Phonology Processing and Reading Ability in Elementary School-aged children with Cleft Palate

Introduction: Reading impairment in children with dyslexia stems from either a phonological awareness deficit or a deficit in rapid automatized naming. Both deficits constitute the double deficit hypothesis of dyslexia. The aim of the present study was to assess phonological awareness and rapid automatized naming in a group of Greek-speaking children with dyslexia and to correlate their performance in phonological awareness and rapid automatized naming with reading fluency (accuracy and comprehension) scores. Method: Participants were 23 children with a formal diagnosis of dyslexia and 27 typically-developing children with no other learning difficulties or dyslexia. All children were monolingual speakers of Greek and they were administered a naming speed test, a fluency test, a phonological awareness test and reading accuracy and comprehension tasks. Results: Students with dyslexia scored worse in most phonological awareness, rapid automatized naming and reading fluency measures in comparison to their non-dyslexic peers. In addition, students with dyslexia needed more time to complete the rapid automatized naming tests. Positive correlations were found between phonological awareness, rapid automatized naming and reading fluency tests for both groups of students. Specifically, rapid automatized naming and phonological awareness explained 9.3% and 21.8%, respectively, of the variance in the reading fluency of students with dyslexia, while the respective contributions of rapid automatized naming and phonological awareness to the reading fluency for non-dyslexic students were 2% and 9.3%, respectively. Discussion and Conclusion: Phonological awareness and rapid automatized naming can be reliable predictors of reading fluency even in orthographically consistent languages (i.e., Greek), offering support to the double deficit hypothesis. In addition, combining phonological awareness and rapid automatized naming tests seems to be a quick and reliable way to early identify children at risk of reading difficulties in the first grades of primary school.

We examined (a) how rapid automatized naming (RAN) components—articulation time and pause time—predict reading accuracy and reading fluency in Grades 4 and 5, and (b) what cognitive-processing skills (phonological processing, orthographic processing, or speed of processing) mediate the RAN–reading relationship. Sixty children were followed from Grade 3 to Grade 5 and were administered RAN (Letters and Digits), phonological processing, lexical and sublexical orthographic processing, speed of processing, reading accuracy, and fluency tasks. Pause time was highly correlated with reading fluency and shared more of its predictive variance with lexical orthographic processing and speed of processing than with phonological processing. Articulation time also predicted reading fluency, and its contribution was mostly independent from other cognitive-processing skills. Implications for the relationship between RAN and reading are discussed.

Although literacy skills, as typically measured by reading accuracy and fluency, are known to greatly influence a child’s later academic and social success, national literacy rates continue to decrease across grade levels. Research has shown that serial rapid automatized naming (RAN) is one of the best predictors of reading fluency; however, there is significant variability regarding the specific relationship between RAN and reading as noted between meta-analyses, age groups, RAN stimuli, and measures of socioeconomic status (SES). This study aims to investigate the relationship between serial RAN and 1) real word reading fluency and 2) socioeconomic status (SES) across thirty-three first and second grade participants. Specifically, RAN was measured by rapid letter naming (RLN) and rapid digit naming (RDN) raw scores, and real word reading fluency was determined utilizing the eye-tracking measure of gaze duration. To prevent bias in determining SES based on one measure alone, SES was calculated in three ways: mother’s education, free and/or reduced lunch services, and a composite measure of parental education and occupation. The results indicated that RAN and gaze duration are not correlated when the first and second grade participants are combined in analyses. However, when analyzed separately, gaze duration and RAN were correlated for the second grade only. It is possible that correlations were not significant in first grade as there was a smaller sample size and their reading skills were weaker than second grade students. It is possible that RAN may be a more useful measure of reading fluency only when students become more skilled readers. In research, it is common that first and second grades are grouped together and labeled as “beginning readers.” To gain a better understanding of RAN’s correlation with reading fluency across grade levels it may be best to separate first and second grades in future studies as there is significant variability in reading skills between these two grades. As both RLN and RDN were significantly correlated with our measure of reading fluency (gaze duration) for second grade participants, RLN and RDN may be useful diagnostic tools within a comprehensive evaluation of reading fluency for students who are more skilled readers. Lastly, the results indicate that RAN and SES were not correlated across all three indicators of SES. It is possible that the small and relatively homogenous sample size may negatively impact the correlation strength. The results of the insignificant RAN-SES correlations across all three measures suggest that

Purpose: At ∼3 years of age ∼50% of the children born with cleft palate present with phonological/articulatory difficulties. Differences between children with and without cleft palate have been reported to decline with age; however, the phonology in children with cleft palate at pre-school age/early school age has rarely been explored. The purpose of this study was to assess phonology in children with unilateral cleft lip and palate (UCLP) at age 5 and its relationship with performances at 3 years of age.Method: The study included 29 children with UCLP and 20 without UCLP. Percentage correct consonants adjusted for age (PCC-A) and number of consistent phonological simplification processes were assessed from phonetic transcriptions. In addition, a descriptive analysis of phonological/articulatory processes was performed.Result: The children with UCLP displayed significantly lower PCC-A and more phonological processes at age 5 years than peers without UCLP. The correlations between the outcomes at 3 and 5 years of age were significant.Conclusion: Still at 5 years of age many children with cleft palate have phonological problems and it is possible to identify children at risk for impaired phonology at earlier age.

A high percentage of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) show elevated challenges in learning to read. We investigated longitudinal predictors of reading skills in 41 children diagnosed with ASD. All children completed measures of precursor literacy skills at the age of 4-5 years, including phonological awareness, letter sound knowledge, rapid automatic naming, name writing, and phonological memory (digit span), along with measures of word- and passage-level reading skills in their first year of formal schooling. Nonverbal cognition and letter sound knowledge accounted for 53.4% of the variance in regular single word reading at school age, with letter sound knowledge a significant individual predictor. Overall, 18 children showed reading ability scores in the average range on a standardized test of passage-level reading ability, whereas 23 children performed below expectations. These groups differed significantly on all precursor literacy measures (at ages 4-5), except autism symptoms based on parent report. Group membership was significantly predicted by preschool receptive vocabulary, name writing, and rapid automatic naming, with high sensitivity and specificity. These results are discussed in reference to the literature describing early literacy predictors for typically developing children, highlighting key areas for future intervention and support. Autism Res 2018, 11: 1332-1344. © 2018 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc. LAY SUMMARY: Children with autism are at increased risk of persistent reading difficulties. We examined whether preschool reading-related skills linked to later reading ability. Performance on the following three tasks administered at preschool predicted children who showed early reading success versus below expectations in their first year of school: vocabulary, name writing, and rapid naming of familiar objects and shapes. These results can inform future interventions.

Word-level reading is strongly associated with phonological processing. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of cognitive and environmental variables on word reading performance. Our sample consisted of 185 fourth-grade students. Linear regression analyses were used to investigate the role of the following variables as potential predictors of word reading accuracy and fluency: phonological processing (phonological awareness, rapid automatized naming, and phonological memory); verbal fluency; working memory; socioeconomic status and an indicator of school quality (IDEB) in Brazil. Phonological awareness and rapid automatic naming were the best predictors of reading, supporting the role of phonological processing as a key contributor to the lexical aspects of reading, beyond the early years of literacy acquisition. Environmental variables were significant predictors of irregular word reading (socioeconomic status) and fluency (IDEB), corroborating multicomponent models of reading performance. The present findings demonstrate the complex interplay of factors underlying reading performance and highlight the importance of a multidimensional approach to the study of reading.

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship of three subskills associated with word decoding. The skills utilized for this study were phonological, rapid automatized naming (RAN), and orthographic processing. To do this, six separate models were utilized to define different ways that these three subskills (represented as factors) related to one another, with the goal of finding which model provided the best prediction of word decoding. A sample of 100 subjects from the PAIRW normative sample was used for this study. Results of structural equation modeling, utilizing the AMOS 4.0 program, revealed that using all three subskills concurrently provided the best-fitting model. Contrary to previous research, orthographic, rather than phonological, processing skills were found to be the best predictor of word decoding. RAN was found to be the second best predictor, but only indirectly through the Phonological and Orthographic factors. Moreover, when RAN was utilized as a predictor of orthographic and phonological processing, it provided a better-fitting model than when orthographic and phonological processing were used as predictors of RAN. Utilizing RAN as a predictor of both phonological and orthographic processing was found to provide a better-fitting model than when RAN was used to predict either the Phonological or Orthographic factor alone. The relevance of utilizing all three subskills in psychoeducational assessment is discussed, as well as implications for future research.

The aim of this study was to examine if specific skills that are developed during preschool years could predict the reading performance in the first and second grade of primary school. Two hundred and eighty-seven children participated in this longitudinal study. At the kindergarten level, phonological awareness (PA), rapid automatised naming, phonological short-term memory, auditory processing, motor skills and oral language were evaluated. Reading performance was evaluated in Grades 1 and 2 of the primary school. Results showed that not only total reading performance, but the accuracy and the fluency of reading as well, are predicted in the first grade of school by the PA and the phonological memory scores during kindergarten. Oral language plays the most important role in the prediction of text comprehension. Total reading performance and fluency of reading in the second grade were predicted by the PA and the phonological memory scores. In this grade, the PA, the phonological memory and the copy of shapes seem to be important for the accuracy of reading. Our results suggest that the utilisation of such early evidence through intervention programmes at the preschool age and during the first school years could contribute to the prevention of possible reading problems in school children.

The ability to synchronise one’s movements to the sound of a regular beat has been found to be associated with children’s language and reading abilities. Sensorimotor synchronisation or tapping performance can among other factors [e.g., working memory and rapid automatized naming (RAN)] predict phonological awareness and word reading accuracy and fluency of first graders. While tapping tasks that use a simple metronome sound are more often used, applying musical stimuli has the potential advantage of being more engaging and motivating for children. In the present study, we investigated whether tapping to a metronome beat or complex musical stimuli would predict phonological awareness and reading outcomes of Hungarian 6-7-year olds (N=37). We also measured participants’ general cognitive abilities (RAN, non-verbal intelligence and verbal working memory). Our results show that phonological awareness, spelling and reading accuracy were associated with the musical tasks while reading fluency was predicted by the metronome trials. Our findings suggest that complex musical tasks should be considered when investigating this age group, as they were, in general, more effective in predicting literacy outcomes.

Elucidating the component processes involved in dyslexic and non-dyslexic reading fluency: An eye-tracking study

Speech evaluation and dental arch shape following pushback palatoplasty in cleft palate patients: Supraperiosteal flap technique versus mucoperiosteal flap technique

Is rapid automatized naming related to reading and mathematics for the same reason(s)? A follow-up study from kindergarten to Grade 1

The Fragile X premutation is a genetic instability of the FMR1 gene caused by 55–199 recurrences of the CGG sequence, whereas there are only 7–54 repeats of the CGG sequence in the normal condition. While males with the premutation of Fragile X were found to have difficulties in executive functions and working memory, little data have been collected on females. This study is among the first to address executive functions and phonological memory in females with the Fragile X premutation. Twenty-three female carriers aged 20–55 years and twelve non carrier females matched in age and levels of education (in years) participated in this study. Executive functions and phonological memory were assessed using the self-report questionnaire The Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF) and behavioral measures (nonword repetitions, forward and backward digit span). Females who were carriers of the premutation of the FMR1 gene reported less efficient executive functions in the BRIEF questionnaire compared to the control group. In addition, a relationship was found between the number of repetitions on the CGG sequence of nucleotides, nonword repetitions, and forward digit span. The findings suggest that the premutation of Fragile X in females affects their performance of executive functions and may have impact on everyday functioning.

Associations Between Key Language-Related Measures in Typically Developing School-Age Children

ABSTRACTVerbal fluency tasks, in which participants generate words during a set time, have been used in research and assessments of neurobiological disorders and impairments. Research on verbal fluency in dyslexia has shown impaired performance in semantic and letter fluency. However, studies report inconsistent results, and action fluency has not been examined in dyslexia. Current research has mainly examined verbal fluency in relation to executive functions, vocabulary, and phonological processing. The present study examined performance on letter, semantic, and action fluency in relation to reading ability in 42 students in higher education, of which 16 had developmental dyslexia and 26 had typical reading development. It was examined if verbal fluency can predict variance in reading ability when group, phonological awareness, and rapid automatized naming are controlled for. Results showed impaired verbal fluency in the developmental dyslexia group. Action fluency and group were significant predictors of reading ability, together explaining 73% of the variance, in a backward elimination regression analysis. The results point to a possible, unique connection between action fluency and reading ability; this connection is discussed based on their neurocognitive underpinnings.