Early years' accommodation can also be in very unsuitable halls with poor acoustics.
Further, with an emphasis on child-initiated activities, what is the balance, in reality, with quiet, adult-led activities enabling focused and clear language development opportunities?
https://theeconomyofmeaning.com/2016/07 ... arn-words/Keep quiet, I’m learning words (Background noise may hinder toddlers’ ability to learn words)
I think this study may give some food for thought on how big preschool-classes should be and also on the word gap, although the results of this new study aren’t that surprising actually: the presence of background noise in home or at school can make learning new words more difficult for children.
The same environmental issues are relevant for phonics teaching - which, in any event, should include the teaching and learning of new vocabulary.