Modeling Item-Level Spelling Variance in Adults: Providing Further Insights into Lexical Quality.

Purpose: The lexical quality (LQ) hypothesis predicts that a skilled reader's lexicon will be inhabited by a range of low- to high-quality items, and the probability of representing a word with high quality varies as a function of person-level, word-level, and item-specific variables. These predictions were tested with spelling accuracy as a gauge of LQ. Method: Item-response based crossed random effects models explored simultaneous contributions of person-level (e.g., participant's decoding skill), word-level (e.g., word's transparency rating), item-specific (e.g., participant's familiarity with specific word), and person-by-word interaction predictors (e.g., decoding by transparency rating interaction) to the spelling of 25 commonly misspelled irregular English words in 61 undergraduate university students (M = 19.4 years, 70.49% female, 39.34% Hispanic, 81.97% White). Results: Substantial variance among individuals in item-level spelling accuracy was accounted for by person-level decoding skill; item-specific familiarity, proportion of schwas correctly represented, and correctly identifying the word from its mispronunciation; and an interaction of transparency rating by general decoding skill. Conclusions: Consistent with the LQ hypothesis, results suggest that one's ability to form a high-quality lexical representation of a given word depends on a complex combination of person-level abilities, word-level characteristics, item-specific experiences, and an interaction between person- and word-level influences.

Revisiting the definition of dyslexia.

The International Dyslexia Association definition of dyslexia was updated 20 years ago and has been referenced frequently in research and practice. In this paper, researchers from the Florida Center for Reading Research consider the components of the definition and make recommendations for revisions. These include recognizing the persistence of word-reading, decoding, and spelling difficulties, acknowledging the multifactorial causal basis of dyslexia, clarifying exclusionary factors, and denoting comorbidity with other developmental disorders. It is also suggested that the academic and psychosocial consequences of dyslexia be highlighted to reinforce a preventive service delivery model. Lastly, the inclusion of dyslexia within a specific learning disability category is supported.

Spelling-to-pronunciation transparency ratings for the 20,000 most frequently written English words.

Given English orthography's quasi-regular nature, applying common decoding rules to a word does not always result in a correct pronunciation matching the stored phonological form (e.g., the word tongue). To arrive at a correct pronunciation, developing readers must make the match between a decoded pronunciation and a word's correct pronunciation stored in memory. Developmentally, this matching process varies as a function of child skill (e.g., decoding, vocabulary) and word characteristics (e.g., spelling-to-pronunciation transparency, concreteness), with each being continuously distributed. Spelling-to-pronunciation transparency ratings represent a global measure of the ease of arriving at a word's correct pronunciation from its decoded pronunciation and in experimental studies has been shown to be a critical dimension in assessing the difficulty of a word for developing readers (e.g., Steacy et al., 2022a, 2022b). This study aimed to create a database of spelling-to-pronunciation transparency ratings for the 23,282 most frequently written English words, made available in the supplemental materials for future analyses. We asked adults to rate words' spelling-to-pronunciation transparency on a scale of 1-6 (1 = very easy to match, 6 = very difficult). Results of multiple regression analyses revealed variance in ratings to be unaccounted for by other word features, demonstrating the uniqueness of these ratings. Furthermore, words that are considered irregular, classified previously as strange, or contained at least one schwa received higher ratings, demonstrating strong associations between transparency and regularity. Lastly, these ratings significantly predicted both adult word naming time and child word reading accuracy above and beyond other word features known to predict reading.

Set for Variability as a Critical Predictor of Word Reading: Potential Implications for Early Identification and Treatment of Dyslexia.

Quasiregular orthographies such as English contain substantial ambiguities between orthography and phonology that force developing readers to acquire flexibility during decoding of unfamiliar words, a skill referred to as a "set for variability" (SfV). The ease with which a child can disambiguate the mismatch between the decoded form of a word and its actual lexical phonological form has been operationalized using the SfV mispronunciation task (e.g., the word wasp is pronounced to rhyme with clasp [i.e., /wæsp/] and the child must recognize the actual pronunciation of the word to be /wɒsp/). SfV has been shown to be a significant predictor of word reading variance. However, little is known about the relative strength of SfV as a predictor of word reading compared to other well-established predictors or the strength of this relationship in children with dyslexia. To address these questions, we administered the SfV task to a sample of grade 2-5 children (N=489) along with other reading related measures. SfV accounted for 15% unique variance in word reading above and beyond other predictors, whereas phonological awareness (PA) accounted for only 1%. Dominance analysis indicated SfV is the most powerful predictor, demonstrating complete statistical dominance over other variables including PA. Quantile regression revealed SfV is a stronger predictor at lower levels of reading skill, indicating it may be an important predictor in students with dyslexia. Results suggest that SfV is a powerful and potentially highly sensitive predictor of early reading difficulties and, therefore, may be important for early identification and treatment of dyslexia.

Quantifying the regularities between orthography and semantics and their impact on group- and individual-level behavior.

Statistical views of reading highlight the link between proficient literacy and the assimilation of various regularities embedded in writing systems, including those in the mapping between print and meaning. Still, orthographic-semantic (O-S) regularities remain relatively understudied, with open questions regarding 3 issues: (a) how O-S regularities should be quantified, (b) how they impact the behavior of proficient readers, and (c) whether individual differences in sensitivity to these regularities predict reading skills. The goal of the current article is to address these questions. We start by reviewing previous studies estimating print-meaning regularities, where orthography-to-semantics consistency (OSC) is defined as the mean semantic similarity between a word and its orthographic neighbors. While we adopt this general strategy, we identify a potential confound in previous operational definitions. We therefore offer a modified measure, which we use to examine group-level OSC effects in available data sets of single word recognition and reading for comprehension. Our findings validate the existence of OSC effects but reveal variation across tasks, with OSC effects emerging more strongly in tasks involving a direct mapping of print to meaning. Next, we present a reanalysis of word naming data from 399 second through fifth graders, where we examine individual differences in reliance on O-S regularities and their relation to participants' reading skills. We show that early readers whose naming accuracy is more influenced by OSC (i.e., those who rely more on O-S) have better passage comprehension abilities. We conclude by discussing the role of O-S regularities in proficient reading and literacy acquisition. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Unpacking the Unique Relationship Between Set for Variability and Word Reading Development: Examining Word- and Child-Level Predictors of Performance.

Set for variability (SfV) is an oral language task which requires an individual to disambiguate the mismatch between the decoded form of an irregular word and its actual lexical pronunciation. For example, in the task, the word wasp is pronounced to rhyme with clasp (i.e., /wæsp/) and the individual must recognize the actual pronunciation of the word to be /wɒsp/. SfV has been shown to be a significant predictor of both item-specific and general word reading variance above and beyond that associated with phonemic awareness skill, letter-sound knowledge, and vocabulary skill. However, very little is known about the child characteristics and word features that affect SfV item performance. In this study we explored whether word features and child characteristics that involve phonology only are adequate to explain item-level variance in SfV performance or whether including predictors that involve the connection between phonology and orthography explain additional variance. To accomplish this we administered the SfV task (N=75 items) to a sample of grade 2-5 children (N=489) along with a battery of reading, reading related, and language measures. Results suggest that variance in SfV performance is uniquely accounted for by measures tapping phonological skill along with those capturing knowledge of phonology to orthography associations, but more so in children with better decoding skill. Additionally, word reading skill was found to moderate the influence of other predictors suggesting that how the task is approached may be impacted by word reading and decoding ability.

Modeling Complex Word Reading: Examining Influences at the Level of the Word and Child on Mono- and Polymorphemic Word Reading.

Purpose: The probability of a child reading a word correctly is influenced by both child skills and properties of the word. The purpose of this study was to investigate child-level skills (set for variability and vocabulary), word-level properties (concreteness), word structure (mono- vs. polymorphemic), and interactions between these properties and word structure within a comprehensive item-level model of complex word reading. This study is unique in that it purposely sampled both mono- and polymorphemic polysyllabic words. Method: A sample of African American (n = 69) and Hispanic (n =6) students in grades 2-5 (n =75) read a set of mono- and polymorphemic polysyllabic words (J=54). Item-level responses were modeled using cross-classified generalized random-effects models allowing variance to be partitioned between child and word while controlling for other important child factors and word features. Results: Set for variability and the interaction between concreteness and word structure (i.e., mono- vs. polymorphemic) were significant predictors. Higher probabilities of reading poly- over monomorphemic words were identified at lower levels of concreteness with the opposite at higher levels of concreteness. Conclusions: Results indicate important predictors at both the child- and word-level and support the importance of morphological structure for reading abstract polysyllabic words.

Closing the Word-Problem Achievement Gap in First Grade: Schema-Based Word-Problem Intervention with Embedded Language Comprehension Instruction.

The main purpose of this study was to test the effects of word-problem intervention, with versus without embedded language comprehension instruction, on at-risk 1st graders' word-problem performance. We also isolated the need for a structured approach to word-problem intervention and tested the efficacy of schema-based instruction at 1st grade. Children (n=391; mean age = 6.53, SD = 0.32) were randomly assigned to 4 conditions: schema-based word-problem intervention with embedded language instruction, the same word-problem intervention but without language comprehension instruction, structured number knowledge intervention without a structured word-problem component, and a control group. Each intervention included 45 30-min sessions. Multilevel models, accounting for classroom and school effects, revealed the efficacy of schema-based word-problem intervention at 1st grade, with both word-problem conditions outperforming the number knowledge condition and the control group. Yet, word-problem performance was significantly stronger for the schema-based condition with embedded language comprehension instruction compared to the schema-based condition without language comprehension instruction. Number knowledge intervention conveyed no word-problem advantage over the control group, even though all 3 intervention conditions outperformed the control group on arithmetic. Results demonstrate the importance of a structured approach to word-problem intervention; the efficacy of schema-based instruction at 1st grade; and the added value of language comprehension instruction within word-problem intervention. Results also provide causal evidence on the role of language comprehension in word-problem solving.

Modeling and Visualizing the Codevelopment of Word and Nonword Reading in Children From First Through Fourth Grade: Informing Developmental Trajectories of Children With Dyslexia.

Developmental studies examining relations between word reading (WR) and decoding in typical and dyslexic populations routinely cut the reading distribution to form distinct groups. However, dichotomizing continuous variables to study development is problematic for multiple reasons. Instead, we modeled and visualized the parallel growth of WR and nonword reading (NWR) factor scores longitudinally in a Grade 1-4 developmental sample (N = 588). The results indicate that while WR and NWR growth factors are highly related (r = .71), the relation between WR and NWR trajectories change as a function of initial WR. Results are interpreted within computational models of dyslexia in which children with dyslexia overfit orthography â†’ phonology relations at the level of the word, limiting the development of sublexical representations needed to read nonwords.

Past perspectives and new opportunities for the explanatory item response model.

Models of word reading that simultaneously take into account item-level and person-level fixed and random effects are broadly known as explanatory item response models (EIRM). Although many variants of the EIRM are available, the field has generally focused on the doubly explanatory model for modeling individual differences on item responses. Moreover, the historical application of the EIRM has been a Rasch version of the model where the item discrimination values are fixed at 1.0 and the random or fixed item effects only pertain to the item difficulties. The statistical literature has advanced to allow for more robust testing of observed or latent outcomes, as well as more flexible parameterizations of the EIRM. The purpose of the present study was to compare four types of Rasch-based EIRMs (i.e., doubly descriptive, person explanatory, item explanatory, doubly explanatory) and more broadly compare Rasch and 2PL EIRM when including person-level and item-level predictors. Results showed that not only was the error variance smaller in the unconditional 2PL EIRM compared to the Rasch EIRM due to including the item discrimination random effect, but that patterns of unique item-level explanatory variables differ between the two approaches. Results are interpreted within the context of what each statistical model affords to the opportunity for describing and explaining differences in word-level performance.

Using an item-specific predictor to test the dimensionality of the orthographic choice task.

The orthographic choice (OC) task-requiring individuals to choose the correct spelling between a word and a pseudohomophone foil (e.g., goat vs. gote)-has been used as an outcome measure of orthographic learning and as a predictor of individual differences in word reading development. Some consider the OC task a measure of orthographic knowledge (e.g., Conrad, Harris, & Williams (Reading and Writing, 26(8), 1223-1239, 2013)), whereas others have suggested that the task measures a reader's familiarity with the word's orthographic representation and thus measures word reading skill (e.g., Castles & Nation, 2006). We examined this assertion by testing OC task performance of individuals ages 8 to 18 (J = 296) and their ability to read the OC target words (I = 80) in isolation using crossed random effects item-response models. Results reveal that response on the OC task is not fully determined by the ability of an individual to read the target word in isolation. Specifically, the probability of choosing the correct orthographic form when the word was pronounced incorrectly was .79; whereas it was .90 when the word was pronounced correctly. Measures of receptive spelling and phonemic awareness (person-characteristics) and word frequency and orthographic neighborhood size (item-characteristics) accounted for significant variance in orthographic choice after controlling for target item reading and other reading-related abilities. We interpret the results to suggest that the OC task taps both item-specific orthographic knowledge and more general orthographic knowledge.

Is "Response/No Response" Too Simple a Notion for RTI Frameworks? Exploring Multiple Response Types With Latent Profile Analysis.

We conducted a secondary analysis of data from a randomized control trial to explore this question: Does "response/no response" best characterize students' reactions to a generally efficacious first-grade reading program, or is a more nuanced characterization necessary? Data were collected on 265 at-risk readers' word reading prior to and immediately following program implementation in first grade and in spring of second grade. Pretreatment data were also obtained on domain-specific skills (letter knowledge, decoding, passage comprehension, language) and domain-general skills (working memory, non-verbal reasoning). Latent profile analysis of word reading across the three time points with controls as a local norm revealed a strongly responsive group (n = 45) with mean word-reading z scores of 0.25, 1.64, and 1.26 at the three time points, respectively; a mildly responsive group (n = 109), z scores = 0.30, 0.47, and 0.55; a mildly non-responsive group (n = 90), z scores = -0.11, -0.15, and -0.55; and a strongly non-responsive group (n = 21), z scores = -1.24, -1.26, and -1.57. The two responsive groups had stronger pretreatment letter knowledge and passage comprehension than the two non-responsive groups. The mildly non-responsive group demonstrated better pretreatment passage comprehension than the strongly non-responsive group. No domain-general skill distinguished the four groups. Findings suggest response to early reading intervention was more complicated than response/no response, and pretreatment reading comprehension was an important predictor of response even with pretreatment word reading controlled.

Individual differences in learning the regularities between orthography, phonology and semantics predict early reading skills.

Statistical views of literacy development maintain that proficient reading requires the assimilation of myriad statistical regularities present in the writing system. Indeed, previous studies have tied statistical learning (SL) abilities to reading skills, establishing the existence of a link between the two. However, some issues are currently left unanswered, including questions regarding the underlying bases for these associations as well as the types of statistical regularities actually assimilated by developing readers. Here we present an alternative approach to study the role of SL in literacy development, focusing on individual differences among beginning readers. Instead of using an artificial task to estimate SL abilities, our approach identifies individual differences in children's reliance on statistical regularities as reflected by actual reading behavior. We specifically focus on individuals' reliance on regularities in the mapping between print and speech versus associations between print and meaning in a word naming task. We present data from 399 children, showing that those whose oral naming performance is impacted more by print-speech regularities and less by associations between print and meaning have better reading skills. These findings suggest that a key route by which SL mechanisms impact developing reading abilities is via their role in the assimilation of sub-lexical regularities between printed and spoken language -and more generally, in detecting regularities that are more reliable than others. We discuss the implications of our findings to both SL and reading theories.

Dynamic Assessment for Identifying Spanish-Speaking English Learners' Risk for Mathematics Disabilities: Does Language of Administration Matter?

We examined dynamic assessment's (DA's) added value over traditional assessments for identifying Spanish-speaking English learners' (ELs) risk for developing mathematics disabilities, as a function of the language of test administration (English vs. Spanish), type of math outcome, and EL's language dominance. At the start of first grade, ELs (N = 368) were randomly assigned to English-DA or Spanish-DA conditions, were assessed on static mathematics measures and domain-general (language, reasoning) measures in English, and completed DA in their assigned language condition. At year's end, they were assessed on calculation and word-problem solving outcomes in English. Results from multigroup path models indicated that Spanish-DA mitigates the impact of ELs' language dominance on DA performance. Moreover, ELs' language dominance moderated DA's predictive validity differentially depending on DA language and type of outcome. Spanish-DA showed higher predictive validity in Spanish-dominant ELs than English-dominant ELs when predicting calculations but not word-problem solving. English-DA was predictive for both outcomes, regardless of ELs' language dominance.

How the Science of Reading Informs 21st-Century Education.

The science of reading should be informed by an evolving evidence base built upon the scientific method. Decades of basic research and randomized controlled trials of interventions and instructional routines have formed a substantial evidence base to guide best practices in reading instruction, reading intervention, and the early identification of at-risk readers. The recent resurfacing of questions about what constitutes the science of reading is leading to misinformation in the public space that may be viewed by educational stakeholders as merely differences of opinion among scientists. Our goals in this paper are to revisit the science of reading through an epistemological lens to clarify what constitutes evidence in the science of reading and to offer a critical evaluation of the evidence provided by the science of reading. To this end, we summarize those things that we believe have compelling evidence, promising evidence, or a lack of compelling evidence. We conclude with a discussion of areas of focus that we believe will advance the science of reading to meet the needs of all children in the 21st century.

Understanding, educating, and supporting children with specific learning disabilities: 50 years of science and practice.

Specific learning disabilities (SLDs) are highly relevant to the science and practice of psychology, both historically and currently, exemplifying the integration of interdisciplinary approaches to human conditions. They can be manifested as primary conditions-as difficulties in acquiring specific academic skills-or as secondary conditions, comorbid to other developmental disorders such as attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. In this synthesis of historical and contemporary trends in research and practice, we mark the 50th anniversary of the recognition of SLDs as a disability in the United States. Specifically, we address the manifestations, occurrence, identification, comorbidity, etiology, and treatment of SLDs, emphasizing the integration of information from the interdisciplinary fields of psychology, education, psychiatry, genetics, and cognitive neuroscience. SLDs, exemplified here by specific word reading, reading comprehension, mathematics, and written expression disabilities, represent spectrum disorders, each occurring in approximately 5% to 15% of the school-aged population. In addition to risk for academic deficiencies and related functional social, emotional, and behavioral difficulties, those with SLDs often have poorer long-term social and vocational outcomes. Given the high rate of occurrence of SLDs and their lifelong negative impact on functioning if not treated, it is important to establish and maintain effective prevention, surveillance, and treatment systems involving professionals from various disciplines trained to minimize the risk and maximize the protective factors for SLDs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Linking Behavioral and Computational Approaches to Better Understand Variant Vowel Pronunciations in Developing Readers.

The overarching goal of the new Florida State University/Haskins Laboratory/University of Connecticut Learning Disability (LD) Hub project is to align computational and behavioral theories of individual word reading development more closely with the challenges of learning to read a quasi-regular orthography (i.e., English) for both typically developing (TD) children and, more specifically, children with dyslexia. Our LD Hub adopts an integrated approach to better understand the neurocognitive bases of individual differences in word reading development by specifically examining the experiential (exogenous) and child-specific (endogenous) factors that determine acquisition of orthographic-phonological knowledge at different subword granularities using behavioral and computational modeling. Findings are intended to enrich understanding of the processes that influence individual differences in word reading development in TD and dyslexic children and significantly inform issues of practice (e.g., curriculum, instruction, diagnosis, and intervention). Here, we briefly provide the rationale for the Hub and present findings from the initial behavioral and computational modeling studies.

Development and Prediction of Context-Dependent Vowel Pronunciation in Elementary Readers.

As children learn to read they become sensitive to context-dependent vowel pronunciations in words, considered a form of statistical learning. The work of Treiman and colleagues demonstrated that readers' vowel pronunciations depend on the consonantal context in which the vowel occurs and reading experience. We examined child- and nonword-factors associated with children's assignment of more vs. less frequent grapheme-phoneme correspondences (GPC) to vowel pronunciations as a function of rime coda in monosyllabic nonwords. Students (N=96) in grades 2-5 read nonwords in which more vs. less frequent vowel GPCs were wholly supported or partially favored by the rime unit. Two explanatory item-response models were developed using alternative nonword scoring procedures. Use of less frequent vowel GPCs was predicted by set for variability, word reading, and rime support for the context-dependent vowel pronunciation. We interpret the results within a developmental word reading model in which initially incomplete and oversimplified GPC representations become more context-dependent with reading experience.

The Role of Statistical Learning in Word Reading and Spelling Development: More Questions than Answers.

This special issue bundles a set of eight empirical studies and one review article that explore the role of SL mechanisms (both domain-specific and domain-general) in supporting word reading and spelling development, and vice-versa. In this introduction to the special issue, we worked to summarize the extent to which studies support our hypotheses relating SL to reading and spelling development while also pointing out inconsistencies across studies that require us to refine and rethink our hypotheses.