Introduction to Communication Disorders: A Lifespan Evidence-Based Perspective 5th Edition

CHAPTER 5: Developmental Literacy Impairments Introduction to Communication Disorders: A Lifespan Evidence-Based Perspective 5th Edition Owens, Farinella, & Metz Developed by Sarah A. Dachtyl, Ph.D., CCC/SLP Chapter Learning Goals Describe the aspects of literacy that are of concern to the SLP Explain how literacy develops Explain the deficits in literacy experienced by children with language impairment Describe an assessment of literacy Give examples of intervention for literacy Outline Reading Writing Developmental Literacy Impairments Literacy: The use of visual modes of communication (reading and writing) As high as 60% of children with LI experience difficulty with literacy Assessment and intervention for literacy are important for both children and adults Reading Decoding: Segmenting a word and blending the sounds together to form a word Words take on more meaning based on grammar and context Interaction between the print and linguistic/conceptual information of the reader Phonological skills are essential for decoding Syntax, morphology, semantics, and pragmatics are needed for comprehension Reader uses language and experience to interpret the message Reading Phonological Awareness Knowledge of sounds/syllables and the sound structure of words Phonemic awareness: The ability to manipulate sounds, such as blending or segmenting Related to reading skills and is the best predictor of spelling ability in early elementary Ability to determine a word when a phoneme or syllable is deleted, to blend or create a word from individual sounds and syllables, and to compare initial phonemes Reading Morphological Awareness By 10 years of age or earlier, awareness of and knowledge about the morphological structure of words is a better predictor of decoding ability Morphological complexity of words increases as children progress into middle school Reading Comprehension Basic level: Concerned primarily with decoding Meaning is actively constructed from words and sentences and from personal meanings and experiences Critical literacy: Active analysis and synthesis of information; ability to explain content Dynamic literacy: Relate content to other knowledge Metacognition Self-appraisal Executive function Reading Reading Development Through the Lifespan Emerging Literacy Reading development begins around age 1 when books are shared with toddlers Dialogic reading Print awareness Children with good language seem to enjoy reading and pretend to read By age 4, children notice phonological similarities and syllable structure; may find rhyming funny Preschool teachers can be trained in emergent literacy Reading Reading Development Through the Lifespan Emerging Literacy Five kindergarten variables that predict reading success by 2nd grade: letter identification, sentence imitation, phonological awareness, rapid automatized naming, maternal education Phonics: Sound-letter correspondence By 3rd grade, there is a shift from learning to read to reading to learn Reading Reading Development Through the Lifespan Mature Literacy Mature readers use very little cognitive energy determining word pronunciation Language and experience are used to understand the text, which is monitored to ensure the information makes sense Prediction of the next word or phrase aids quick processing Reading is interactive and one of the ways adults increase vocabulary and knowledge Reading Reading Problems Through the Lifespan Risk of reading difficulties is high in those with articulation or language impairments Poor reading comprehenders have deficits in oral language comprehension but normal phonological abilities Children who are poor decoders have poor phonological abilities but little or no oral language comprehension difficulties Children with a specific disorder in literacy (SLDL) have learning disorders primarily in reading and writing Reading Reading Problems Through the Lifespan Children with SLDL have poor word recognition or decoding, accompanied by problems with phonological processing Three types of SLDL Children with SLI may be similar, exhibiting grapheme-phoneme errors and syntactic, semantic, and pragmatic errors when reading; comprehension may also be impaired Reading Reading Problems Through the Lifespan Hyperlexia: Poor comprehension but typical to above-average word recognition ability May occur in ASD Causal factors for literacy impairment may be intrinsic or extrinsic Many children with ASD have accompanying literacy impairments and uneven development of skills predictive of reading ability Reading Reading Problems Through the Lifespan Children with LD acquire reading typically, but are substantially below average by 5th grade Some children might memorize word shapes, letter names, or guess rather than decoding Poor readers lack strategies to guide and control their reading Many children with language impairments are at risk for reading impairment As adolescents, poor readers exhibit vocabulary, grammar, and verbal memory deficits Significant negative correlation between nonmainstream dialect use and reading achievement Reading Assessment of Developmental Reading Early literacy questionnaires Interview teachers, parents, and the child Observations Standardized measures Oral language samples Analysis of miscues Written story telling Comprehension measures Reading Assessment of Developmental Reading Phonological Awareness Rhyming Syllabication Segmentation Phoneme isolation Deletion Substitution Blending Reading Assessment of Developmental Reading Word Recognition Material should be appropriate Use various tasks Use several measures Consider cultural and linguistic background Demonstrate unfamiliar tasks Reading deficits not limited to those with emergent literacy Observation and interpretation is extremely important Curriculum-based measures and dynamic assessment may be more appropriate Should be done with and without clues Note all errors, types, and attempts to sound out words Reading Assessment of Developmental Reading Morphological Awareness Should examine adolescent students’ understanding of common morphemes Text Comprehension Assess oral language, knowledge of narrative schemes and text grammar schemes, and metacognition Standardized tests should be supplemented by other naturalistic observation/measures Reading Assessment of Developmental Reading Executive Function Self-regulation can be assessed by Interview questions about strategies used for reading tasks Think-alouds or verbalizing thoughts accompanying reading Error or inconsistency detection during reading Reading Intervention for Developmental Reading Impairment SLP supports classroom teacher and reading specialist Embedded/explicit model of intervention: Literacy-rich experiences embedded in daily curriculum Explicit, focused, and therapeutic teaching Two-prong intervention model Meaning foundation Form foundation Reading Intervention for Developmental Reading Impairment Phonological Awareness Children who receive phonological awareness training have higher phonemic awareness, word attack, and word identification skills Phonological awareness intervention should begin before children lag too far behind Phonological awareness should be taught within meaningful context with older children Programs that focus on one or two skills yield better results Reading Intervention for Developmental Reading Impairment Morphological Awareness Reading and spelling accuracy can be improved through instruction in morphological awareness with other forms of linguistic awareness Intervention might focus on increasing awareness of the morphological structure of words and the orthographic rules that apply when suffixes are added Reading Intervention for Developmental Reading Impairment Word Recognition Goals Teach phonemic decoding skills Develop a rich sight vocabulary Improve reading comprehension Context can be used to help predict words Reading Intervention for Developmental Reading Impairment Text Comprehension May begin with telling stories Can progress to oral and written narrative interpretation Before, during, and after reading activities Postreading can include story organizers, retelling, and creating narrative variations Comprehension: teach explicit and precise language style Comprehension: SLP can facilitate via instruction, questions, visual and verbal cues, explanations, and comments Internalize comprehension strategies Address author’s goals and character motivations Reading Intervention for Developmental Reading Impairment Executive Function Working memory Self-directed speech Problem solving Distancing from the text and toward independent thought are important for more advanced readers Writing Using knowledge and new ideas combined with language knowledge to create text Involves motor, cognitive, linguistic, affective, and executive function Decontextualized: Outside a conversational context Spelling Executive function Text construction, or going from ideas to writing Memory Writing Spelling Usually self-taught/trial-and-error approach ~4,000 words are taught in elementary school Mature spellers rely on Memory Spelling/reading experience Phonological/semantic/morphological knowledge Orthographic knowledge/mental grapheme representations Analogy Spelling competes with other aspects of writing for limited cognitive energy Writing Writing Development Through the Lifespan Emerging Literacy Initially treat writing and speaking as separate Spoken and written systems converge over time Speech is still more complex Writing slowly overtakes speech Written sentences become longer and more complex Children become more aware of the audience Writing Writing Development Through the Lifespan Mature Literacy Speaking and writing becomes consciously separate Not achieved by all writers Adult writing Longer, more complex sentences More abstract nouns More metalinguistic and metacognitive terms Writing Writing Development Through the Lifespan Spelling Preliterate attempts include scribbling and drawing Phoneme-grapheme knowledge and letter names Invented spelling and letter name spelling As children recognize more regularities and consolidate the alphabetic system, they become more efficient Increased memory capacity supports spelling Most shift from a phonological strategy to a mixed one between 2nd and 5th grade Adults spell in various ways Writing Writing Development Through the Lifespan Executive Function Develop cognitive abilities needed for mature writing in early adulthood (frontal lobes) Young writers need guidance in planning and revising By junior high, teens are capable of revising all aspects of writing Improved long-term memory improves compositional quality Writing Writing Development Through the Lifespan Text Generation Early text lacks cohesion and uses structures repeatedly Mature writers use more variety Written narratives emerge before expository texts In adolescence, expository writing increases in Length MLU Relative clause production Use of transitions Writing Writing Problems Through the Lifespan Children with LI often have writing deficits, evidenced in reduced written productivity, total number of words, total number of utterances, or total number of ideas Children with LD may have difficulties with all aspects of the writing process Writing Writing Problems Through the Lifespan Deficits in Spelling Poor phonological processing and knowledge/use of phoneme/grapheme information Poor spellers tend to rely on visual matching skills and phoneme position rules to compensate for limited knowledge of sound/letter correspondence Writing Writing Problems Through the Lifespan Deficits in Executive Function Some children with LD write whatever comes to mind with little planning Produce and elaborate little Revise ineffectively Detect errors poorly Experience difficulty executing intended changes Planning is difficult because of language formulation difficulties Writing Writing Problems Through the Lifespan Deficits in Text Generation Children with LI may lack mature internalized story models or may be unable to visualize the words Narratives of children with LD contain shorter, less complex sentences, are shorter and have fewer episodes, contain fewer details, and fail to consider the needs of the listener Children with LI often put little though or organization into writing and there is little revision Children with LD have difficulty using morphological endings in writing Writing Assessment of Developmental Writing Portfolios Narratives are best for young elementary students Expository writing samples for older elementary Executive function is measured within writing tasks Writing can be analyzed on textual, linguistic, and orthographic levels Writing Assessment of Developmental Writing Assessment of Spelling Assessed through dictation, connected writing, standardized assessment Focus on patterns Assessment of Text Generation Total number of words and different words used Word choice, sentence/clause length, coherence Writing Intervention for Developmental Writing Impairment Spelling Integrated into authentic reading and writing events Words selected for intervention should be individualized and reflect curriculum Goal is to learn strategies of spelling and rules Children with LD benefit from multisensory input Word analysis and sorting tasks can be used Spell checkers are not always helpful Word prediction can reduce errors Proofing and editing on hard copy seems to increase the number of correctly spelled words Writing Intervention for Developmental Writing Impairment Executive Function Goal-Plan-Do-Review Choosing the topic can be motivating Ask questions to help focus on audience Executive function training plus word processing training results in larger gains Speech recognition software may help but cannot overcome oral language difficulties Writing Intervention for Developmental Writing Impairment Narrative Text Generation Story grammar: Common event sequences and elements of narratives Children may not realize they know a narrative or how to start Can be guided through brainstorming, story guides, prompts, acronyms Explicit instruction in story grammar or structure Story maps Writing Intervention for Developmental Writing Impairment Expository Text Generation EmPOWER Evaluate, make a Plan, Organize, Work, Evaluate, & Rework Can use prompt cards for each section Get feedback from peers before revising SLP mediates Summary SLP helps children obtain language-based skills upon literacy is based Team approach Natural extension of SLP’s concern for language in all modes of communication Online Resources ASHA website – search for the article “The Neurobiology of Reading and Dyslexia” www.asha.org The Learning Disabilities Association of America: www.ldanatl.org MedicineNet – search for “Dyslexia”: www.medicinenet.com WETA, LD Online: www.ldonline.org Mayo Clinic website: www.mayoclinic.com Bright Solutions for Dyslexia: www.dys-add.com Scholastic Publications: www.scholastic.com/home/ Creative Writing Solutions: www.creative-writing-solutions.com