…Naidoo (2003) working on Zulu and Lewis and Roux (1996) working on Xhosa found that clicks were produced accurately later than other consonants. Lewis and Roux noted that children aged 1;6 to 5;5 acquiring Xhosa as their first language substituted clicks for other clicks, simplified clicks to become non-click consonants with the same place of articulation, or reduced clicks by removing an aspect of articulation such as nasalisation.…”

African languages, linguistics, child speech and speech pathology – the connection

“…Use has been made of rough translations from English (Suzman, 1991). But languages differ in terms of the size and content of speech sound inventory, the phonotatic constraints of the language, the syllable structures of words and the phonetic complexity of the sounds (Naidoo et al, 2005). The norms of one language can thus not necessarily be applied to other languages.…”

“…The norms of one language can thus not necessarily be applied to other languages. Language-specific normative data are critical in speech-language therapy, as they facilitate the differentiation between true speechlanguage pathology and speech-language difference (Naidoo et al, 2005). In addition to normative data assisting in identifying the presence or absence of a problem and making early and appropriate referrals possible, it facilitates the identification of goals and procedures for treatment, as these are usually based on developmental processes (Creaghead et al, 1989).…”

“…This research has shed light on the contribution and complex interaction of many factors, both generic and environmental, in the development of language and communication (Guasti, 2002). Its insights have been used in many diverse fields such as education linguistics, speech-language pathology computer assisted translation and speech recognition The study of language development provides vital information for educators because language is an important medium in which to exchange information with children and secondly, language development data can be used to inform and direct learning and teaching within classroom situation (Naidoo, van der Merwe, Groenewald & Naude, 2005). Developmental data may also be used by educators and speech language pathologists and audiologists in the diagnosis of speech and language disorders using criterion referenced measures (Naidoo, 2003).…”