Effects of the Language Development Program Based on Early Childhood Developmental Surveillance and Promotion

Abstract

The research aimed to compare the child’s language development and the caregiver’s knowledge, attitude, and behavior before and after joining the Language Development Program Based on the Early Childhood Developmental Surveillance and Promotion Manual (DSPM). The study samples consisted of 12 caregivers and 12 children who visited the Well Baby Clinic, Medical Service Department, Sirindhorn Hospital, Bangkok, Thailand. The children were divided into two groups, 1) six 18-month-old children and 2) six 30-month-old children, that were recruited using a purposive sampling method. The instruments for collecting the data were1) a general information questionnaire, 2) Knowledge of Childhood Development Assessment Form, 3) Language Development Attitude Assessment Form, and 4) Language Development Behavior Assessment Form. The Wilcoxon matched pairs signed-ranks test statistics were used to compare the caregiver's knowledge, attitude, behavior, and child's language development before and after participation in the program. The results indicated that the language development of 18-month-old and 30-month-old children was greater than before the experiment (M.D.=3.0; SD=0 and M.D.=3.5.0; SD=0.84, respectively). After the caregivers had engaged in the program for three months, their attitudes and behavior showed statistically significant improvement (P<0.05). However, there was no statistically significant improvement in the caregivers’ knowledge after participating in the program.

Keywords

• early childhood development literacy
• dspm
• language development program