Dale M. Willows

Systematic Phonics Instruction Helps Students Learn to Read: Evidence from the National Reading Panel’s Meta-Analysis

A quantitative meta-analysis evaluating the effects of systematic phonics instruction compared to unsystematic or no-phonics instruction on learning to read was conducted using 66 treatment-control comparisons derived from 38 experiments. The overall effect of phonics instruction on reading was moderate, d = 0.41. Effects persisted after instruction ended. Effects were larger when phonics instruction began early (d = 0.55) than after first grade (d = 0.27). Phonics benefited decoding, word reading, text comprehension, and spelling in many readers. Phonics helped low and middle SES readers, younger students at risk for reading disability (RD), and older students with RD, but it did not help low achieving readers that included students with cognitive limitations. Synthetic phonics and larger-unit systematic phonics programs produced a similar advantage in reading. Delivering instruction to small groups and classes was not less effective than tutoring. Systematic phonics instruction helped children learn to read better than all forms of control group instruction, including whole language. In sum, systematic phonics instruction proved effective and should be implemented as part of literacy programs to teach beginning reading as well as to prevent and remediate reading difficulties.

The Development of Grammatical Sensitivity and Its Relationship to Early Reading Achievement.

THIS RESEARCH traced the development of grammatical sensitivity (both semantic and syntactic) across Grades 1, 2, and 3 on a variety of oral-language tasks and related this development to the acquisition of skill in reading, as reflected by a range of reading measures. The results provide clear evidence for the development of grammatical sensitivity across the three grades, and grammatical sensitivity (with general cognitive ability and vocabulary level controlled) was found to be significantly related to level of reading skill. The findings are interpreted within the context of interactive-compensatory processes in reading fluency and stages of reading acquisition.

Word recognition in two languages and orthographies: English and Greek

Word recognition processes of monolingual readers of English and of Greek were examined with respect to the orthographic and syntactic characteristics of each language. Because of Greeks direct letter-to-sound correspondence, which is unlike the indirect representation of English, the possibility was raised of a greater influence of the phonological code in Greek word recognition. Because Greek is an inflected language, whereas English is a word order language, it was also possible that syntax might influence word recognition patterns in the two languages differentially. These cross-linguistic research questions were investigated within the context of a letter cancellation paradigm. The results provide evidence that readers are sensitive to both the orthographic and the linguistic idiosyncrasies of their language. The results are discussed in terms of the orthographic depth hypothesis and the competition model.

Visual processing characteristics of children with Meares-Irlen syndrome.

The potential role of visual processing deficits in reading difficulty was brought to public attention by claims that a large proportion of children with dyslexia suffer from a perceptual dysfunction currently referred to as Meares–Irlen syndrome (MISViS). A previous study showing that visual perceptual measures involving visual memory and discrimination predict independent variance in reading achievement [J. Learn. Disabil. 28 (1995) 216] provides a basis to examine their relationships with the diagnostic criteria of MISViS. This study examined these visual processing characteristics in 36 eight‐ to ten‐year‐old children, half of whom were experiencing reading difficulty. Children were assessed for MISViS by Irlen screeners; approximately half of the participants in each group were positively identified. Concurrent performance on standardized visual processing tests showed that while a positive diagnosis of MISViS is not indicative of reading ability, nor in particular of a visual‐processing deficit subtype identified by Watson and Willows [J. Learn. Disabil. 28 (1995) 216], MISViS can indicate visual processing difficulties potentially related to visual attention inefficiency.

Investigating teachers’ exploration of a professional development website: An innovative approach to understanding the factors that motivate teachers to use Internet-based resources / Investigation de l’exploration par les enseignants d’un site Web

This qualitative study examined an innovative methodology, combining screen capture technology and a retrospective think aloud, for exploring the use of Internet-based resources by elementary teachers. Pre-service and in-service teachers explored The Balanced Literacy Diet, a free, interactive, and evidenced-informed professional development website. As participants navigated through this complex site, each visual step was captured using Camtasia Studio, a screen recording computer software program developed by TechSmith. Immediately following their 10-minute exploration, participants revisited their online choices virtually and verbalized their thoughts while viewing their screen recording. Qualitative analysis confirmed the usefulness of the methodology and provided insights about the factors that motivate teachers to use professional development websites. Results of the analysis can contribute to the ongoing development of high quality online learning environments. Cette etude qualitative s’est penchee sur une methodologie innovatrice combinant les technologies de saisie d’ecran et la pensee retrospective a voix haute pour l’exploration de l’utilisation des ressources dans Internet par les enseignants de l’elementaire. Des enseignants en formation initiale et des enseignants sur place ont explore The Balanced Literacy Diet, un site Web de perfectionnement professionnel gratuit, interactif et s’appuyant sur des donnees probantes. Tandis que les participants naviguaient dans ce site complexe, chaque etape visuelle etait captee a l’aide de Camtasia Studio, un logiciel d’enregistrement de l’ecran developpe par TechSmith. Immediatement apres leur exploration de 10 minutes, les participants ont revisite virtuellement leurs choix en ligne et ont verbalise leurs reflexions en regardant l’enregistrement de l’ecran. L’analyse qualitative a confirme l’utilite de la methodologie et a fourni des perspectives sur les facteurs qui motivent les enseignants a utiliser les sites Web de perfectionnement professionnel. Les resultats de l’analyse peuvent contribuer au developpement continu d’environnements d’apprentissage en ligne de grande qualite.