The understanding of complex syntax in children from 5 to 9 years, using a novel assessment approach – The Test of Complex Syntax‐ Electronic (TECS‐E)
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Date
2025-07-10
Authors
Frizelle, Pauline
Oliveira‐Buckley, Ana
Biancone, Tricia
Oliveira, Jorge
Fletcher, Paul
Bishop, Dorothy V. M.
McKean, Cristina
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Published Version
Abstract
Introduction: The present study investigated English-speaking 5–9 year olds’ (n = 600, normative sample) comprehension of relative, adverbial and complement clauses using the Test of Complex Syntax-Electronic (TECS-E), an online interactive assessment. with strong test-retest reliability, concurrent validity and internal consistency. Method: Using an opt out protocol three groups of children were recruited from schools—a sample for whom we could ascertain test-retest reliability (n = 122), a sample to explore concurrent validity, using the Test for the Reception of Grammar (TROG-2) (n = 131) and a main normative sample (n = 906). The main sample was reduced to 600, to ensure that the final sample accurately represented the population of the Republic of Ireland, with respect to sex, socio-economic status and locale. Children completed the TECS-E independently in groups within their pre/school classroom. The TROG-2 was administered individually. Results: Scores increased with age from 5–9 years with considerable growth in development between 5;06 and 7 years, suggesting that 7 years is an important milestone in children's understanding of complex syntax. Girls performed significantly better than boys, particularly between 6 and 7 years. Those from disadvantaged backgrounds scored significantly lower than those who were more affluent, until 7 years, and this was more marked in boys than in girls. Children performed highest on relative clauses, followed by complement clauses, and last on adverbial clauses. Conclusion: This study provides a developmental hierarchy as well as important information regarding growth in English-speaking children's understanding of complex syntactic structures in the early school years and how this interacts with sex as well as social disadvantage.
Description
Keywords
Assessment , Comprehension , Language , Syntax , School-aged children
Citation
Frizelle, P., Oliveira-Buckley, A., Biancone, T., Oliveira, J., Fletcher, P., Bishop, D. V. M. and McKean, C. (2025) 'The understanding of complex syntax in children from 5 to 9 years, using a novel assessment approach – The Test of Complex Syntax‐ Electronic (TECS‐E)', International Journal of Language and Communication Disorders, 60(4), e70079 (19pp). https://doi.org/10.1111/1460-6984.70079