Practicing Keywords to Increase Reading Performance of Students With Intellectual Disability

2021 ◽  
Vol 126 (3) ◽  
pp. 230-248
Author(s):  
Mallory A. Stevens ◽  
Matthew K. Burns

Abstract The purpose of the current study was to determine the extent to which practicing keywords increased word recognition, reading fluency and comprehension for students with intellectual disability (ID). The dependent measures included word recognition (i.e., the percentage of previously unknown keywords read correctly in the given text), reading fluency (i.e., words read correctly in 1 minute), and reading comprehension (i.e., number of questions answered correctly out of five). The participants were three fourth-grade students who were identified as having ID in early childhood with IQ scores of 45, 62, and 78. Words from reading passages were practiced with Incremental Rehearsal (IR) using a multielement, single-case design. Practicing keywords led to higher subsequent in-text recognition and generalization for a high percentage of the taught words. Additionally, there was clear experimental control for increases in reading fluency. There was not a strong effect on reading comprehension. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 75-88 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nuria Calet ◽  
M. Carmen Pérez-Morenilla ◽  
Macarena De los Santos-Roig

Apart from speed and accuracy, prosody has recently been included as another component of skilled reading, as its role in reading comprehension is being increasingly recognized. Prosodic reading refers to the use of prosodic features of language during reading, including suitable pauses, stress and intonation and appropriate phrasing. The aim of this research was to examine the impact of a prosodic reading intervention on the reading comprehension of a fourth-grade primary child with specific reading comprehension difficulties. An AB single-case design was used with baseline (A) and treatment (B) phases. The intervention, in 17 sessions, was based on repeated reading with a focus on expressiveness. Results pointed to improved reading fluency and reading comprehension scores over baseline scores. Nevertheless, more studies are needed to show conclusive evidence for improved comprehension as a result of prosody intervention. The implications of prosodic reading interventions for literacy development are discussed.


2017 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 448
Author(s):  
Xiangying Jiang

<em>Cross-linguistic studies on second language (L2) reading reveal that component skills of reading such as word recognition, phonemic decoding, spelling, and oral text reading are prone to the influence of first language (L1) orthography but few empirical studies have examined the possible influence of L1 orthography on these skills. This study investigates how adult ESL learners of two different L1 backgrounds (Spanish and Chinese) compare in their performances on word recognition efficiency, phonemic decoding efficiency, spelling, and oral text reading fluency and how these skills are related to their overall ability in reading comprehension. The differences in the learners’ performances on the component skills and the variations in the role of these skills in ESL reading comprehension indicated possible influence of the orthographic features of learners’ first language.</em>


2019 ◽  
Vol 89 (4) ◽  
pp. 612-651
Author(s):  
Alexandra Shelton ◽  
Jade Wexler ◽  
Rebecca D. Silverman ◽  
Laura M. Stapleton

The inclusion of individuals with intellectual disability (ID) in typical settings is increasing. To promote success in these settings, educators must support the reading comprehension of individuals with ID. Therefore, we conducted a synthesis of the extant research on reading comprehension interventions for individuals in the largest category of ID—mild ID—in Grades 4 through 12 and postsecondary programs. We review the methodological and intervention features of eight group-design studies and six single-case design studies published between January 2001 and December 2018. Findings from the 14 studies revealed inconsistent effects of single-component and multicomponent interventions on expository and narrative reading comprehension. However, medium to large positive effects were typically found from interventions using peer-mediated instruction and explicit strategy instruction. More rigorous research investigating the effects of reading comprehension interventions for individuals with mild ID using standardized measures is warranted. Practical implications and recommendations for future research are discussed.


2018 ◽  
Vol 40 (3) ◽  
pp. 131-149 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth A. Stevens ◽  
Sunyoung Park ◽  
Sharon Vaughn

This systematic review examines the effects of summarizing and main idea interventions on the reading comprehension outcomes of struggling readers in Grades 3 through 12. A comprehensive search identified 30 studies published in peer-reviewed journals between 1978 and 2016. Studies included struggling reader participants in Grades 3 through 12; targeted summarizing or main idea instruction; used an experimental, quasi-experimental, or single-case design; and included a reading comprehension outcome. A meta-analysis of 23 group design studies resulted in a statistically significant mean effect of 0.97. Group size, number of sessions, grade level, and publication year did not moderate treatment effect. Visual analysis of six single-case designs yielded strong evidence for retell measures and a range of evidence for short-answer comprehension measures. Findings suggest that main idea and summarizing instruction may improve struggling readers’ main idea identification and reading comprehension. Limitations include the lack of standardized measures and the unreported, changing description of the counterfactual.


1985 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 129-142 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lawrence J. O'Shea ◽  
Paul T. Sindelar ◽  
Dorothy J. O'Shea

The failure of some researchers to find improved reading comprehension with increased fluency may result from the assumption that readers automatically shift attention to comprehension when fluency is established. Research on cuing readers to a purpose in reading suggests that a simple cue about comprehension may be sufficient to prompt this attentional shift. In this study, the effects of repeated readings and attentional cues on measures of reading fluency and comprehension were examined. Thirty third graders read separate passages one, three, and seven times following cues to attend to either reading rate or meaning. After the final reading of each passage, the students retold as much of the story as they could. Fluency and proportion of story propositions retold were analyzed in repeated measures analyses of variance. Significant main effects for both repeated readings and attentional cues were obtained on both dependent measures. Thus, both fluency and comprehension increased as the number of repeated readings increased. In addition, readers cued to fluency read faster but comprehended less than those cued to comprehension. These results suggest that increasing fluency is a less efficient means of improving comprehension than presenting cues about comprehension.


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