U of C Part of Multi-million dollar Language Development Initiative

Deborah Bayliss | As of Friday, April 11, 2014

A1995 study by child psychologists Betty Hart and Todd R. Risley found that, by age 4, children in poverty heard 30 million fewer words than their counterparts in more advantaged families. Children who heard fewer words were not school-ready and continued to lag academically throughout their school years when compared to their more affluent peers. This disparity in learning is referred to as the achievement gap.
A1995 study by child psychologists Betty Hart and Todd R. Risley found that, by age 4, children in poverty heard 30 million fewer words than their counterparts in more advantaged families. Children who heard fewer words were not school-ready and continued to lag academically throughout their school years when compared to their more affluent peers. This disparity in learning is referred to as the achievement gap.

Low income parents can increase their children’s chances of success simply by engaging them in thoughtful and interactive conversation on a regular basis, according to a 1995 study conducted by child psychologists Betty Hart and Todd R. Risley that found by age 4, children in poverty heard 30 million fewer words than their counterparts in more advantaged families.

With that in mind, The PNC Foundation which focuses its philanthropic mission on early childhood education, community and economic development, supports organizations that provide services for the benefit of communities in which it has a significant presence, chose the University of Chicago Medicine's, Thirty Million Words (TMW) program for underserved children, to be a part of a $19 million dollar initiative that supports early childhood language development.

Thirty Million Words, an evidence-based intervention that combines education, behavioral strategies and technology to help narrow the language gap between children from low-income and wealthier households through interactive and multimedia curriculum, instructs parents on how to enhance their home language environment to optimize their child’s brain development and ability to learn.

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Dana Suskind, professor of surgery and pediatrics and director of the Pediatric Cochlear Implantation Program at the University of Chicago Medicine, founded the Thirty Million Word program in 2010 to drive awareness of the critical role of spoken language in children's early development.

Dana Suskind, professor of surgery and pediatrics and director of the Pediatric Cochlear Implantation Program at the University of Chicago Medicine, directs the TMW program.

“The Thirty Million Words Initiative is dedicated to harnessing the power of parent talk as a catalyst for change,” said Dana Suskind. “Thanks to the generous support of the PNC Foundation, we will be able to evaluate the long-term impact of TMW on children’s vocabulary growth and school readiness. This partnership is one more example of PNC’s commitment to leveling the playing field for all children in this country.”

Preliminary studies found parents and caregivers who participated in TMW, spoke more and engaged in conversation more frequently with their children. The PNC Foundation initiative will support a larger-scale, five-year longitudinal study following between 200 and 250 children from age 15 months to kindergarten to monitor vocabulary development and school readiness. 

“Vocabulary is the cornerstone of a child’s learning,” said Scott Swanson, PNC Bank regional president for Illinois. “If we can narrow the vocabulary gap for at-risk children, we help increase their chances for success in school and life.”

Children who had heard fewer words were not school-ready and continued to lag academically throughout their school years when compared to their more affluent peers. This disparity in learning is referred to as the achievement gap.

Suskind founded TMW in 2010 to drive awareness of the critical role of spoken language in children’s early development and to arm parents and caregivers with the knowledge to give their children the best start in life.

During weekly home visits, from TMW coaches, parents are provided information about child brain development and the power of their language to enrich their child’s development. Also, with the help of animation and video of real parent-child interaction, parents are provided strategies to enhance linguistic interaction and foster the social and emotional development of the child.

For more on TMW, visit www.tmw.org.

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