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Phonological awareness training with articulation promotes early reading development
Abstract and Figures
In a longitudinal intervention study, the effects of phonological training
with articulation for children in a preschool class were analyzed.
In total, 69 students participated, divided into an experimental group
of 39 and a comparison group of 30 students.
The intervention consisted of phonological training with articulation
and lasted throughout the preschool class year; in total, 2700 minutes
were spent on this training for the experimental group. All participants
were tested individually on pre-reading skills on four test occasions:
before the intervention started, mid-term, immediately after the end of
the intervention and, finally, a follow-up 6 months after the intervention
was completed.
Based on their pre-reading skills, the participants were divided into
two different subgroups, those at risk of developing reading difficulties
and those not at risk. The results showed greater progress at the follow-
up test of both the at-risk and not-at-risk subgroups of the experiment
group in word decoding and phonological ability than the comparison
group. The positive results applied both to speech-sounds and
words included in the training program as well as new speech sounds
and words not included in the program, thus providing evidence for
transfer effects.
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... In the current study, these skills were not explicitly included as part of the programme, which suggests a transfer effect may have occurred between foundational phonological awareness skills and higherlevel phonological skills. This aligns with similar transfer effects found in other research on phonological awareness programmes (see Torgesen et al. (2001), Fälth et al. (2017, Werfel et al. (2016)), although children in the current study were younger than those in previous research. In Fälth et al. (2017), a transfer effect was found with 6-year-old children and Torgesen et al. (2001) observed a transfer effect with children who were 8-10 years old. ...
... This aligns with similar transfer effects found in other research on phonological awareness programmes (see Torgesen et al. (2001), Fälth et al. (2017, Werfel et al. (2016)), although children in the current study were younger than those in previous research. In Fälth et al. (2017), a transfer effect was found with 6-year-old children and Torgesen et al. (2001) observed a transfer effect with children who were 8-10 years old. The results from this study, therefore, suggest that children can be supported to develop higher-level phonological skills at younger ages than typically reported. ...
... Previous research has found that this approach works for many children (Gonzalez et al., 2014;Harper, 2011;Reeves et al., 2018;Ruston & Schwanenflugel, 2010;Torgesen et al., 2001;Wasik and Hindman, 2014). However, these intervention programmes often fail to increase the outcomes for at-risk populations (Fälth et al., 2017;Hagans & Good, 2013;Spencer et al., 2012). There are a few exceptions, with studies that were able to produce long-term, code-related outcomes; see Hurry et al. (2021), Elbro and Petersen (2004) and Johanson et al. (2015). ...
A child’s early literacy and language skills are the most reliable predictor of future academic achievement. Despite vast amounts of research supporting this link, many children start formal schooling with low early literacy skills. Without intervention or support, these children will likely continue to fall behind their peers. This exploratory study investigated the effectiveness of a parent-led phonological awareness programme ( n = 3), implemented at home with their 4-year-old children ( n = 4) in Christchurch, New Zealand. This study used an exploratory case study mixed methods design. The programme focused on improving children’s phonological awareness skills by providing parents with readily available activities which taught a range of phonological skills. Parents were supported throughout implementation by the researcher with coaching and modelling. Overall, the study found parents to be effective at implementing the phonological awareness programme and facilitating the development of their children’s emergent literacy skills. Children demonstrated increased phoneme identification, blending and segmenting skills and additional skills not explicitly taught, such as phoneme manipulation. Participation in the programme also positively affected children’s interest in literacy activities, such as reading and writing. Parent reports identified positive effects on children’s articulation, speech, engagement and overall confidence. Parents were positively affected by their participation in the programme, with reports of increased confidence in their English proficiencies and literacy skill development.
... Thus several international projects elect preschool for the promotion of phonological awareness (Falth et al., 2017;Milbrum et al., 2017;Gonzalez and Hughes, 2018), and language (Vaklin-Nusbaum and Nevo, 2017;Chacko et al., 2018;Dickinson et al., 2018;Van Kleeck, 2018). ...
... 10% for IG and 11% for CG), as well as phonemic segmentation (6% for IG and 5% for CG), were poor at the pre-test. These results are expectable and in consonance with previous studies, that found poor levels of phoneme awareness and segmentation at pre-test assessments (Carrol et al., 2011;Leij, 2013;Falth et al., 2017). ...
There is a strong correlation between preschool education skills such as phonological awareness and language and success in reading and spelling acquisition. Even though, this is still not the focus of the early intervention. This study presents the preliminary results of the impact of an intervention program developed to promote reading foundation skills. The study was conducted with 627 children in the last year of preschool education (54.2% boys), ages between 4 years and 10 months and 6 years and 1 month. Participants were divided into intervention (n = 242) and comparative (n = 385) group. Language, implicit, and explicit phonological awareness, and rime implicit awareness were assessed. The intervention group reached statistically higher values in all dimensions at the post-test, a higher magnitude effect and 80% of these children entered the first-grade overpassing cut-off criteria for reading acquisition difficulties. These results support the impact of the program.
... Additional evidence indicates that instruction emphasizing articulatory gestures allows children to acquire better representations of words in long-term memory (Ehri, 2014;Fälth et al., 2017). Taken together, the evidence suggests that explicit instruction using articulatory awareness training improves student acquisition of phonological awareness; therefore, instruction leveraging articulatory gestures (i.e., shape of the mouth, tongue placement, vocal cord activation) in tandem with GPC training may support early reading instruction for all students. ...
Substantial evidence exists suggesting that access to articulatory gestures during instruction improves students’ phonological awareness skills, but researchers have yet to explore the role of articulatory gestures in initial phonics instruction. The purpose of this study was to examine if visual access to articulatory gestures (i.e., mouth cues) of the instructor increases the acquisition and retention of grapheme-phoneme correspondences (GPC). A secondary purpose was to examine if strategic incremental rehearsal (SIR) is an effective method for teaching GPC to preschoolers. A multiple probe across behaviors with an embedded adapted alternating treatments design was used to examine intervention effects. Results provide strong evidence of the importance of students having visual access to their teachers’ articulatory gestures during GPC training.
... An early meta-analysis of experimental training studies indicates that training PA may account for approximately 12% of variance in word-identification skills and greater effects if paired with letter training (Bus & Ijzendoorn, 1999). Additional studies and meta-analyses corroborate the value of PA interventions (Fälth et al., 2017;Fischer & Pfost, 2015;Kjeldsen et al., 2014). ...
... These latter findings are consistent with studies reporting that the reading skills of adults with dyslexia are not underpinned by their phonological (and therefore phonemic) skills, unlike in the case of skilled adult readers [14,112,117,118]. The hypothesis according to which impaired articulatory speech skills influence phonemic representations in dyslexia is consistent with the results of studies that have provided some articulatory training for dyslexia remediation and reported a reduction in the phonological disorder coupled with an improvement in reading and spelling performance [119][120][121]. ...
Phonemic processing skills are impaired both in children and adults with dyslexia. Since phoneme representation development is based on articulatory gestures, it is likely that these gestures influence oral reading-related skills as assessed through phonemic awareness tasks. In our study, fifty-two young dyslexic adults, with and without motor impairment, and fifty-nine skilled readers performed reading, phonemic awareness, and articulatory tasks. The two dyslexic groups exhibited slower articulatory rates than skilled readers and the comorbid dyslexic group presenting with an additional difficulty in respiratory control (reduced speech proportion and increased pause duration). Two versions of the phoneme awareness task (PAT) with pseudoword strings were administered: a classical version under time pressure and a delayed version in which access to phonemic representations and articulatory programs was facilitated. The two groups with dyslexia were outperformed by the control group in both versions. Although the two groups with dyslexia performed equally well on the classical PAT, the comorbid group performed significantly less efficiently on the delayed PAT, suggesting an additional contribution of articulatory impairment in the task for this group. Overall, our results suggest that impaired phoneme representations in dyslexia may be explained, at least partially, by articulatory deficits affecting access to them.
Visual Phonics is a multisensory method for teaching phonological skills using visual, auditory, and kinesthetic
modalities and has the potential to improve the literacy development of diverse students, especially struggling
readers. Many interventions designed for specific populations (e.g., students who are deaf or have learning
disabilities) can be generalized to the larger population of students. However, the potential of these interventions
is often overlooked or regarded as not applicable to specific cohorts of students. Visual Phonics is one such
example. Therefore, this paper describes visual phonics, reviews selected studies on its effectiveness, and provides
instructional activities and strategies of Visual Phonics to show how to use this system effectively.
The purpose of this study was to determine if phonemic awareness skills improved for first grade students classified as at‐risk whose teachers used the Lindamood Phoneme Sequencing Program (LiPS; Lindamood & Lindamood, 1998). Students' scores on a Kindergarten screening tool (Learning Disabilities Working Committee ‐ LDWC, 2005) were compared to their respective scores on a Grade One screening tool (LDWC, 2002). Comparison of progress for all students was evaluated as well as assessment of progress for students deemed at risk (below the 25th percentile) of reading failure compared to those not at risk (above the 25th percentile). Paired‐sample t‐tests were also used to determine if statistically significant differences existed between the means of phonemic identity, phonemic blending, and letter/sound identification between Kindergarten and Grade One. Results indicated that gains were made by all students in phonemic awareness and letter/sound correspondence; however, greater gains were noted for students deemed at‐risk whose teachers used the LiPS program (Lindamood & Lindamood, 1998).
Positive long-term effects of phoneme awareness training in kindergarten were found in this study with children of dyslexic parents. Thirty-five at-risk children (attending 26 different classes) participated in an intensive 17-week program in their regular kindergarten classes designed to help them improve in phoneme awareness. Follow-up measures indicated that the trained children outperformed 47 untrained at-risk controls in both word and nonword reading in Grades 2, 3, and 7. For the very poorest readers, significant effects were found--even in Grade 7 reading comprehension. However, the trained at-risk children were found to lag behind a 2nd control group of 41 not-at-risk children in most aspects of reading. Treatment-resistant children had relatively poor phonological representations of known words. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
In a longitudinal study, development of word reading fluency and spelling were followed for almost 8 years. In a group of 115 students (65 girls, 50 boys) acquiring the phonologically transparent German orthography, prediction measures (letter knowledge, phonological short-term memory, phonological awareness, rapid automatized naming, and nonverbal IQ) were assessed at the beginning of Grade 1; reading fluency and spelling were tested at the end of Grade 1 as well as in Grades 4 and 8. Reading accuracy was close to ceiling in all reading assessments, such that reading fluency was not heavily influenced by differences in reading accuracy. High stability was observed for word reading fluency development. Of the dysfluent readers in Grade 1, 70% were still poor readers in Grade 8. For spelling, children who at the end of Grade 1 still had problems translating spoken words into phonologically plausible letter sequences developed problems with orthographic spelling later on. The strongest specific predictors were rapid automatized naming for reading fluency and phonological awareness for spelling. Word recognition speed was a relevant and highly stable indicator of reading skills and the only indicator that discriminated reading skill levels in consistent orthographies. Its long-term development was more strongly influenced by early naming speed than by phonological awareness. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
ABSTRACTS
A quantitative meta‐analysis evaluating the effects of phonemic awareness (PA) instruction on learning to read and spell was conducted by the National Reading Panel. There were 52 studies published in peer‐reviewed journals, and these contributed 96 cases comparing the outcomes of treatment and control groups. Analysis of effect sizes revealed that the impact of PA instruction on helping children acquire PA was large and statistically significant ( d = 0.86). PA instruction exerted a moderate, statistically significant impact on reading ( d = 0.53) and spelling ( d = 0.59). Not only word reading but also reading comprehension benefited. PA instruction impacted reading under all the conditions examined although effect sizes were larger under some conditions. PA instruction helped various types of children: normally developing readers as well as at‐risk and disabled readers; preschoolers, kindergartners, and first graders; low socioeconomic status children as well as mid‐high SES. PA instruction improved reading, but it did not improve spelling in disabled readers. PA instruction was more effective when it was taught with letters than without letters, when one or two PA skills were taught than multiple PA skills, when children were taught in small groups than individually or in classrooms, and when instruction lasted between 5 and 18 hours rather than longer. Classroom teachers were effective in teaching PA to their students. Effect sizes were larger for studies using more rigorous experimental designs, with rigor assessments drawn from Troia (1999). In sum, PA instruction was found to make a statistically significant contribution to reading acquisition. [See also a letter to the editors regarding this article, and the first author's response: http:dx.doi.org10.1598RRQ.37.2.1 ]
Un meta‐análisis cuantitativo que evaluó los efectos de la instrucción en conciencia fonémica (CF) sobre el aprendizaje de la lectura y la escritura fue llevado a cabo por el Panel Nacional de Lectura (National Reading Panel). Se tomaron 52 estudios, publicados en revistas con referato, que aportaron 96 casos en los que se comparó el resultado de los grupos de tratamiento y de control. El análisis de las magnitudes del efecto reveló que el impacto de la instrucción en CF sobre el desarrollo de la CF en los niños fue grande y estadísticamente significativo ( d = 0.86). La instrucción en CF ejerció un impacto moderado, estadísticamente significativo en la lectura ( d = 0.53) y escritura ( d = 0.59). No sólo se benefició la lectura de palabras, sino también la comprensión lectora. La instrucción en CF impactó en la lectura, en todas las condiciones examinadas, sin embargo las magnitudes del efecto fueron mayores en algunas condiciones. La instrucción en CF ayudó a distintos tipos de niños: lectores de desarrollo normal, lectores de riesgo y lectores con dificultades; niños de jardín, preescolar y primer grado; niños de NSE bajo y niños de NSE medio‐alto. La instrucción en CF mejoró la lectura pero no la escritura en los lectores con dificultades. La instrucción en CF fue más efectiva cuando se realizó con apoyo de las letras que cuando no se enseñaron las letras, cuando se enseñaron una o dos habilidades de CF que cuando se enseñaron múltiples habilidades, cuando se insruyó a los niños en pequeños grupos que cuando se realizó individualmente o en el aula y cuando la instrucción duró entre 5 y 18 horas que cuando abarcó más tiempo. Los docentes fueron eficaces en la enseñanza de la CF a los estudiantes. Las magnitudes del efecto fueron mayores en los estudios que utilizaron diseños experimentales más rigurosos, con evaluaciones de rigor tomadas de Troia (1999). En suma, se halló que la instrucción en CF constituye una contribución significativa a la adquisición de la lectura.
Eine quantitative Meta‐Analyse, welche Auswirkungen phonischen Aufnahmebewußseins (PA) beim Erlernen des Lesens und Buchstabierens bewertet, wurde vom Nationalen Lesegremium durchgeführt. Es wurden 52 Studien in von Lehrern rezensierten Fachzeitschriften publiziert und diese nannten 96 Fälle, bei denen die Ergebnisse von Anwendungs‐ und Kontrollgruppen verglichen wurden. Die Analyse über Wirksamkeitsausmaße ergab, daß der Einfluß von PA‐Anweisungen in der Unterstützung der Kinder beim Erwerb von PA groß und statistisch bedeutend ( d = 0.86) war. PA‐Anweisungen übten einen ausgleichenden, statitisch bedeutsamen Einfluß aufs Lesen ( d = 0.53) und Buchstabieren ( d = 0.59) aus. Nicht nur das Lesen von Wörtern, sondern auch das Leseverständnis wurde begünstigt. PA‐Anweisungen beeinflußten das Lesen unter all den untersuchten Bedingungen, obwohl die Ausmaße der Auswirkungen bei einigen Bedingungen größer waren. PA‐Anweisungen halfen unterschiedlich gearteten Kindern: normal sich entwickelnde Leser, sowie auch risikobedingte und behinderte Leser; Vorschüler, Kindergartenteilnehmer und Erstklässler; Kinder der unteren Gundschulstufen (SES) als auch mittlerer und höherer Grundschulstufen (SES). PA‐Anweisungen verbesserten das Lesen, nicht jedoch das Buchstabieren bei behinderten Lesern. PA‐Anweisungen waren wirksamer, wenn sie zusammen mit den Buchstaben statt ohne Buchstaben unterrichtet wurden, wenn jeweils eine oder zwei PA‐Fertigkeiten statt ein Mehrfaches an PA‐Fertigkeiten unterrichtet wurde, wenn Kinder in kleinen Gruppen statt einzeln unterrichtet oder in Klassenräumen, und wenn der Unterricht insgesamt zwischen 5 und 18 Stunden andauerte, statt langfristiger. Klassenlehrer waren beim Unterricht von PA erfolgreich mit ihren Schülern. Das Wirkungsausmaß war unter Nutzung strengerer Experimentierpläne für den Unterricht größer, mit den von Troia (1999) abgeleiteten straffen Bewertungen. Zusammengefaßt fand man, daß die PA‐Anweisung einen statistisch nachweisbar bedeutenden Beitrag zum Erwerb von Lesefertigkeiten leisten.
Une méta‐analyse quantitative pour évaluer les effets de l'enseignement de la conscience phonémique (CP) sur l'apprentissage de la lecture et de l'écriture a été conduite par la Commission Nationale de Lecture. Elle a porté sur 52 études publiées dans des journaux à comité de rédaction ayant conduit à 96 études comparant les résultats de groupes expérimentaux et contrôles. L'analyse de l'importance des effets révèle que l'enseignement de la CP sur le développement de la CP a un impact large et statistiquement significatif ( d = 0.86). L'enseignement de la CP a un effet modéré, statistiquement significatif ( d = 0.53) sur l'écriture ( d = 0.59). Non seulement la lecture de mots en bénéficie mais également la compréhension. L'enseignement de la CP a un impact sur la lecture dans toutes les conditions examinées, bien que la taille de l'effet soit plus large dans certaines conditions. L'enseignement de la CP est une aide pour différents types d'enfants: aussi bien pour ceux qui apprennent à lire normalement que pour les enfants à risque et pour ceux qui ont des difficultés; pour les enfants d'école maternelle ou de première année de primaire: pour les enfants de milieu social défavorisé aussi bien que pour ceux de classe moyenne. L'enseignement de la CP facilite le développement de la lecture mais pas celui de l'écriture chez les enfants en difficulté. L'enseignement de la CP a plus d'effet quand il a lieu avec des lettres que sans lettres, quand on enseigne une ou deux compétences de CP que de multiples compétences de CP, quand il a lieu en petit groupe que individuellement ou en salle de classe, et quand l'enseignement dureentre 5 et 18 heures plutôt que plus longtemps. L'enseignement de la CP en classe par des enseignants est efficace. La taille des effets est plus grande quand les études utilisent des plans expérimentaux plus rigoureux, et des évaluations rigoureuses provenant de Troia (1999). En bref, il apparaît que l'enseignement de la CP apporte une contribution statistiquement significative à l'acquisition de la lecture.
We present a longitudinal intervention study of children experiencing difficulties in the early stages of learning to read. Our subjects, 7-year-old poor readers, were divided into 4 matched groups and assigned to 1 of 3 experimental teaching conditions: Reading with Phonology, Reading Alone, Phonology Alone, and a Control. Although the Phonology Alone group showed most improvement on phonological tasks, the Reading with Phonology group made most progress in reading. These results show that interventions to boost phonological skills need to be integrated with the teaching of reading if they are to be maximally effective in improving literacy skills.
The classical phonological deficit account of dyslexia is increasingly linked to impairments in grapho-phonological conversion, and to dysfunctions in superior temporal regions associated with audiovisual integration. The present study investigates mechanisms of audiovisual integration in typical and impaired readers at the critical developmental stage of adolescence.
Congruent and incongruent audiovisual as well as unimodal (visual only and auditory only) material was presented. Audiovisual presentations were single letters and three-letter (consonant-vowel-consonant) stimuli accompanied by matching or mismatching speech sounds. Three-letter stimuli exhibited fast phonetic transitions as in real-life language processing and reading. Congruency effects, i.e. different brain responses to congruent and incongruent stimuli were taken as an indicator of audiovisual integration at a phonetic level (grapho-phonological conversion). Comparisons of unimodal and audiovisual stimuli revealed basic, more sensory aspects of audiovisual integration. By means of these two criteria of audiovisual integration, the generalizability of audiovisual deficits in dyslexia was tested. Moreover, it was expected that the more naturalistic three-letter stimuli are superior to single letters in revealing group differences. Electrophysiological and hemodynamic (EEG and fMRI) data were acquired simultaneously in a simple target detection task. Applying the same statistical models to event-related EEG potentials and fMRI responses allowed comparing the effects detected by the two techniques at a descriptive level.
Group differences in congruency effects (congruent against incongruent) were observed in regions involved in grapho-phonological processing, including the left inferior frontal and angular gyri and the inferotemporal cortex. Importantly, such differences also emerged in superior temporal key regions. Three-letter stimuli revealed stronger group differences than single letters. No significant differences in basic measures of audiovisual integration emerged. Convergence of hemodynamic and electrophysiological signals appeared to be limited and mainly occurred for highly significant and large effects in visual cortices.
The findings suggest efficient superior temporal tuning to audiovisual congruency in controls. In impaired readers, however, grapho-phonological conversion is effortful and inefficient, although basic audiovisual mechanisms seem intact. This unprecedented demonstration of audiovisual deficits in adolescent dyslexics provides critical evidence that the phonological deficit might be explained by impaired audiovisual integration at a phonetic level, especially for naturalistic and word-like stimulation.
It is considered unlikely that evolution selected specialized neuronal circuits for reading. Instead, it has been suggested that acquisition of cultural skills like reading is rooted in, and interacts with, naturally evolved brain mechanisms for visual and auditory processing. Here, we review how the learning of letter symbols interacts with brain mechanisms for audiovisual and speech processing. The aim of this review is to honor the work of the late Professor Leo Blomert. His work highlights the importance of intact and automated letter/speech-sound integration for fluent reading, but also shows that this depends on the orthography, demonstrating cross-linguistic difference in how reading acquisition transforms brain function. We contend that Professor Blomert’s work illustrates the importance of (cultural) neuroscience for education.
Researchers have found that training in phonemic awareness (PA), a fundamental element for reading acquisition, is effective in varying degrees, depending on characteristics of the audience. In this study, the authors explored the relative effectiveness of 3 programs—Fast ForWord, Earobics, and LiPS. The authors randomly assigned 60 students with language and reading deficits to 1 of 3 interventions. Students received three 1-hr daily intervention sessions during a 20-day summer program conducted by a large school district. Measures of PA, language-, and reading-related skills were collected and analyzed. Earobics and LiPS were associated with gains on PA measures 6 weeks after intervention. No group effects were found on language or reading measures.
