Masters Theses

Date of Award

8-1984

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science

Major Professor

Charles Hargis

Committee Members

Susan Benner, Olga Welch

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to test the comprehension of the various cause and effect structures encountered by hearing impaired students. A test was developed by the researcher to evaluate the comprehension of these structures. By using the scores from this test, the structures were ranked so that they may be placed on the Receptive Language Scope and Sequence Chart used at the Tennessee School for the Deaf in Knoxville, Tennessee. By determining the correct order of difficulty of these structures, a skills hierarchy for teaching receptive language could be established.

The subjects participating in the study were eighty hearing impaired students at the Tennessee School for the Deaf. The students ranged in age from 8 to 16. A pencil and paper format allowed for group administration of the test. The student's test score, age, and reading level were compiled for statistical analysis by computer using a Pearson product-moment correlation and an analysis of variance with repeated measures. Tukey's (HSD) Multiple Comparison Test was used to determine the location of significance of difference between group means.

The results showed that a significant difference in difficulty exists among the various cause and effect structures. There was a positive correlation of .42 between reading ability and comprehension of the cause and effect structures. No significant relationship was found between chronological age and comprehension of the eleven cause and effect structures. It was recommended that the test of the comprehension of cause and effect structures be used with larger groups of deaf children in a variety of settings.

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