HomeAbstract of 10th-ictleEarly Communication Indicator – Portugal: an Instrument for Assessing and Monitoring the Development of Expressive Communication in Early Childhood

Early Communication Indicator – Portugal: an Instrument for Assessing and Monitoring the Development of Expressive Communication in Early Childhood

  • Nov 26, 2025
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Abstract Book of the 10th International Conference on Teaching, Learning and Education

Year: 2025

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Early Communication Indicator – Portugal: an Instrument for Assessing and Monitoring the Development of Expressive Communication in Early Childhood

Sandra Ferreira, Anabela Cruz-Santos, Leandro Almeida

ABSTRACT:

An atypical pattern of communication development raises concerns regarding possible difficulties in a child’s overall development. In Portugal, communication problems are highly prevalent during early childhood. Consequently, the Early Communication Indicator (ECI) was recently standardized for the Portuguese population. Originally developed in the United States, the ECI aims to identify early signs of risk in expressive communication development, support decision-making in the design of appropriate intervention strategies, and monitor communicative progress in children between 6 and 42 months of age. Its administration is based on the observation of a semi-structured play session between the child and a caregiver. Each session is video recorded, allowing families and professionals to later review and analyze the child’s performance by observing specific communicative behaviors—gestures, vocalizations, single words, and multiple words. For the Portuguese standardization, 480 children from all regions of Portugal were assessed. The results indicate that, in the earliest months, children mainly produce gestures and vocalizations; between 12 and 16 months, they begin to produce single words and multiple words, progressively increasing their communicative proficiency with age. Children with communication disorders, however, exhibit fewer gestures, single words, and multiple words, and a higher number of vocalizations, compared to their peers. These findings demonstrate the sensitivity of the ECI–Portugal in capturing developmental changes in early communication among Portuguese children, suggesting that it is an effective tool for identifying those who do not follow a typical trajectory of expressive communication development.

Keywords: Assessment, Communication Acquisition, Early Years, Communicative Progression, Signs of Risk