Perceptual Consequences of Conductive Hearing Loss: Speech Perception in Indigenous Students Learning English as a 'School' Language

The high incidence of ear disease and hearing loss in Australian Indigenous children is well documented. This study aims to consider the effect of hearing loss and native-language phonology on learning English by Australian Indigenous children. Twenty-one standard Australian English consonants were considered in a consonant-vowel (CV) context. Each consonant was paired with each other to yield 'same' and 'different' consonant pairs. The participants were classified into three groups: (1) English speaking, non- Indigenous children without history of hearing loss and otitis media (three males, four females, mean age 13.7 years); (2) Indigenous children speaking Tiwi as their native language, without history of hearing loss and otitis media and learning English as a second language (two males, three females, mean age 12.1 yrs) and (3) Indigenous children speaking Tiwi as their native language, with a history of hearing loss and otitis media since childhood (six females, mean age 13.1 years). The reaction time from the onset of the second word of the pair to the pressing of a 'same' or 'different' button was measured. The results demonstrated that discrimination of consonants was differentially affected by differences in language. Hearing loss further complicated the difficulties that a child was already having with English. Hearing loss tended to affect discrimination of English consonants more than those in the native language. The study suggests that amplification alone does not suffice and recommended that phonological awareness programs, with or without amplification, need to be part of a reading program from preschool with Indigenous children learning English as a 'school' language.