Dynamic Assessment of Narratives: Case Studies of Bilingual Filipino Kindergarteners with Language Difficulties

The goal of the present study was to investigate the performance of four Filipino--English bilingual kindergarteners with language difficulties on a dynamic assessment of English narratives. Using a multiple case-study design, we examined the children's modifiability by detailing their responsiveness, level of skill transfer, and the amount and type of effort the examiner expended during two mediation sessions. We also assessed the children's narrative skills using the Test of Narrative Language--second edition (TNL-2). During mediation, similarities among the four children included difficulty answering wh-questions, little transfer of the newly learned skills, frequent focus on the story problem, and the need for continual prompting and repetition. However, the children showed individual learning styles, behavior when learning, and learning potential, prompting the examiner to apply different strategies to support their individual abilities. Gains on the TNL-2 were also negligible, consistent with the modifiability findings, apart from one child who showed improvement in comprehension scores. The case studies provide novel information regarding the narrative skills of Filipino bilingual children with language difficulties, an under-researched population. They can help guide expectations of such children during a dynamic assessment and suggest mediation strategies that clinicians could incorporate into their practice with other groups of bilingual children.