Search Results (119)

Background/Objectives. Previous research with extremely and very preterm children indicates that these children obtain significantly lower results in executive functions (EFs) and in reading skills than full-term (FT) children. The comparison results do not seem to be so clear when other PT children in lower-risk conditions are studied. Many studies with typically developing and preterm (PT) children indicate that reading ability is determined, in part, by EFs. Therefore, the study of EFs and reading and their relationships in low-risk PT children is pertinent. Methods. In the present study, 111 PT children, classified into three groups with different ranges of gestational age (GA), and one group of 34 FT children participated in a longitudinal study, carried out from 4 to 9 years of age. The results obtained from the four groups in different EFs measured at 4, 5, and 8 years of age, and in reading skills at 9 years of age were compared. The possible effects of EFs on reading skills were studied through multiple linear regression analyses. Results. The results obtained indicate that no significant difference was found between FT children and any of the GA groups of PT children, either in EFs or reading skills. The effect of EFs on reading skills was low to moderate. Verbal and non-verbal working memory had a positive significant effect on decoding skills (letter names, same–different, and word reading), but not on reading comprehension processes. Higher-order EFs (cognitive flexibility and planning), as well as inhibitory control, showed positive effects on reading comprehension skills. The effects of the different EFs varied depending on the reading process. Conclusions. In conclusion, low-risk PT children do not differ from FT children in their competence in EFs or reading skills. There are long-lasting effects of EFs, measured several years before, on reading skills measured at 9 years of age. Full article

Some children with autism may require additional support to meet academic expectations for comprehension. Because an extensive set of research links oral narration to listening and reading comprehension, the promotion of narrative-based skills may be a viable intervention approach. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of narrative intervention with explicit strategy instruction on the listening and reading retells of children with autism after hearing and decoding novel stories. Four children with autism aged 7 and 9 years old participated in this multiple baseline across participants single-case experimental design study. Behavioral therapists delivered the narrative intervention, which included explicit instruction on the use of story grammar icons, to each child individually within the course of their therapy. Results showed that all participants improved their listening (TauU ES range = 0.64–1.06) and reading (TauU ES range = 0.72–1.15) retells, but they required extended use of the icon strategy to achieve the most benefit. When icons were completely removed, three of the four participants performed above baseline levels on the listening and reading comprehension measures. Full article

This article examines the strategies employed by Mexican secondary school students to understand unfamiliar academic vocabulary and the relationship between these strategies and their reading proficiency. Within the broader Latin American context—where low reading comprehension levels remain prevalent—the study focused on a sample of 40 first-year secondary students, categorized according to their reading level. Using two instruments, the research identified the vocabulary learning strategies used by students and assessed their effectiveness in deriving word meaning. Findings indicate that while students across reading levels use similar strategies, those with higher reading proficiency more frequently and effectively apply complex strategies such as contextual abstraction, retrieving textual information, rereading the text, and full morphological analysis. Morphological analysis proved to be the most effective strategy, provided students possessed the metalinguistic skills necessary to decompose and reconstruct word meaning from all morphemes. The study concludes that the successful use of vocabulary strategies is closely linked to students’ reading proficiency, and that reading comprehension and academic vocabulary knowledge are mutually reinforcing. These findings highlight the importance of explicitly teaching academic vocabulary in school settings as a means to enhance students’ reading performance. Full article

The authors conducted two experiments to assess the alignment between Generative AI (GenAI) text personalization and hypothetical readers’ profiles. In Experiment 1, four LLMs (i.e., Claude 3.5 Sonnet, Llama, Gemini Pro 1.5, and ChatGPT 4) were prompted to tailor 10 science texts (i.e., biology, chemistry, and physics) to accommodate four different profiles varying in knowledge, reading skills, and learning goals. Natural Language Processing (NLP) was leveraged to evaluate the GenAI-adapted texts using an array of linguistic and semantic features empirically associated with text readability. NLP analyses revealed variations in the degree to which the LLMs successfully adjusted linguistic features to suit reader profiles. Most notably, NLP highlighted inconsistent alignment between potential reader abilities and text complexity. The results pointed toward the need to augment the AI prompts using personification, chain-of-thought, and documents regarding text comprehension, text readability, and individual differences (i.e., leveraging RAG). The resulting text modifications in Experiment 2 were better aligned with readers’ profiles. Augmented prompts resulted in LLM modifications with more appropriate cohesion features tailored to high- and low-knowledge readers for optimal comprehension. This study demonstrates how LLMs can be prompted to modify text and uniquely demonstrates the application of NLP to evaluate theory-driven content personalization using GenAI. NLP offers an efficient, real-time solution to validate personalized content across multiple domains and contexts. Full article

The assessment of mathematical competence, particularly in real-world problem-solving contexts, has become increasingly crucial in high school educational evaluation. While traditional methods have shifted towards emphasizing problem-solving skills, they remain predominantly outcome-oriented, often failing to adequately capture the nuanced cognitive processes underlying students’ problem-solving behaviors. To address this gap, this study introduces a process-oriented assessment method leveraging eye-tracking technology. Fifty-three university students (primarily first- and second-year undergraduates) in China were recruited to solve six context-based mathematical problems of varying difficulty levels while wearing portable eye-tracking glasses, allowing for natural problem-solving behaviors in a paper-and-pencil test format. The study established a multidimensional model of eye movement features to evaluate problem-solving processes. Using China’s National College Entrance Examination (CNCEE) mathematics scores as the dependent variable, a Partial Least Squares Regression (PLSR) analysis achieved its best predictive performance (prediction R² of 0.271) based on multidimensional eye movement features when solving the most difficult problem. The first visual intake duration on problem-reading areas and key information regions emerged as significant contributors of the students’ CNCEE scores. These findings substantiate the potential of eye-tracking technology as a valuable tool for educational assessment, offering insights into the assessment of students’ mathematical competence and supporting the development of more comprehensive learning diagnosis and intervention strategies. Full article

The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated an urgent shift to emergency remote learning, significantly affecting the education of bilingual students. This study examines the use of technology-enhanced drama-based methods, specifically digital Readers Theater, as an emergency measure to enhance reading literacy and psychosocial support during the pandemic amid multiple concurrent crises. Using an action research approach, 37 Greek teachers implemented remote literacy activities involving digital drama in their virtual classrooms over a period of four weeks. Data were collected from semi-structured interviews, teachers’ reflective journals, and student participation and were analyzed through Ajzen’s Theory of Planned Behavior. The findings indicate that, despite technological challenges and adaptation difficulties, the creative use of digital drama activities contributed to improvements in students’ reading skills, motivation, and engagement. The intervention also fostered students’ emotional expression and social connection, contributing to their psychosocial support during the disruption. This study highlights the dual role of technology as both an enabler and a barrier, emphasizing the need for better digital infrastructure and comprehensive teacher training for effective emergency response. The results stress the value of technology-supported, arts-based approaches in maintaining student engagement and promoting bilingual literacy in crisis contexts. These findings provide useful guidance for teachers and school leaders on how to support students’ learning and well-being, both during crises and in everyday practice. Full article

Background/Objectives. Vocabulary acquisition is a lifelong process, with the most rapid growth occurring from early childhood to school age. Different contextual factors influence how new vocabulary is acquired across various age groups during reading. Methods. We studied the process of new word acquisition in different constraining contexts in adolescents aged 11–17 years old and how individual differences in reading comprehension, vocabulary, and verbal working memory affect word acquisition. In the learning stage, the new words were presented in sentences with low and high contextual constraints, and word acquisition was assessed in a word recognition test where behavioral measures and the N400 and P600 components of the event-related potentials (ERPs) were examined. Results. Our study reveals that while the accuracy of word recognition was at a chance level, adolescents had faster responses to words learned in high-constraining contexts compared to words from low-constraining contexts. Neural responses were influenced by context, with explicit recollection processes reflected in the P600 being modulated by the type of sentence constraint, while implicit familiarity related to the N400 did not show this effect. Higher reading comprehension, vocabulary, and verbal working memory scores improved accuracy, while reaction times were improved by just vocabulary. Additionally, reading comprehension and vocabulary impacted the implicit N400 old/new effect, and reading comprehension correlated with explicit recognition processes (P600 old/new effect). Conclusions. Therefore, the present study showed that the type of constraint of new word learning and individual skills affected the word acquisition process in adolescents. Full article

Many scholars have claimed that the skills depicted by Zhuangzi can lead to self-transcendence of experiencing and attaining the Dao. However, this view is open to question. Based on a comprehensive reading of the received text of Zhuangzi, this paper attempts a comprehensive reinterpretation of its allegories of skills, including “Cook Ding Butchering an Ox”, “The Hunchback Catching Cicadas”, “The Ferryman Handling a Boat”, “The Man of Lüliang Swimming in the Torrent”, “Woodworker Qing Carving a Bell Stand”, “Artisan Chui Drawing Circles with His Fingers”, “Wheelwright Bian Chiseling Wheels”, “Bohun Wuren Demonstrating Archery”, and “The Old Metalworker Forging Weapons”. This study argues that the emphasis of these skill allegories is not on extolling skills but on pointing towards self-transcendence in a metaphorical way. Just as Mark Twain once likened an apple peel to the Mississippi River, the depiction of skilled performance and its contexts primarily serves as a vivid and illustrative vehicle for explaining self-transcendence rather than constituting self-transcendence itself. Logically speaking, exercising skills requires intentionality, whereas self-transcendence in Zhuangzi’s sense demands complete forgetfulness and a state of non-attachment. Since the states of intentionality and non-attachment are contradictory, the former does not necessarily enable the latter. Thus, the skill in Zhuangzi cannot directly lead to self-transcendence. The skill allegories in Zhuangzi represent the authors’ subjective elaborations, rooted in the focus and tacit understanding inherent in skill activities, and should not be interpreted in an overly mystical light. Full article

Reading comprehension of connected texts is a key skill in high school education, yet students exhibit varying proficiency levels, particularly in inferential reasoning. This study investigates reading behavior by means of finger-tracking technique and question answering among Italian 10th, 11th, and 12th year high school students, analyzing their performance on different types of questions: synonymy and reference vs. inference-based questions. Despite similar reading times and lexical effects across grades, students’ accuracy in answering inferential questions reveals significant variability. Subsequently, we identify three comprehension profiles—poor, medium, and good comprehenders—with the first two groups showing markedly lower performance on inference-based questions. These findings suggest that schooling alone may not be sufficient for all students to develop strong inferential skills, and some may benefit from targeted instructional support. Full article

This study explores the use of a theatre project to enhance reading competencies among students with special educational needs (SENs) in inclusive classrooms. The project, titled “Stop Bullying! A Theatre Project”, aimed to improve students’ reading skills through dramatised engagement with texts, with a particular focus on promoting literacy and social interaction. Employing a Design-Based Research (DBR) methodology, the study involved iterative cycles of implementation and data collection. Participants, including students with varying reading abilities, engaged in theatrical activities that incorporated reading strategies such as reading aloud, paired reading, and choral reading—each designed to support comprehension, fluency, and reading confidence. Findings from multiple cycles indicated improvements in students’ social dynamics, including stronger peer interactions and increased group cohesion. While quantitative reading assessment data showed only modest gains in reading performance, qualitative observations revealed significant improvements in reading skills and social interactions during collaborative performances. The study concludes that a theatre-based approach can effectively support reading development while fostering a more inclusive and supportive classroom environment. Full article

In this retrospective and observational study, we examine grade 1 reading development following an assessment tool providing recommendations for teachers. Tests and recommendations for instruction were provided by LegiLexi, a non-profit foundation that aims to increase reading skills in primary school. We analyzed differences between poor decoders who receive a decoding recommendation after the first test session, then improve their decoding and therefore receive another recommendation (responders) and poor decoders who develop their decoding more slowly (non-responders) and receive a decoding recommendation after both the first and second assessment. Responders are characterized by initial word decoding problems but a substantial improvement between test sessions leading them to a high level of reading comprehension at the end of grade 1. Their decoding improved the most when this skill was the recommended focus of instruction but their reading comprehension also steadily improved when the recommendations changed. The group of non-responders was larger and showed improvements that were more modest on all reading tests during grade 1. The study demonstrates that decoding continues to be a bottleneck for reading development in the early school years and that recommending teachers to focus on decoding instruction might be helpful for some pupils. Full article

Hulstijn’s BLC Theory proposes a dissociation between cognitive individual differences and two types of cognition—the cognition of oral language and the cognition of written language. Specifically, cognitive IDs are expected to affect the acquisition of reading and writing skills in both native and non-native speakers, but not the acquisition of speech comprehension and speech production in either native or non-native speakers. This commentary will discuss the potential and the limitations of these predictions and will suggest directions for future empirical research in the context of BLC Theory. Full article

L2 reading fluency and accuracy are crucial aspects of second language (L2) acquisition, as they directly influence cognitive processing and overall reading comprehension. Developing these skills enables learners to engage with texts efficiently and build confidence in their reading abilities. This study uses reading software to examine the relationship between reading fluency and accuracy in the L2 learning context. Two primary research questions were addressed: the correlation between reading fluency and accuracy and potential gender-based differences in reading performance metrics, including reading time, comprehension, and developmental progress. Pearson’s correlation analysis revealed a strong, positive relationship between fluency and accuracy, indicating that improvements in one skill are associated with enhancements in the other. Additionally, fluency and accuracy were positively correlated with reading comprehension and developmental measures, underscoring the interconnected nature of these skills. Gender comparisons, analyzed through independent t-tests, indicated no significant differences in reading software engagement or performance. This suggests the software provides equitable support across genders, enabling consistent skill development in fluency, accuracy, and comprehension. The findings highlight the critical role of technology in facilitating balanced reading instruction and offer insights into its potential to address diverse learner needs effectively. Full article

Background/Objectives: Augmented reality (AR) has emerged as a promising educational tool for individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), offering interactive and engaging learning experiences. While AR interventions have been widely explored in educational contexts, their specific impact on learning outcomes in individuals with ASD remains unclear. This systematic review aimed to explore preliminary indications of the efficacy of augmented reality (AR)-based interventions in improving cognitive and academic skills in children, adolescents, and adults with ASD. Methods: A comprehensive literature search identified studies published between 2014 and 2024 that assessed AR interventions targeting learning outcomes in individuals with ASD. Results: A total of 12 studies (9 were single-subject studies), comprising 123 participants, met the inclusion criteria. The findings revealed that AR interventions contributed to improvements in multiple learning domains, including language acquisition, reading comprehension, mathematics, science education, executive functioning, and attention. AR-based applications were particularly effective in enhancing engagement, motivation, and interactive learning, addressing challenges commonly faced by individuals with ASD. Conclusions: Findings suggest that AR can be a valuable tool for improving learning outcomes in individuals with ASD, and it could contribute to the inclusion and functional development of students with special needs. Full article

This study examines the knowledge and preparedness of preservice teachers in India and England regarding the teaching of foundational reading skills. Recognising the critical role of teachers in preventing reading difficulties through explicit instruction in phonics, vocabulary knowledge, and reading comprehension strategies, we aimed to compare preservice teachers’ knowledge in these areas between the two countries. A survey was developed for this study and administered to preservice teachers enrolled in teacher education programs in India and England. The survey assessed their phonics knowledge, pedagogical practices across key reading domains, and confidence in supporting students with reading difficulties in inclusive classrooms. Descriptive analyses indicated that English preservice teachers demonstrated greater familiarity with phonics knowledge and were better prepared in pedagogical practices, particularly in phonics instruction, phonological awareness, and reading fluency. Both groups showed low preparedness in teaching vocabulary knowledge. Notably, Indian preservice teachers reported higher confidence levels in supporting students with reading difficulties despite lower performance in knowledge assessments. These findings suggest a need for enhanced focus on explicit phonics instruction in Indian teacher education programs and increased emphasis on vocabulary instruction in both countries. Implications for early childhood education policy are discussed, particularly with regards to preparing teachers to provide high-quality literacy instruction that supports children’s academic success. Full article