Che Kan Leong

Text Comprehension in Chinese Children : Relative Contribution of Verbal Working Memory, Pseudoword Reading, Rapid Automatized Naming, and Onset-Rime Phonological Segmentation

The present study examined the role of verbal working memory (memory span, tongue twister), 2-character Chinese pseudoword reading, rapid automatized naming (letters, numbers), and phonological segmentation (deletion of rimes and onsets) in inferential text comprehension in Chinese in 518 Chinese children in Hong Kong in Grades 3 to 5. It was hypothesized that verbal working memory, together with a small contribution from the other constructs, would explain individual variation in the childrens text comprehension. Structural equation modeling and hierarchical multiple regression analyses generally upheld the hypotheses. Though Chinese pseudoword reading did not play an important mediating role in the effect of verbal working memory on text comprehension, verbal working memory had strong effects on pseudoword reading and text comprehension. The findings on the Chinese language support current Western literature as well as display the differential role of the constructs in Chinese reading comprehension.

Productive Knowledge of Derivational Rules in Poor Readers.

The present report with two complementary experiments examined the productive knowledge of derivational morphology in 75 grade 4, 5, and 6 “poor” readers further divided into those performing better, or worse, inboth reading and spelling ((R + S +) or R − S −)), or better in the one or the other (mixed) subgroups. Experiment 1 required individual subjects to vocalize rapidly the derived forms of words when primed with 40 target base words in four derivational conditions or levels embedded in sentence frames shown on the computer screen. Experiment 2 required the reverse process of vocalizing the base forms of words when primed with 40, complex derived forms in the same four morphology conditions embedded in sentence frames shown on the computer screen. Results of the analysis of the reaction times show a developmental trend and that the subgroups of poor readers used different mechanisms in producing derived or base forms of words according to the complexity of the orthographic and/or phonological changes needed in the derivational process. The important role of morphemic structure and origin of words in instruction is emphasized.

Learning to Read and Spell English Words by Chinese Students.

This study examined the structural relationships between (a) the latent independent constructs of orthographic and lexical knowledge and phonological sensitivity and (b) the effect of these constructs on the latent construct of literacy manifested by reading aloud and spelling regular and exception English words in 156 Cantonese-speaking Chinese students (M age = 10.8 years) who were learning English as a second language in Hong Kong. Three carefully designed and item-analyzed indicators subserved the construct of orthographic and lexical knowledge, and another three indicators subserved the construct of phonological sensitivity. Our hypothesis of greater contribution of word-specific orthographic and lexical knowledge than phonological sensitivity to learning to read and spell English words in these Chinese children was supported by results from multiple regression, principal component analyses and especially by structural equation modeling. The various goodness-of-fit dexes showed the appropriateness of the indicators in measuring the latent constructs as well as the relationships among these constructs.

Reading Disabilities: Diagnosis and Component Processes

Part I Differential diagnosis for reading disabilities: problems in the differential diagnosis of reading disabilities from research to clinical assessment of reading and writing disorders - the unit of analysis problem constructing meaning from diagnostic assessment texts - validity as usefulness Alice in IQ land or why IQ is still irrelevant to learning disabilities towards developing a framework for diagnosing reading disorders. Part II Access to language-related component processes: components of variance models of language-related factors in reading disability - a conceptual overview phonemic awareness, language and literacy the relevance of phonological awareness in learning to read - Scandinavian longitudinal and quasi-experimental studies does a past history of speech disorder predict literacy difficulties? phonological processing in learning disabled adolescents phonological deficits and the development of word recognition skills in developmental dyslexia. Part III Reading/spelling strategies: dyslexic reading strategies and lexical access - a comparison and validation of reading strategy distributions in dyslexic adolescents and younger, normal readers the spelling-reading connection and dyslexia - can spelling be used to teach the alphabetic strategy? impact of instruction on word identification skills in children with phonological processing problems predicting reading acquisition in high and low IQ groups phonetic short-term memory representation in childrens reading of Greek developmental dyslexia as a cognitive style reading comprehension and related skills in nine-year-old normal and poor readers.

Cross-Language Studies of Learning to Read and Spell

Preface. Introduction: 1. Relating Phonologic and Orthographic Processing to Learning to Read and Spell Che Kan Leong, R.M. Joshi. English: 2. Toward an Understanding of Phonological Awareness H.W. Catts, et al. 3. The Nature of the Phonological Deficit Underlying Disorders of Spoken and Written Language B. Dodd, G. Gillon. 4. Case Studies of Dyslexia: Young Readers with Rapid Serial Naming Deficits J.K. Uhry. 5. The Relationship of Central Auditory Processing Disorder and Learning Problems S. Schwartz, M. Bruck. 6. Beginning Reading in Germany and the U.S.: A Comparison of Phonological Segmentation, Decoding, Lexical Access and Comprehension J.C. Naslund, et al. German: 7. Word Recognition in English and German Dyslexics: A Direct Comparison K. Landerl. 8. The Early Prediction of Reading and Spelling: Evidence From the Munich Longitudinal Study on the Genesis of Individual Competencies W. Schneider, J.C. Naslund. 9. Cultural Influences on Literacy Development G. Mannhaupt, et al. 10. Strategies of Spelling and Reading of Young Children Learning German Orthography R. Valtin. Dutch: 11. Reading Development in Elementary School: Do Syllables Play a Role in Phonological Decoding? H.W.M.J. Wentink, et al. 12. How to Get Friends in Beginning Word Recognition P. Reitsma. 13. Visual Processes in Word Recognition by Poor Readers: Relative Use of Visual, Phonological, and Orthographic Cues E.M.H. Assink. 14. Reading and Spelling in Dutch First and Second Graders: Do They Use an OrthographicStrategy? M.J.W.L. Coenen, et al. 15. Measuring Word Identification Skills and Related Variables in Dutch Children K.P. van den Bos, H.C.L. Spelberg. Nordic Languages: 16. Early Language Development and Kindergarten Phonological Awareness as Predictors of Reading Problems: from 3 to 8 Years of Age S.-A.H. Lyster. 18. What Can Be Learned About Reading Acquisition in the Finnish Language R.-L. Korkeamaki. Chinese: 19. Phonological Awareness and Learning to Read Chinese J.R. Hanley, H.S. Huang. 20. Paradigmatic Analysis of Chinese Word Reading: Research Findings and Classroom Practices Che Kan Leong. Author Index.

Enhancing reading comprehension with text-to-speech (DECtalk) computer system

The study aimed at enhancing text comprehension, assessed through inferencing questions in expository prose passages, in adolescent readers. A total of 67 grades 6, 7, and 8 readers, dichotomized into above and below average subgroups in reading, first read unaided the 12 computerized passages of about 200 words each. They were then provided with explanations of difficult words and sentence structures given either on-line or on-line plus DECtalk speech. Using a pre- and post-test design, it was found that the students gained in their reading comprehension across both training modes, but the efficacy of DECtalk together with on-line explanations was found with only 2 prose passages and mainly with above average readers. The findings are discussed within the context of situated and interactive computer learning environments.

The effects of morphological structure on reading proficiency—A developmental study

The present report with three inter-related studies examined the effects of morphological complexity on reading proficiency in 103 fourth graders, 88 fifth graders and 107 sixth graders trichotomized into below average, average and above average readers. The reaction time paradigm and the developmental framework with three age groups provided more sensitive and stable results for inferring mental processes in accessing the lexicon. Study 1 on lexical decision with visually presented words and non-words with different morphemic boundaries suggests that words can be accessed in a decomposed state as morphemes by children. Study 2 and the complementary Study 3 requiring the vocalization of derived or base forms of words primed by target items in sentence frames indicate that words might be accessed in full forms. Further, the depth of derivational morphology and of base morphology with correlated phonological changes affect reading proficiency.

Exploring reading-spelling connection as locus of dyslexia in Chinese.

This paper advances the argument that in learning to read/spell Chinese characters and words, it is important for learners to understand the role of the component parts. These constituents consist of phonetic and semantic radicals, or bujians, made up of clusters of strokes in their proper sequence. Beginning readers/spellers need to be sensitive to the positional hierarchy and internal structure of these constituent parts. Those Chinese children diagnosed with developmental dyslexia tend to have more difficulties in spelling Chinese characters and in writing to dictation than in reading. A lexical decision study with two groups of tertiary students differing in their Chinese language ability was carried out to test their efficiency in processing real and pseudo characters as a function of printed frequency of the characters, and the consistency of their component semantic radicals. There is some evidence that even for adult readers differing in their Chinese language ability, lexicality, frequency of characters and the consistency of the semantic radicals affect accurate and rapid character identification. Suggestions for research and teaching approaches are made to enhance the analysis and synthesis of the phonetic and semantic radicals to promote efficient reading and spelling in Chinese.

What does accessing a morphemic script tell us about reading and reading disorders in an alphabetic script

This paper discusses the commonalities and differences in the processing mechanism of analytic reading in the English orthography and the Chinese orthography. Readers of English generally use the phonological processing route, although the morphological aspect should also be emphasized. Readers of Chinese would need to take advantage of the morphemic nature of the script, although speech recoding is also used. The interplay of the phonological, morphological, syntactic, and semantic processing is emphasized. Reading disorders may implicate certain processing routes, but may spare other components.

Cognitive patterns of “retarded” and below-average readers

Abstract This paper discusses the cognitive patterns of 58 “retarded” and 38 below-average readers compared with an equal number of controls. The framework was Lurias simultaneous and successive modes of information processing. Three methods of factor analysis: principal component analysis, alpha factor analysis, and promax oblique analysis of a battery of “simultaneous-successive” tasks showed different cognitive patterns for disabled readers and nondisabled ones and that the results were “method-independent.” The simultaneous-successive syntheses, while functionally independent, represent flexible modes of information processing. The factor analytic studies supplemented with qualitative analysis of performance of the disabled readers highlight the importance of strategies to solve cognitive tasks. The Luria paradigm provides a useful framework for research into reading difficulties with implications for remediation.