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and exploring their first language abilities (Gould, 2008; Philpott, 2003), as well as a multitude of work by linguists around the country (Simpson & Wigglesworth, 2010). For those who are doing this work, it is important that they share it with our peers and continue the discussion and debate. This issue of ACQ has definitely given me the motivation I need to do this. References Cahir, P. (2011). Examining culturally valid language assessments for Indigenous children. ACQuiring Knowledge in Speech, Language and Hearing , 13 (3), 120–125. Gould, J. (2008). Non-standard assessment practices in the evaluation of communication in Australian Aboriginal children. Clinical Linguistics and Phonetics , 22 (8): 643–657. Philpott, M. (2003). The Revised Kimberley Early Language Scales . Retrieved from http:/www. speechpathologyaustralia.org.au/library/Kimberley_Scales.pdf Simpson, J., & Wigglesworth, G. (Eds.) (2008). Children’s language and multilingualism: Indigenous language use at home and school . London: Continuum. Williams, C. (2011). Working with children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds: Implications for assessment and intervention. ACQuiring Knowledge in Speech, Language and Hearing , 13 (3), 106–111. Claire Salter Speech Pathologist email: ce_salter@bigpond.com Response to letters to the editor regarding Pearce and Stockings (2011) I thank the editors for this opportunity to respond to this correspondence and anticipate the topic will benefit from robust discussion. The correspondents’ concerns echo the findings of Pearce and Stockings (2011) that current language assessment approaches may not be suitable for Indigenous children. One correspondent rightly argues that Aboriginal English (AE) norms make more appropriate comparisons, but comprehensive language sampling norms are currently unavailable for Australian populations. Establishment of norms for each AE variety across remote, rural, and urban locations is a major challenge. Evidence to support or disprove assessment and intervention practices for Indigenous children is limited (Cahir, 2011; Williams, 2011) while much knowledge about effective practices is contained within the experience of clinicians and organisations. Publication of research showing how Indigenous children perform on existing language assessment protocols provides empirical evidence for concerns about assessment approaches, clarifies methodologies, and identifies directions for future research. Both independent and contrastive approaches to research are informative and valid. Independent approaches to language research, supported by the correspondents, explore competence within the child’s own language system and cultural context. In such approaches, AE is considered as a unique language system within each Indigenous Australian community. Contrastive methods compare one language system to another, and develop knowledge where two or more languages or dialects are spoken or co-exist within a community. Here, AE may be considered as a non-standard dialect co-existing with

Standard Australian English (SAE) within the broader Australian community. Contrastive methods demonstrate interactions between languages or dialects, and areas of overlap that may influence diagnostic decisions (Kohnert, 2010; Stockman, 2010). The SALT database (Miller & Iglesias, 2008) provided a simple point of reference from which to explore relative strengths and differences in a context where Australian children are commonly compared to overseas norms. It is acknowledged that terminology such as “zero copula” are commonly used in comparative dialectal literature while terms such as “omission of the copula” are more appropriate to description of language impairment in SAE. Contrastive methods may identify and differentiate learning goals for acquisition of SAE as a second dialect (often at school) from those required to develop AE (often at home). The ability to effectively code switch between AE and SAE is essential to maintain culture and to “close the gap” and facilitate access to employment and higher education. The tension here is “how do we attend to upholding and maintaining cultural difference while producing outcomes that allow Indigenous Australian students to participate on an equal footing in mainstream society?” (Warren & Young, 2008, p. 130). Further research and clinical reports are needed to identify methods of assessment that do not disadvantage Indigenous children and clarify how speech pathologists can best support efforts to improve educational and health outcomes for Indigenous children. References Cahir, P. (2011). Examining culturally valid language assessments for Indigenous children. ACQuiring Knowledge in Speech, Language and Hearing , 13 (3), 120–125. Kohnert, K. (2010). Bilingual children with primary language impairment: Issues, evidence and implications for clinical actions. Journal of Communication Disorders , 43 , 456–473. doi: 10.1016/j.comdis.2010.02.002 Miller, J. F., & Iglesias, A. (2008). Systematic Analysis of Language Transcripts (SALT) (Research Version 2008) [Computer software]. Madison, WI: Language Analysis Laboratory. Pearce, W., & Stockings, E. (2011). Oral narratives produced by Australian Aboriginal children: Dilemmas with normative comparisons. ACQuiring Knowledge in Speech, Language and Hearing , 13 (3), 126–131. Stockman, I. J. (2010). A review of developmental and applied language research on African American children: From a deficit to difference perspective on dialect differences. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools , 41 , 23–38. Warren, E., & Young, J. (2008). Oral language, representations and mathematical understanding: Indigenous Australian students. Australian Journal of Indigenous Education , 37, 130–137. Williams, C. (2011). Working with children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds: Implications for assessment and intervention. ACQuiring Knowledge in Speech, Language and Hearing , 13 (3), 106–111. Dr Wendy Pearce Senior Lecturer in Speech Pathology James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland email: wendy.pearce@jcu.edu.au

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JCPSLP Volume 14, Number 1 2012

Journal of Clinical Practice in Speech-Language Pathology