The risks that produce low language and literacy in young children are like wolves: They hunt in packs!
These collections of risks define six developmental circumstances (latent classes) that range from developmentally enabled children who are on track from age 4 to 10, to those children in overwhelmed circumstances who start 20 months behind and only close this gap by 6 months over 6 years.
Critically, some developmental circumstances produce similar delays in growth, but are quantitatively distinct and can only be addressed through exercising different policy options and associated service provision. How should researchers respond when asked for policies that address this?
Steve Zubrick is a Senior Principal Research Fellow based at the Telethon Kids Institute and holds a Professorial appointment in the Centre for Child Health Research at the University of Western Australia. Steve’s training is unusual,spanning professional degrees in Speech Pathology, Audiology, and Clinical Psychology and Neuropsychology. From 2001 to 2018 he chaired the Consortium Advisory Group responsible for the ongoing conduct of the
Longitudinal Study of Australian Children. He is currently a member of the Steering Committee of the Longitudinal Study of Indigenous Children and is the Deputy Director of the Australian Research Council Life Course Centre.