Improving speech treatment for bilingual children with speech sound disorders
Official title: Promoting System-Wide Change for Bilingual Children with Speech Sound Disorder
Funded at University of Iowa · NIH-11040339 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This study is looking for better ways to help Spanish-English bilingual kids with speech sound disorders improve their speech and school success, so they can get the same opportunities as other children.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R21 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Iowa NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Iowa City, United States) |
| Project start | April 1, 2024 |
| Project end | March 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $194,375 |
| NIH project number | 5R21DC021249-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11040339 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates for this research are Spanish-English bilingual children aged 0-11 years who are experiencing speech sound disorders.
✕Less likely to help
Patients who are monolingual English speakers or do not have speech sound disorders may not benefit from this research.
What this research studies
This research aims to address the inequitable access to effective treatment for Spanish-English bilingual children with speech sound disorders. It focuses on developing efficient treatment methods that can enhance speech development and academic achievement for these children, who often face barriers compared to their monolingual peers. The study will explore innovative approaches to teaching complex speech sounds, which may lead to broader improvements in overall speech capabilities. By targeting this underserved population, the research seeks to improve long-term outcomes and reduce the strain on educational and healthcare resources.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this research could significantly improve speech development and academic success for bilingual children with speech sound disorders.
How similar studies have gone: Previous studies have shown success in improving speech outcomes by teaching complex sounds to children, indicating potential for this approach with bilingual populations.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Iowa
Iowa City, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Combiths, Philip Nichol — University of Iowa
- Study coordinator: Combiths, Philip Nichol
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
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Predicting which speech sound delays persist or improve in young children
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Improving speech for Spanish–English bilingual children with sound difficulties
This work will teach Spanish–English bilingual children with speech sound problems to produce harder speech sounds so their overall speech improves in both languages.
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Silent speech interface using a wearable tongue tracker to help people after laryngectomy communicate
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A Duke-led project studies how the brain that talks relates to keeping verbal information in working memory, using advanced brain recordings from patients already undergoing medical care.
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A research project is testing an AI-driven system that listens to team conversations during heart surgeries to spot teamwork patterns and give real-time feedback to improve patient safety.
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Caregiver Speech and Infant Brain Development in Siblings of Children with Autism
This project follows babies who have an older sibling with autism to explore how caregiver talk and everyday interactions relate to early brain and behavior development.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.