Identifying Preservice Teachers’ Belief Profiles and their Performance in a Web-based Training for Writing Instruction / [La identificación de los perfiles de creencias de maestros y maestras en formación y su desempeño en un programa web de enseñanza de la escritura]

This research aims to fill the need to provide writing education to preservice teachers by using web-based instruction. The novel contribution of this work lies in the consideration of beliefs as a methodological prerequisite when measuring the effects of a web-based program. For this purpose, latent profile analysis was conducted to explore unique profiles of preservice teachers’ beliefs about writing before the web-based instruction. Participants were classified into three profiles: eclectic profile (n = 129), socio-cultural profile (n = 85), and person-environment profile (n = 105). Linear mixed-effects models were employed to assess if belief profiles experienced changes in beliefs and knowledge after the training. Results showed that belief profiles differed from each other in the degree of attribution of the different beliefs but remarkably all of them experienced significant differences in content knowledge acquisition. Finally, educational implications for preservice teachers’ education are highlighted.(AU)

Esta investigación tiene como objetivo cubrir la necesidad de proporcionar formación en la enseñanza de la escritura a maestros y maestras en formación mediante el uso de un programa web. La aportación novedosa de este trabajo radica en la consideración de las creencias como prerrequisito metodológico a la hora de medir los efectos de un programa web. Con este fin, antes de la instrucción web se realizó un análisis de perfiles latentes con el fin de explorar perfiles únicos de creencias sobre la escritura en maestros y maestras en formación. Se clasificó a los participantes en tres perfiles: perfil ecléctico (n = 129), sociocultural (n = 85) y persona-ambiente (n = 105). Se emplearon modelos mixtos lineales para evaluar si los perfiles de creencias experimentaban cambios en las creencias y el conocimiento después de la formación. Los resultados muestran que los perfiles de creencias difieren entre si en el grado de atribución de las diferentes creencias, pero todos ellos experimentan diferencias significativas en la adquisición del conocimiento de contenidos. Finalmente, se destacan las implicaciones educativas para la formación de futuros docentes.(AU)

Web-based Training Program for Writing Instruction: Preservice Teachers' Beliefs Profiles and Their Satisfaction.

BACKGROUND: Preservice teachers' satisfaction with online training should be considered to guarantee a successful e-learning experience. This study aims to determine whether preservice teachers' belief profiles influence their satisfaction with web-based training for teaching writing. METHOD: To achieve this purpose, two main analyses were conducted: (1) validation of a satisfaction's scale through Confirmatory Factor Analysis, and (2) MANOVA with independent inter-subject variables group belief profiles (i.e., Eclectic Profile, Socio-cultural Profile, and Person-environment Profile) and as dependent variables the five dimensions of the satisfaction scale. RESULTS: Results showed high satisfaction ratings with the web-based training in all the groups. Nevertheless, significant differences in satisfaction ratings were found between belief profiles. CONCLUSIONS: Finally, educational implications for preservice teachers' development are highlighted in the discussion.

Multimedia Battery for Assessment of Cognitive and Basic Skills in Mathematics (BM-PROMA).

Learning mathematics is a complex process that requires the development of multiple domain-general and domain-specific skills. It is therefore not unexpected that many children struggle to stay at grade level, and this becomes especially difficult when several abilities from both domains are impaired, as in the case of mathematical learning disabilities (MLD). Surprisingly, although MLD is one of the most common neurodevelopmental disorders affecting schoolchildren, most of the diagnostic instruments available do not include assessment of domain-general and domain-specific skills. Furthermore, very few are computerized. To the best of our knowledge, there is no tool with these features for Spanish-speaking children. The purpose of this study was to describe the protocol for the diagnosis of Spanish MLD children using the BM-PROMA multimedia battery. BM-PROMA facilitates the evaluation of both skill domains, and the 12 tasks included for this purpose are empirically evidence-based. The strong internal consistency of BM-PROMA and its multidimensional internal structure are demonstrated. BM-PROMA proves to be an appropriate tool for diagnosing children with MLD during primary education. It provides a broad cognitive profile for the child, which will be relevant not only for diagnosis but also for individualized instructional planning.

Piloting the Response to Intervention Model in the Canary Islands: Prevention of Reading and Math Learning Disabilities.

The main objective of this study was to examine the effectiveness of an intervention implemented by elementary school teachers within the context of the Response to Intervention (RtI) model. For this purpose, a Tier 2 or secondary intervention was implemented by Spanish-speaking teachers in grades K-3 after receiving training to implement RtI components with fidelity. A total of 1,923 at-risk students were assigned to treatment (in reading, n = 542; in math, n = 483) or control (in reading, n = 406; in math, n = 492). Teachers were provided with a support system that included two web-based training programs for reading (i.e., Letra program) and math (i.e., Primate program). Implementation fidelity was analyzed using direct observations and self-reports. All students were assessed three times during the academic year. A hierarchical linear growth modeling was conducted, and differences in the growth rate of reading and math performance were analyzed between at-risk students who have received the intervention and those who have not received it. Children at-risk in the intervention condition appeared to benefit more than at-risk children in the control condition. Moreover, findings indicate that the earlier the intervention, the greater the percentage of students who leave the situation of risk of learning difficulties in reading and math.

Analyzing the role of fidelity of RTI Tier 2 reading intervention in Spanish kindergarten and first grade students.

This study examined the role of fidelity in the reading outcomes within a Tier 2 intervention implemented by Spanish kindergarten and first grade school teachers. For this purpose, differences in reading performance growth were analyzed among at-risk students who received a Tier 2 intervention with high fidelity, at-risk students who received the same intervention with medium fidelity, and an at-risk control group that did not receive a Tier 2 intervention. Implementation fidelity was analyzed using direct observations and self-reports. All students were assessed three times during the academic year. Hierarchical linear modeling analyses were conducted to explore differences in growth rate. The at-risk children in the intervention condition showed a higher growth compared to at-risk children in the control condition, and specifically when the intervention was delivered with a high degree of fidelity.

Web-based Training Program for Writing Instruction: Preservice Teachers’ Beliefs Profiles and Their Satisfaction / Programa Web Para la Enseñanza de la Escritura: Perfiles de Creencias y Satisfacción de Maestros en Formación

Background: Preservice teachers’ satisfaction with online training should be considered to guarantee a successful e-learning experience. This study aims to determine whether preservice teachers’ belief profiles influence their satisfaction with web-based training for teaching writing. Method: To achieve this purpose, two main analyses were conducted: (1) validation of a satisfaction’s scale through Confirmatory Factor Analysis, and (2) MANOVA with independent inter-subject variables group belief profiles (i.e., Eclectic Profile, Socio-cultural Profile, and Person-environment Profile) and as dependent variables the five dimensions of the satisfaction scale. Results: Results showed high satisfaction ratings with the web-based training in all the groups. Nevertheless, significant differences in satisfaction ratings were found between belief profiles. Conclusions: Finally, educational implications for preservice teachers’ development are highlighted in the discussion. (AU)

Antecedentes: para garantizar experiencias de formación en línea exitosas debe tenerse en consideración la satisfacción de los maestros/as en formación con la formación en línea. Este estudio tiene como objetivo determinar si los perfiles de creencias de los futuros maestros/as influyen en su satisfacción con una formación web para la enseñanza de la escritura. Método: para alcanzar este objetivo se llevaron a cabo dos análisis: (1) validación de una escala de satisfacción a través de un Análisis Factorial Confirmatorio, y (2) MANOVA con variables independientes inter-sujetos, perfiles de creencias grupales (i.e., Perfil Ecléctico, Perfil Sociocultural y Perfil Persona-Ambiente) y como variables dependientes las cinco dimensiones de la escala de satisfacción. Resultados: los resultados mostraron altos índices de satisfacción con la formación web en todos los grupos. Sin embargo, se encontraron diferencias significativas en las calificaciones de satisfacción entre los perfiles de creencias. Conclusiones: por último, en la discusión se destacan implicaciones educativas para el desarrollo profesional de los futuros maestros/as. (AU)

Universal Screening for Prevention of Reading, Writing, and Math Disabilities in Spanish.

The purpose of this study was to describe a Spanish protocol that includes reading, writing, and math Curriculum-Based Measures (CBMs) aimed at early detection of students at risk of presenting learning disabilities (LD). Early identification of LD is a critical component of the Response to Intervention (RtI) model. In early grades, the screening of foundational skills mentioned above can provide a data-based guideline for identifying students requiring a more intensive response-based intervention before starting elementary school. We designed different CBMs based on indicators of basic early reading, writing, and math skills [Indicadores de Progreso de Aprendizaje en Lectura, Escritura y Matemáticas, IPAL, IPAE, and IPAM respectively] that aim to fulfill the twofold objective of universal screening and evaluation of the Spanish students' progress. For reading, IPAL includes alphabetic principle, phonological awareness, concepts about print, and riddles in kindergarten. In first and second grades, IPAL includes alphabetic principle, nonsense words fluency, maze sentences, and oral reading fluency. In addition, it includes phonemic segmentation for first grade and prosody for second grade. For writing, IPAE includes copying letters, writing allographs, dictated letters, dictated words with arbitrary spelling, dictated words with rule-based spelling, dictated nonsense words, dictated sentences, writing sentences, and writing a story for first-third grades. Finally, for math, IPAM includes number comparison, missing number, number identification, quantity array, and counting aloud for kindergarten, and number comparison, multi-digit computation, missing number, single-digit computation, and place value for first-third grades.

Teaching Reading: A Case Study Through Mixed Methods.

The present study analyzes the relationship between teachers' beliefs about learning to read, teaching practices, and discourse. To carry out this study, we benefited from the collaboration of six teachers in kindergarten and the first levels of primary education. First, an attribution questionnaire was used to analyze beliefs about learning to read (Jiménez et al., 2015). Secondly, to study teaching practices, an observation tool was used (Suárez et al., 2018). Thirdly, in order to know the opinion of teachers about how to teach reading, we adapted the instrument to assess teaching perspectives elaborated by Clark and Yinger (1979). Finally, all the information was triangulated and analyzed using mixed methods. The results indicated that the relationship between beliefs, practices, and discourse is not always consistent. In all teachers, a relationship was found between some of their beliefs, practices, and discourse. At the level of beliefs, all teachers presented one predominant attributional profile, although to a lesser extent, their beliefs were also attributable to other learning theories. The results indicated that all the teachers carried out teaching practices associated with the different learning theories. Similarly to their discourse, all teachers showed diverse opinions about the learning processes involved in reading. These results indicate that teachers maintain eclectic approaches, both when they carry out activities in the classroom and when they think about learning to read.

Assessing Foundational Reading Skills in Kindergarten: A Curriculum-Based Measurement in Spanish.

Early identification of learning difficulties is a critical component of the Response to Intervention (RtI) model. In kindergarten, the screening of foundational reading skills can provide a data-based guideline for identifying students requiring a more intensive response-based intervention before starting elementary school. This study examines the classification accuracy and best predictors of a set of Spanish curriculum-based measures administered during kindergarten. The study's sample included 189 students tested in the fall, winter, and spring. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was conducted. The composite score of the curriculum-based measurement (CBM) revealed area under the ROC curve (AUC) values of 0.83, 0.97, and 0.94 in the fall, winter, and spring, respectively. Phonemic awareness and letter-sound knowledge were the only isolated measures that demonstrated excellent AUC values throughout kindergarten. Logistic regression models showed that, when entered simultaneously, all measures were significant predictors of reading risk at some moment of the school year.

Differences in Growth Reading Patterns for at-Risk Spanish-Monolingual Children as a Function of a Tier 2 Intervention.

The present study compares the patterns of growth of beginning reading skills (i.e., phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension) of Spanish speaking monolingual students who received a Tier 2 reading intervention with students who did not receive the intervention. All the students in grades K-2 were screened at the beginning of the year to confirm their risk status. A quasi-experimental longitudinal design was used: the treatment group received a supplemental program in small groups of 3 to 5 students, for 30 minutes daily from November to June. The control group did not receive it. All students were assessed three times during the academic year. A hierarchical linear growth modeling was conducted and differences on growth rate were found in vocabulary in kindergarten (p < .001; variance explained = 77.0%), phonemic awareness in kindergarten (p < .001; variance explained = 43.7%) and first grade (p < .01; variance explained = 15.2%), and finally we also find significant growth differences for second grade in oral reading fluency (p < .05; variance explained = 15.1%) and retell task (p < .05; variance explained = 14.5%). Children at risk for reading disabilities in Spanish can improve their skills when they receive explicit instruction in the context of Response to Intervention (RtI). Findings are discussed for each skill in the context of implementing a Tier 2 small group intervention within an RtI approach. Implications for practice in the Spanish educational context are also discussed for children who are struggling with reading.

Is Reading Instruction Evidence-Based? Analyzing Teaching Practices Using T-Patterns.

The main goal of this study was to analyze whether primary teachers use evidence-based reading instruction for primary-grade readers. The study sample consisted of six teachers whose teaching was recorded. The observation instrument used was developed ad hoc for this study. The recording instrument used was Match Vision Studio. The data analysis was performed using SAS, GT version 2.0 E, and THEME. The results indicated that the teaching practices used most frequently and for the longest duration were: feedback (i.e., correcting the student when reading); fluency (i.e., individual and group reading, both out loud and silently, with and without intonation); literal or inference comprehension exercises (i.e., summarizing, asking questions); and use of educational resources (i.e., stories, songs, poems). Later, we conducted analyses of T-Patterns that showed the sequence of instruction in detail. We can conclude that <50% of the teaching practices used by the majority of teachers were based on the recommendations of the National Reading Panel (NRP). Only one teacher followed best practices. The same was the case for instructional time spent on the five essential components of reading, with the exception of teacher E., who dedicated 70.31% of class time implementing best practices. Teaching practices (i.e., learners' activities) designed and implemented to exercise and master alphabetic knowledge and phonological awareness skills were used less frequently in the classroom.

Differences in growth reading patterns for at-risk Spanish-monolingual children as a function of a tier 2 Intervention

The present study compares the patterns of growth of beginning reading skills (i.e., phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension) of Spanish speaking monolingual students who received a Tier 2 reading intervention with students who did not receive the intervention. All the students in grades K-2 were screened at the beginning of the year to confirm their risk status. A quasi-experimental longitudinal design was used: the treatment group received a supplemental program in small groups of 3 to 5 students, for 30 minutes daily from November to June. The control group did not receive it. All students were assessed three times during the academic year. A hierarchical linear growth modeling was conducted and differences on growth rate were found in vocabulary in kindergarten (p < .001; variance explained = 77.0%), phonemic awareness in kindergarten (p < .001; variance explained = 43.7%) and first grade (p < .01; variance explained = 15.2%), and finally we also find significant growth differences for second grade in oral reading fluency (p < .05; variance explained = 15.1%) and retell task (p < .05; variance explained = 14.5%). Children at risk for reading disabilities in Spanish can improve their skills when they receive explicit instruction in the context of Response to Intervention (RtI). Findings are discussed for each skill in the context of implementing a Tier 2 small group intervention within an RtI approach. Implications for practice in the Spanish educational context are also discussed for children who are struggling with reading (AU)

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Data-driven heterogeneity in mathematical learning disabilities based on the triple code model.

Many classifications of heterogeneity in mathematical learning disabilities (MLD) have been proposed over the past four decades, however no empirical research has been conducted until recently, and none of the classifications are derived from Triple Code Model (TCM) postulates. The TCM proposes MLD as a heterogeneous disorder, with two distinguishable profiles: a representational subtype and a verbal subtype. A sample of elementary school 3rd to 6th graders was divided into two age cohorts (3rd - 4th grades, and 5th - 6th grades). Using data-driven strategies, based on the cognitive classification variables predicted by the TCM, our sample of children with MLD clustered as expected: a group with representational deficits and a group with number-fact retrieval deficits. In the younger group, a spatial subtype also emerged, while in both cohorts a non-specific cluster was produced whose profile could not be explained by this theoretical approach.

Internal Structure and Development of Keyboard Skills in Spanish-Speaking Primary-School Children With and Without LD in Writing.

This study had two purposes: examining the internal structure of the Test Estandarizado para la Evaluación Inicial de la Escritura con Teclado (TEVET; Spanish Keyboarding Writing Test), and analyzing the development of keyboarding skills in Spanish elementary school children with and without learning disabilities (LD) in writing. A group of 1,168 elementary school children carried out the following writing tasks: writing the alphabet in order from memory, allograph selection, word copying, writing dictated words with inconsistent spelling, writing pseudowords from dictation, and independent composition of sentence. For this purpose, exploratory factor analysis for the TEVET was conducted. Principal component analysis with a varimax rotation identified three factors with eigenvalues greater than 1.0. Based on factorial analysis, we analyzed the keyboarding skills across grades in Spanish elementary school children with and without LD (i.e., poor handwriters compared with poor spellers, who in turn were compared with mixed compared with typically achieving writers). The results indicated that poor handwriters did not differ from typically achieving writers in phonological processing, visual-orthographic processing, and sentence production components by keyboarding. The educational implications of the findings are analyzed with regard to acquisition of keyboarding skills in children with and without LD in transcription.

Writing Disabilities in Spanish-Speaking Children: Introduction to the Special Series.

This special issue of the Journal of Learning Disabilities focuses on studies of writing disabilities in Spanish-speaking children. The World Health Organization (2001) included writing difficulties as one of the problems considered to constitute an impediment to school participation, a significant element in the normal developmental process of the child. In this introduction, I describe the background of a larger project promoted by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). This special series offers recent findings on writing disabilities in Spanish-Speaking children within the UNESCO project. The pilot study was carried out in the Canary Islands, an autonomous Spanish region located between three continents and composed of seven islands in the Atlantic Ocean. Most of the current empirical evidence on writing disabilities comes from English, a language with deep orthography; therefore, it is very relevant to investigate the writing process in Spanish, a language with shallow, fine-grained orthography. Included are a number of articles that form a conspectus on writing disabilities in the Spanish language. Topics center on early grade writing assessment, prevalence of writing disabilities, handwriting and keyboarding, transcription and text generation, graphonomic and handwriting analysis, and instructional practices with an learning disabled population.

Early Grade Writing Assessment: An Instrument Model.

The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization promoted the creation of a model instrument for individual assessment of students' foundational writing skills in the Spanish language that was based on a literature review and existing writing tools and assessments. The purpose of the Early Grade Writing Assessment (EGWA) is to document learners' basic writing skills, mapped in composing units of increasing complexity to communicate meaning. Validation and standardization of EGWA was conducted in the Canary Islands (Spain) in 12 schools using a cross-sectional design with a sample of 1,653 Spanish-speaking students in Grades 1 through 3. The author describes EGWA's internal structure, along with the prevalence of learning disabilities (LD) in transcription and developmental differences in writing between Spanish-speaking children with LD and typical peers. Findings suggest that EGWA's psychometric characteristics are satisfactory, and its internal structure can be attributed to four factors responsible for a high percentage of the variance. The odds ratio indicated that 2 Spanish-speaking children with LD in transcription are identified out of every 100. A comparison between students with and without LD in transcription revealed statistically significant differences concerning sentence and text production across grades. Results are interpreted within current theoretical accounts of writing models.

Desarrollo de la conciencia sintáctica y fonológica en niños chilenos: un estudio transversal / Development of syntactic and phonological awareness in Chilean children: a cross-sectional study

El desarrollo de la conciencia sintáctica ha sido escasamente investigado en una ortografía transparente como la del español. Situación totalmente contraria es la que ha experimentado la conciencia fonológica, cuyo desarrollo y rol en la adquisición lectora han recibido mucha más atención tanto en lenguas transparentes como en opacas. Investigaciones en inglés y en francés han demostrado que las habilidades metasintácticas siguen desarrollándose después de comenzada la alfabetización y que incluso a los 11 o 14 años aún no ha culminado este desarrollo. El propósito del presente estudio es describir y comparar el desarrollo evolutivo de la conciencia sintáctica y conciencia fonológica en niños chilenos del periodo básico. Para ello, se seleccionó una muestra de 234 sujetos, pertenecientes a colegios públicos y privados, quienes realizaron individualmente una tarea de conciencia sintáctica y otra de conciencia fonémica. Los resultados en español confirman los hallazgos obtenidos en lenguas opacas, puesto que muestran que el desarrollo de ambas habilidades metalingüísticas continúa evolucionando durante el periodo básico.

The development of syntactic awareness has still not been widely investigated in a transparent orthography, such as Spanish. On the other hand, the increase of phonological awareness and its contribution to reading acquisition has received much more attention, both in opaque and transparent languages. Studies with English and French speaking children have demonstrated that syntactic awareness continues developing after reading instruction begins, and that even at the age of 11 or 14 it is not completely developed. The aim of this study was to describe and compare the development of syntactic awareness and phonological awareness in Chilean children from elementary grades. A sample of 234 Chilean children participated in the study, and they were assessed individually in syntactic and phonological awareness tasks. Results in Spanish confirmed similar findings found in opaque languages, as it was shown that both meta-linguistic abilities are still being developed at the school levels evaluated in this study.

Syntactic Awareness and Arithmetic Word Problem Solving in Children With and Without Learning Disabilities.

Arithmetic word problem (AWP) solving is a highly demanding task for children with learning disabilities (LD) since verbal and mathematical information have to be integrated. This study examines specifically how syntactic awareness (SA), the ability to manage the grammatical structures of language, affects AWP solving. Three groups of children in elementary education were formed: children with arithmetic learning disabilities (ALD), children with reading learning disabilities (RLD), and children with comorbid arithmetic and reading learning disabilities (ARLD). Mediation analysis confirmed that SA was a mediator variable for both groups of children with reading disabilities when solving AWPs, but not for children in the ALD group. All groups performed below the control group in the problem solving task. When SA was controlled for, semantic structure and position of the unknown set were variables that affected both groups with ALD. Specifically, children with ALD only were more affected by the place of the unknown set.

Internal structure and standardized scores of the Spanish adaptation of the EGRA (Early Grade Reading Assessment) for early reading assessment / Estructura interna y baremación de la adaptación española del EGRA (Early Grade Reading Assessment) para la evaluación temprana de la lectura

BACKGROUND: The EGRA (Early Grade Reading Assessment) is an assessment tool containing the main predictors of reading learning disabilities based on the National Reading Panel (NRP) (National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, 2000). This study has two main objectives: First, to analyze the internal structure of the EGRA, and second, to examine the validity and normative data for first and second grade primary school students in a Spanish-Speaking population. METHOD: This study had a sample of 400 children (196 female and 204 male) attending early grades of Primary School, between 6 and 8 years of age. RESULTS: Our findings indicate that the EGRA has acceptable psychometric properties and an internal structure that is based on the two main factors of «decoding and comprehension» and «oral comprehension». CONCLUSIONS: We believe that the normative data collected from this study may be useful for the early detection of «at risk» Spanish children having reading disabilities, as well as for planning of early reading education

ANTECEDENTES: EGRA (Early Grade Reading Assessment) es un instrumento para la evaluación temprana de la lectura e incluye los principales componentes que según el National Reading Panel (NRP) (National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, 2000) predicen las dificultades de aprendizaje en lectura. El principal objetivo de este trabajo ha sido, por una parte, estudiar la estructura interna del EGRA y, por otra, analizar su validez y establecer datos normativos para 1º y 2º curso de Educación Primaria en población escolar española. MÉTODO: se seleccionó una muestra de 400 alumnos (196 niñas y 204 niños) pertenecientes al primer ciclo de Educación Primaria, cuyas edades oscilaban entre 6 y 8 años. RESULTADOS: los datos apuntan a que el EGRA reúne las características métricas exigibles a este tipo de pruebas y que su estructura interna responde a dos factores principales como sería la «descodificación y comprensión» y la «comprensión oral». CONCLUSIONES: los datos normativos obtenidos podrían ser utilizados para la detección temprana de niños españoles con riesgo de presentar dificultades de aprendizaje en la lectura, y también para la planificación de la enseñanza de la lectura en los primeros niveles de la escolaridad

Internal structure and standardized scores of the Spanish adaptation of the EGRA (Early Grade Reading Assessment) for early reading assessment.

BACKGROUND: The EGRA (Early Grade Reading Assessment) is an assessment tool containing the main predictors of reading learning disabilities based on the National Reading Panel (NRP) (National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, 2000). This study has two main objectives: First, to analyze the internal structure of the EGRA, and second, to examine the validity and normative data for first and second grade primary school students in a Spanish-Speaking population. METHOD: This study had a sample of 400 children (196 female and 204 male) attending early grades of Primary School, between 6 and 8 years of age. RESULTS: Our findings indicate that the EGRA has acceptable psychometric properties and an internal structure that is based on the two main factors of "decoding and comprehension" and "oral comprehension". CONCLUSIONS: We believe that the normative data collected from this study may be useful for the early detection of 'at risk' Spanish children having reading disabilities, as well as for planning of early reading education.