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Children’s literacy difficulties

Dyslexia

Dyslexia is a neurodevelopmental disorder with a probable genetic basis, and it is generally agreed that more boys than girls are affected (although the gender ratio is higher in referred samples). The core feature of dyslexia is a problem with word decoding, which in turn impacts spelling performance and the development of reading fluency. Dyslexia is persistent across the lifespan, and adult outcomes are variable; although some young people with dyslexia proceed to a university education, others leave school with minimal qualifications. Most adults with dyslexia complain of slow reading, problems of spelling and difficulties with written expression. In addition, problems with working memory, attention and organisation are frequently reported.

For many years, dyslexia was conceptualised as a specific reading difficulty affecting children for whom reading achievement was below that expected on the basis of a child’s age and intelligence quotient (IQ). Gradually, this ‘discrepancy definition’ of dyslexia has fallen from use, and it is now recognised that dyslexia occurs across the IQ spectrum, although it needs to be borne in mind that, in terms of reading comprehension, those with higher IQ are likely to do better.

The predominant cognitive explanation of dyslexia is that it arises from a phonological deficit affecting the processing of speech sounds in words (see Vellutino et al., 2004 for a review). Early manifestations are difficulties with the development of phonological awareness and perhaps more so, problems of phonological learning (Carroll and Snowling, 2004). These in turn affect the acquisition of letter knowledge, one of the first signs that a child is at risk of reading problems. Problems with word recognition ensue together with phonological decoding deficits, seen most clearly when attempting to read novel words (Rack, Snowling and Olson, 1992). Problems with slow and inaccurate word reading can, in turn, be a bottleneck that impedes adequate reading comprehension.

The prevalence of dyslexia depends upon the precise definition and criteria that are used for its ‘diagnosis’ with estimates ranging from 3% to 10%. In a recent test standardisation, we collected data on the York Assessment of Reading and Comprehension [YARC; Snowling et al., 2009; Stothard et al., 2010; from a large sample (1553) of children aged 6–16 who were attending 50 state-funded primary and secondary schools in England]. Pupils were randomly selected according to their date of birth to ensure that the sample was representative of the schools concerned, and the schools were selected from different areas in an attempt to make the sample broadly representative of children in England. Because it is recognised that reading skills fall on a continuous dimension with no clear cut-off between ‘normal’ and ‘impaired’ (dyslexia) reading, we considered a number of different cut-off points for the classification of decoding difficulties/dyslexia (Stothard, Snowling and Hulme, in preparation). The YARC comprises tests of single-word reading, prose reading accuracy, reading rate and comprehension; here, we focus on the pupils who experienced moderate to severe levels of difficulty, as indexed by performance on the single-word reading test of 1.5 standard deviations (SDs) below the mean (SS < 77.5) and 2 SDs below the mean (SS < 70), respectively. Given that reading skills are normally distributed, around 7% of pupils are expected to have reading standard scores below 77.5 and 2% below 70.

Within the primary school sample, 10.5% of pupils obtained a standard score below 77.5 and 3.9% below 70 in single-word reading. In addition, 3.3% of sample showed a significant discrepancy between good reading comprehension (from the prose reading task) and poor reading accuracy (16–41 standard score points), a profile sometimes associated with discrepancy-defined dyslexia. Within the secondary school sample, rates of reading impairment were similar as expected given the cut-offs and 4.9% of the sample showed a significant ‘discrepancy’ between decoding and reading comprehension.

More boys than girls were poor decoders in primary school, and the proportion of pupils with EAL was significantly higher among these children than in the remainder of the sample. Decoding difficulties were also more common among children from socially deprived areas. Together, these data remind us that social and cultural factors influence the prevalence of reading difficulties: dyslexia is more than a constitutional difficulty.

Problems of reading comprehension

Some children with dyslexia have problems with reading comprehension, which are attributable to slow and inaccurate word reading, leaving few attentional resources available for comprehension. However, reading comprehension impairment can occur in the absence of poor decoding, suggesting that it is a distinct disorder. Indeed, the profile of reading comprehension impairment contrasts markedly with dyslexia. These children (sometimes referred to as ‘poor comprehenders’) can decode and spell words accurately but have problems understanding the meaning of what they read. Poor comprehenders have been much less studied than children with dyslexia and the condition is not well recognised by teachers (see Hulme and Snowling, 2011 for a review). However, data from the YARC standardisation (discussed earlier) revealed that 5.3% of the primary sample and 5% of the secondary school sample could be defined as poor comprehenders. Reading comprehension impairment is therefore quite a common disorder that at present is a ‘hidden’ disability in the classroom setting.

Many children with reading comprehension impairment have wide-ranging oral language impairments coupled with good phonology; it is their intact phonological skills that account for their ability to decode. Prospective studies starting in the very early stages of learning to read suggest that children who go on to be poor comprehenders have weaknesses in basic language skills including vocabulary knowledge, grammar and syntax from an early age (Catts, Adlof and Ellis Weismer, 2006; Nation et al., 2010). Poor comprehenders also experience higher order language difficulties, including problems with inferencing and figurative language use as well as in text-related processes including comprehension monitoring and knowledge of story structure (Cain, 2010). Whether these are a cause or a consequence of their reading comprehension impairments remains debated, and there is considerable heterogeneity in the deficits shown by this group.

The distinction between dyslexia and reading comprehension impairment is consistent with the simple view of reading (Gough and Tumner, 1986). According to the simple view, reading comprehension skill is the product of decoding and listening comprehension. Thus, there are three sorts of poor readers – those with poor decoding (dyslexia), those with poor listening comprehension (poor comprehenders) and those with impairments in both decoding and listening comprehension. Taking this view as a starting point, Bishop and Snowling (2004) reviewed a large body of literature on the relationship between reading and language impairments and proposed that to understand reading disorders, it is important to take this two-dimensional view (see Figure 1). Further, children who enter school with poor phonology are at risk of decoding difficulties, while children with broader language impairments are at risk of reading comprehension difficulties. Children with clinically diagnosed specific language impairment generally have pervasive reading disorders with both processes affected.

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La dislexia es un problema con la decodificación de palabras, que a su vez afecta el rendimiento de la ortografía y el desarrollo de la fluidez en la lectura

La mayoría de los adultos con dislexia se quejan de lectura lenta, problemas de ortografía y dificultades con la expresión escrita. Además, con frecuencia se reportan problemas con la memoria de trabajo, la atención y la organización.

La explicación cognitiva predominante de la dislexia es que surge de un déficit fonológico que afecta el procesamiento de los sonidos del habla en palabras

Las manifestaciones tempranas son dificultades con el desarrollo de la conciencia fonológica y, quizás más, problemas de aprendizaje fonológico

Estos a su vez afectan la adquisición del conocimiento de las letras, una de las primeras señales de que un niño corre el riesgo de tener problemas de lectura.

Problemas de comprensión lectora

Algunos niños con dislexia tienen problemas con la comprensión de lectura, que son atribuibles a la lectura de palabras lenta e inexacta, dejando pocos recursos de atención disponibles para la comprensión.

Estos niños (a veces referidos como "malos entendidos") pueden decodificar y deletrear palabras con precisión, pero tienen problemas para entender el significado de lo que leen.

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La prevalencia de la dislexia depende de la definición precisa y los criterios que se utilizan para su "diagnóstico" con estimaciones que van del 3% al 10%. En una reciente prueba de estandarización, recopilamos datos sobre la Evaluación de Lectura y Comprensión de York [YARC ; de una gran muestra (1553) de niños de 6 a 16 años que asistían a 50 escuelas primarias y secundarias financiadas por el estado en Inglaterra

El YARC comprende pruebas de lectura de una sola palabra, precisión de lectura en prosa, índice de lectura y comprensión; aquí, nos centramos en los alumnos que experimentaron niveles de dificultad de moderados a graves, según el índice de rendimiento en la prueba de lectura de una sola palabra de 1,5 desviaciones estándar (DE) por debajo de la media (SS <77,5) y 2 DE por debajo de la media (SS <70), respectivamente

Sin embargo, los datos de la estandarización de YARC (discutidos anteriormente) revelaron que el 5.3% de la muestra primaria y el 5% de la muestra de la escuela secundaria podrían definirse como deficientes. Por lo tanto, el deterioro de la comprensión de lectura es un trastorno bastante común que en la actualidad es una discapacidad "oculta" en el aula

Además, los niños que ingresan a la escuela con mala fonología corren el riesgo de dificultades de decodificación, mientras que los niños con discapacidades del lenguaje más amplias corren el riesgo de dificultades de comprensión lectora. Los niños con impedimentos específicos del lenguaje diagnosticados clínicamente generalmente tienen trastornos de lectura generalizados con ambos procesos afectados

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VOZ PASIVA:
Poor comprehenders have been much less studied than children with dyslexia and the condition is not well recognised by teachers

Los entendidos deficientes han sido mucho menos estudiados que los niños con dislexia y la condición no es bien reconocida por los maestros

ORACION CONDICIONAL:

ORACION RELATIVA:
Further, children who enter school with poor phonology are at risk of decoding difficulties, while children with broader language impairments are at risk of reading comprehension difficulties

Además, los niños que ingresan a la escuela con mala fonología corren el riesgo de dificultades de decodificación, mientras que los niños con discapacidades del lenguaje más amplias corren el riesgo de dificultades de comprensión lectora

CONECTORES:
BUT
These children (sometimes referred to as ‘poor comprehenders’) can decode and spell words accurately but have problems understanding the meaning of what they read.

Estos niños (a veces referidos como "malos entendidos") pueden decodificar y deletrear palabras con precisión, pero tienen problemas para entender el significado de lo que leen

NEXOS:
However, data from the YARC standardisation (discussed earlier) revealed that 5.3% of the primary sample and 5% of the secondary school sample could be defined as poor comprehenders

HOWEVER

Sin embargo, los datos de la estandarización de YARC (discutidos anteriormente) revelaron que el 5.3% de la muestra primaria y el 5% de la muestra de la escuela secundaria podrían definirse como deficientes