Receptive Vocabulary and Birth Order of Children with a Non-Working Parent at Home During their Pre-School Years

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine if there is a statistically significant difference between the receptive vocabulary scores on the Stanford Achievement Test of children having different birth orders all of whom were raised with a non-working parent in the home during their pre-school years. This study examined the effect of birth order on a child’s receptive vocabulary. It analyzed the effects on a child's language development by environment, birth order, parental involvement, sibling communications, schema and intelligence. Researchers agree that a child’s academic success is correlated with his/her language components. A child’s background is an important factor in the development of his/her language lexicons of listening, speaking, writing and reading. A child does not have to be able to read to recognize and place meaning with a verbal utterance and he is not limited by his/her experiences and environment. How does receptive vocabulary develop in the young child? Where does it begin? Who or what affects its growth? Research indicates that the family makeup and environment shapes much of this development. This study delved into these prospects and investigated their importance in language development. The findings of this study clearly indicate that there is no statistically significant difference between the receptive vocabulary scores on the Stanford Achievement Test of children with different birth orders all of whom were raised by a non-working parent in the home during their pre-school years.