中文导读

孩子数数时，说出的最后一个数字代表这一组东西的总数——这个看似简单的“基数原则”，是日后学好数学的重要一步。但在美国，大多数聋童和听力障碍儿童出生在听力正常的家庭，从出生起往往无法充分接触任何语言，他们的数学水平平均比听力正常的孩子落后约一年。康涅狄格大学教授玛丽·科波拉的团队测试了178名3到7岁的聋童和听力障碍儿童，比较了从出生起学手语、从出生起学口语和较晚才接触语言的孩子。结果显示，从出生起跟聋人父母学美国手语的聋童，与在家学英语口语的听力正常孩子表现没有区别；早期接触语言的孩子表现更好，而且这一差异不受家庭社会经济背景影响。研究者因此认为，问题在于接触语言太晚，而不是耳聋本身。文章按“常见现象—问题背景—研究方法—主要发现—对家长的意义”展开，阅读时可留意 whether、suggests、hopes 等词如何区分研究问题、研究结论和研究者的愿望。

正文

Most children learn what “one, two, three” really means between the ages of about three and a half and five and a half. They discover that the last number they say when counting a group tells them how many things are in it. Scientists call this idea the cardinal principle, and it is an important step toward later success in math.

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大多数孩子在大约三岁半到五岁半之间，才真正明白“一、二、三”是什么意思。他们会发现，数一组东西时说出的最后一个数字，就表示这组东西一共有多少个。科学家把这个概念称为“基数原则”，它是今后学好数学的重要一步。

For many deaf children, this step comes late. Fewer than 10% of deaf and hard-of-hearing children in the United States are born to deaf parents who use American Sign Language, or ASL. Most do not get full access to any language from birth. Many parents are told to focus on speech and hearing technology, and while some children learn spoken English well, many do not. Even in rich countries, these children are often about one year behind hearing children in math.

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对许多聋童来说，这一步来得较晚。在美国，聋童和听力障碍儿童中只有不到10%出生在使用美国手语（ASL）的聋人父母家庭。大多数孩子从出生起就无法充分接触任何一种语言。许多父母被告知要把重点放在口语和助听技术上；虽然有些孩子能学好英语口语，但很多孩子学不好。即使在富裕国家，这些孩子的数学水平也常常比听力正常的孩子落后约一年。

Marie Coppola, a professor at the University of Connecticut, wanted to know whether deafness itself was the problem. Her team worked with schools across the country and tested 178 deaf and hard-of-hearing children aged three to seven. Some had used ASL with a signing parent since birth. Some had heard spoken English since birth, and others got good access to a language only later.

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康涅狄格大学教授玛丽·科波拉想弄清楚，问题是否出在耳聋本身。她的团队与全美各地的学校合作，测试了178名三到七岁的聋童和听力障碍儿童。其中一些孩子从出生起就和会打手语的父母使用ASL；一些从出生起就听到英语口语；另一些则到后来才得以充分接触一种语言。

The tests were simple. Children counted as high as they could, both without objects and with colorful fish on a board. They were also asked to make groups of a certain size to show whether they understood what number words mean. Deaf and hearing assistants ran the tests, so children could show what they knew in their own language.

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测试很简单。孩子们尽可能往高处数，一次不借助任何物品，一次数板子上色彩鲜艳的小鱼。他们还被要求摆出特定数量的一组东西，以显示他们是否理解数词的含义。测试由聋人助手和听力正常的助手共同进行，这样孩子们就能用自己的语言展示他们所掌握的知识。

The results were clear. Deaf children who learned ASL from their parents performed just as well as hearing children who learned spoken English at home. In Coppola’s words, the two groups were “indistinguishable.” Children with early access to either language did better than children who got language later, and a family’s social and economic background did not change this result. The team also found that knowing how to count mattered for understanding the cardinal principle, no matter when a child’s language began.

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结果很清楚。从父母那里学会ASL的聋童，与在家学英语口语的听力正常孩子表现一样好。用科波拉的话说，这两组孩子“没有区别”。早期接触任何一种语言的孩子，都比较晚接触语言的孩子表现更好，而且家庭的社会经济背景并没有改变这一结果。团队还发现，无论孩子何时开始接触语言，会数数对理解基数原则都很重要。

The study, published in the journal Child Development, suggests that the real problem is late access to language, not deafness. Coppola designed the project with parents in mind. She says hearing parents can learn to sign at the same time as their deaf children. She hopes the evidence will slowly change the advice families receive, and that more people will see ASL as a language for learning.

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这项发表在《儿童发展》（Child Development）期刊上的研究表明，真正的问题在于接触语言太晚，而不在于耳聋。科波拉在设计这个项目时就把父母放在心上。她说，听力正常的父母可以和聋童同时学习手语。她希望这些证据能慢慢改变家庭得到的建议，也希望更多人把ASL看作一种可以用来学习知识的语言。

新闻来源

• UConn Today · Access to ASL from Birth Supports Childhood Math Proficiency in Deaf Children, UConn Researcher Finds in First-of-its-Kind Study (22 Oct 2026)

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