CRE in Child Language - 2012 - 2018 (archived)

• Early Language in Victoria study (ELVS): Tracked language development from infancy to adolescence to identify early risk factors and inform intervention strategies.
  
  
• Language for learning: Evaluated the impact of early screening and parent-led reading interventions on language and pre-literacy skills.
  
  
• Memory Maestros: Investigated whether targeted computer games could enhance working memory and learning in children.
  
  
• Early Home Learning Study at School: Followed up on a preschool intervention to assess its long-term impact on school readiness and language development.
  
  
• Children with hearing impairment in Victoria: Explored the life outcomes of children with hearing loss and the broader impact on families.
  
  
• SCOUT (Statewide Comparison of Outcomes of Hearing Loss): Assessed the cost-effectiveness of universal newborn hearing screening.
  
  
• Victorian Childhood Hearing Impairment Longitudinal Databank (VicCHILD): A longitudinal databank tracking children with permanent hearing loss to identify factors influencing varied developmental outcomes.
  
  
• Growing up in Australia (LSAC): A national longitudinal study of 10,000 children and families.
  
  
• Iowa Longitudinal Study (USA): Studied the prevalence and impact of language impairment in preschoolers.
  
  
• Outcomes of Children with Hearing Loss (USA): Analysed developmental and family outcomes for children with hearing loss.
  
  
• Millennium Cohort Study (UK): Followed 19,000 children born in 2000 to examine social and health inequalities.

Identifying and managing common childhood language and speech impairments. 2015. Reilly S, McKean C, Morgan A, Wake M. Identifying and managing common childhood language and speech impairments. BMJ (Clinical research ed.) 350 : h2318(2015) PubMed PDF.

Levers for Language Growth: Characteristics and Predictors of Language Trajectories between 4 and 7 Years. 2015. McKean C, Mensah FK, Eadie P, Bavin EL, Bretherton L, Cini E, Reilly S. Levers for Language Growth: Characteristics and Predictors of Language Trajectories between 4 and 7 Years. PLOS ONE 10 (8) : e0134251(2015) PubMed (Grant IDs: 237106, 9436958, 1041947, 1023493, 1037449, 1041892).

Neural correlates of childhood language disorder: a systematic review. 2015. Mayes AK, Reilly S, Morgan AT. Neural correlates of childhood language disorder: a systematic review. DEVELOPMENTAL MEDICINE AND CHILD NEUROLOGY (2015) PubMed (Grant IDs: 1023493, 607315, 1041892).

Schooling Duration Rather Than Chronological Age Predicts Working Memory Between 6 and 7 Years: Memory Maestros Study. 2015. Roberts G, Quach J, Mensah F, Gathercole S, Gold L, Anderson P, Spencer-Smith M, Wake M. Schooling Duration Rather Than Chronological Age Predicts Working Memory Between 6 and 7 Years: Memory Maestros Study. JOURNAL OF DEVELOPMENTAL AND BEHAVIORAL PEDIATRICS : 1 - 7(2015) PubMed (Grant IDs: 1005317, 1046518, 1035100, 628371, 1037449).

Two-Year Outcomes of a Population-Based Intervention for Preschool Language Delay: An RCT. 2015. Wake M, Levickis P, Tobin S, Gold L, Ukoumunne OC, Goldfeld S, Zens N, Le HN, Law J, Reilly S. Two-Year Outcomes of a Population-Based Intervention for Preschool Language Delay: An RCT. PEDIATRICS 136 (4) : e838 - 47(2015) PubMed (Grant IDs: 607407, 546405, 1046518, 436914, 1041892, 491210, 425855, 1035100, 1023493).

Research team

• Professor Sharon Goldfeld – Theme Director, Paediatrician
• Professor Melissa Wake – Group Leader & Chief Investigator
• Professor Angela Morgan – Group Leader, Speech Pathologist & Neuroscientist
• Dr Fiona Mensah – Team Leader, Senior Research Fellow, Statistician
• Professor Sheena Reilly – Lead Investigator
• Professor James Law – Speech and Language Therapist
• Professor Jan Nicholson – Psychologist
• Associate Professor Lisa Gold – Health Economist

This CRE was supported by the NHMRC and Telematics Trust, and partnered with institutions including:

• Murdoch Children’s Research Institute
• The University of Melbourne
• Griffith University
• La Trobe University
• Deakin University
• Newcastle University (UK)
• The Royal Children’s Hospital, Melbourne

A Policy, Practice and Implementation Committee, chaired by Sara Glover (Mitchell Institute), ensured alignment with current policy and practice. Members included representatives from education, health, and youth sectors and the HEARing Cooperative Research Centre.