Low Reading Performance Research Articles

Factors influencing students’ reading literacy in Morocco: A multilevel analysis

Morocco is a multilingual country with a diverse culture. When it participated in the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) for the first time, its reading literacy scores ranked relatively low in the test. Employing hierarchical linear modeling (HLM), the present study examined the effects of both student- and school-level factors on students’ reading literacy in Morocco. Student-level (N = 5800) and school-level (N = 179) data were drawn from the PISA 2018. The results showed that students’ reading literacy differed significantly across schools, accounting for about 40.5% of the overall variation. Further, the results showed that at the student level, when the variables of gender and family indices (i.e., economic, social, and cultural status) were controlled, language spoken at home, understanding and remembering of meta-cognition, self-concept of reading, expected occupational status, adaptation to instruction, teacher support in test language lessons, and duration in early childhood education and care all had significant effects on students’ reading literacy. At the school level, school location, school type, school size, shortage of educational material, and proportion of highly educated teachers had a crucial influence on student reading literacy, either directly or indirectly. To date, the reasons for these effects have not been systematically investigated. Morocco was the only African country to take part in the PISA test and it would be worthwhile to explore the factors affecting reading literacy in this low-performing country. Further, the results may be applicable to some extent to low reading performance in other countries.

Psychometric properties of the reading self-efficacy scale in Peruvian students aged 10 to 16 years

BackgroundReading self-efficacy is a key factor for students’ academic performance and motivation and given the low reading performance of Peruvian students compared to the average, it is crucial to understand and improve their reading self-efficacy.ObjectiveTo evaluate the psychometric properties of the Reading Self-Efficacy Scale in a Peruvian sample.MethodologyUsing a sample of 560 students aged 10 to 16 (M = 13.5, SD = 1.93), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and gender-specific invariance analysis were conducted.ResultsA two-dimensional, second-order model was taken into consideration. Significant differences were discovered in gender invariance, suggesting that the scale is comparable between the genders.ConclusionThe validation of the Reading Self-Efficacy Scale in the Peruvian context provides a useful tool to assess and develop Peruvian students’ reading self-efficacy, with implications for professional practice and educational policy.

Dyslexia deep clustering using webcam-based eye tracking

Dyslexia is a neurodevelopmental impairment that causes difficulties in reading and can have significant academic, social, and economic impacts. In Morocco, Dyslexia accounts for 37% of children's school failures. Early detection of dyslexia is crucial to help children reach their academic potential and prevent low self-esteem. To address this issue, a dyslexia screening tool using webcam-based eye tracking was developed for the Arabic language. The tool was tested on a dataset of 61 students from three primary schools in southern Morocco, and the results showed that using Arabic dyslexic-friendly typefaces improved reading performance, particularly for those with low reading performance. Deep clustering was used to reduce the dimensionality of the dataset, and the subjects were gathered using unsupervised k-means based on AutoEncoder output. The three clusters produced showed a significant difference in many dyslexia traits, such as the number and duration of fixations, as well as the saccade period. These findings suggest that webcam-based eye-tracking techniques have the potential to be used as an initial dyslexia diagnosis tool to assess if a child exhibits some of the typical symptoms of dyslexia and whether they should seek a professional full dyslexia diagnosis.

Decoding Contextual Factors Differentiating Adolescents’ High, Average, and Low Digital Reading Performance Through Machine-Learning Methods

Decoding Contextual Factors Differentiating Adolescents’ High, Average, and Low Digital Reading Performance Through Machine-Learning Methods

Examining the Reading Performance and Problems among Students in Indonesian Higher Education


 
 
 The objectives of the study are to assess the students' reading performance and explore their problems in comprehending English texts. To achieve these objectives, a descriptive research design was employed. The participants consisted of 76 English Department students from the Faculty of Teachers Training and Education at Universitas Sulawesi Barat, Majene, Indonesia. Two instruments were used in this study. First, a test was administered to measure students' reading performance. Second, a questionnaire in the form of a Google Form was employed to gather students' self-reported responses regarding their problems and difficulties in reading English texts. The findings revealed that the students' mean score on the reading performance test was 47.24, indicating a relatively low reading performance among the students. Moreover, the questionnaire responses indicated that most students reported encountering problems and difficulties in comprehending English reading texts. Consequently, it can be inferred that students' reading performance is adversely affected by these challenges. Based on the results, this study recommends the integration of learning media, technological tools, and effective reading strategies to address the identified problems and improve students' reading skills. These practical recommendations aim to provide educators and researchers with actionable strategies to improve the reading proficiency of EFL students.
 
 

Relationships Between First and Second Language Phonological Awareness and Rapid Automatized Naming in Chinese Children with Dyslexia

Relationships Between First and Second Language Phonological Awareness and Rapid Automatized Naming in Chinese Children with Dyslexia

PHILIPPINE LEARNING CONTINUITY PLAN: A POLICY ANALYSIS IN TIMES OF PANDEMICPHILIPPINE LEARNING CONTINUITY PLAN: A POLICY ANALYSIS IN TIMES OF PANDEMIC

This paper investigates the adoption of the DepEd Order No. 12, s. 2020 Basic Education-Learning Continuity Plan (BE-LCP) for Grade three students in a School District of a Schools City Division situated in the Southern part of the Philippines, utilizing the UNESCO analytical framework in policy analysis in education. A qualitative research design using case study method was employed to elucidate the experiences and challenges of teachers and administrators in this time of pandemic, particularly for School Years 2020-2021 and 2021-2022. Results showed an increasing enrollment rate, 100% promotion rate, and no manifestations of students at-risk of dropping out. Although the Proficiency Level is increasing, some students still have low reading performance. Regarding education sector management, the school district created curriculum adjustments, re-aligned learning materials, deployed various learning delivery modalities, and provided training to teachers and school leaders. Similarly, all schools utilized the provision of financial resources efficiently since the budget utilization rate is 100%. Also, the monitoring and evaluation mechanism was operationalized in the said district. It is recommended that the Department of Education must optimize access and equity in this new normal education and establish more educational infrastructures for there is a need for more learning spaces; likewise, to ensure the delivery of quality education, interventions must be conducted to address the learning gaps such as intensifying the reading program; correspondingly, the district should conduct BE-LCP review and adjustments for continuous improvement; lastly, similar studies may be conducted focusing on plans for post-pandemic scenarios.

Comparing Student high and low Reading Performance with Differentiated Digital Reading Materials

The present study investigates eight Grade-4 classes (9- to 12-year-olds, 52.1% girls) who worked on at least 10 lessons using project RegioDiff material. The study focuses on one of these lessons (including nine text passages and corresponding tasks) and on students with low (19 students, percentile <15) and high reading skills (29 students, percentile > 70). While students were working with the material, screencasts were recorded (30h). The construct “task performance” (processing time, response accuracy, and task engagement) was then analysed using the screencasts.
 The analysis revealed that the two groups differed significantly in the processing time of two tasks, but not in the total time spent on all nine tasks. Significant differences were revealed also for general task engagement. Task engagement was highly correlated with processing time. Participants with higher reading skills spent more time on the tasks and were more engaged than participants with lower reading skills. However, we did not find any differences in terms of answer accuracy. This indicates that task difficulty and student reading skills were well matched.
 The study also shows how tasks may be adapted or augmented in order to match the learning environment more closely to student learning needs.

Modeling higher order thinking skills and metacognitive awareness in English reading comprehension among university learners

This study aimed to examine the levels of Pakistani university learners' higher order thinking skills (HOTS) in English reading comprehension and to explore how explicit assessments of HOTS can reveal learners' strengths and weaknesses in reading as compared to the traditional assessment of reading. Secondly, the study analyzed the effect of learners' metacognitive awareness on reading on the relationship between their HOTS levels and reading performance. It used a mixed-method approach. In the quantitative phase, an explicit HOTS-based reading test was designed using Bloom's taxonomy. Using random stratified sampling, it was administered to the learners of Bachelor of Science in English (n = 200). Stratified sampling was performed for investigating the gender gap in HOTS levels. The learners' metacognitive awareness of reading was analyzed using Survey of Reading Strategies. Descriptive analysis, independent sample t-test, correlation analysis, and moderator analysis were conducted. It was found that the learners' HOTS levels correlated with their reading performance where creative skill was the strongest, and evaluating skill was the weakest. Metacognitive awareness of reading positively moderated the relationship between the learners' HOTS levels and reading performance. In the qualitative phase, purposive stratified sampling was applied. A subsample (n = 6) was extracted from the core sample based on the high, average, and low reading performance, and three groups were formed. A semi-structured interview was conducted to know learners' opinions on using HOTS-based assessment in reading and their cognitive and metacognitive abilities. The thematic analysis of the qualitative data revealed that three out of six learners did not approve of the way they were assessed by the university. They informed that they had issues with cognitive and metacognitive control of English texts. The findings revealed that the majority of learners suffered low HOTS levels in English reading. The study offers recommendations for English as a second language (ESL) teachers, assessors, and policymakers to improve learner performance to the possible optimal level, especially in underdeveloped contexts that use traditional reading assessments.

Comprensión oral y escrita: efectos de la estructura textual

Reading comprehension is the ability to create a mental representation of a written text. It constitutes the main mechanism through children incorporate new knowledge at school age. Reading comprehension achievement has been systematically associated with oral comprehension and reading rate. Furthermore, both oral and reading comprehension has been related to inferences generation and different linguistic abilities, like vocabulary and syntax processing. In the case of text comprehension, also orthographic recognition of written words plays a fundamental role and, for that reason, reading comprehension would be a greater challenge than oral comprehension for early readers. Indeed, word recognition during reading is essential for text meaning construction. It is well known that a slow and laborious reading mechanism would overload cognitive processing and that reading automaticity is essential to carry out text processing. Longitudinal studies realized in different orthographies indicated that reading rate was the variable that had greatest impact on reading comprehension in early readers. In studies carried out in shallow orthographies, it was also observed that reading performance have an important impact on reading comprehension measure after 3 to 5 years of instruction. However, although impact of reading skills and oral comprehension mechanisms on reading comprehension has been reported in several studies, there is another important factor to consider: text structure. Studies propose that children tend to understand “narrative schemas” more easily since they are exposed to this type of text from a very early age. Likewise, all narrative texts present, in general, the same type of structure, respect temporal sequence of events and focus on story characters, their actions and motivations. In contrast, expository texts present new information to children, are oriented to a specific topic, contain less familiar and more technical vocabulary and a higher level of abstraction. This type of structure presents numerous cohesive connections and greater propositional density than narrative texts. The present study aims to compare listening and reading comprehension of narrative and expository text. For this, a group of 32 4th graders was evaluated in oral and reading comprehension of narrative and expository texts. In reading comprehension test, children read narrative and expository texts and then orally answered a series of questions. In oral comprehension, both narrative and expository texts were read aloud to children and then they answered questions about the texts orally. Vocabulary and reading rate were also measured. Data analysis shows correlations between oral comprehension and vocabulary. Reading comprehension were associated to vocabulary, oral comprehension and reading rate. Results suggest that oral and reading comprehension are associated with different linguistic skills and to each support access skills. In comprehension test, measures show higher performance in narrative oral comprehension texts when compared to reading comprehension. This result could be related to children reading rate. In fact, reading performance shows that children were “slow readers” according to the reading tests scales used in this study. Difference between oral and written comprehension in narrative texts, was not transferred to expository. In this type of texts children had low scores, without significant differences, in oral and reading comprehension. Results suggested that expository structures challenge children comprehension in both, oral and written modality. It is suggested that different types of expository texts difficult hierarchization of information that allows, in turn, the construction of text mental representation. Data of this study suggest the importance of establish interventions that allow children to improv text processing for access higher levels of comprehension in different textual structures. Furthermore, it is necessary in educational practices to expose children to expository structures from an early age. On the other hand, it is necessary to rethink reading instruction methods that originate low reading performance. https://doi.org/10.16888/interd.2022.39.3.8

De invloed van leerkrachtverwachtingen op het onderpresteren van jongens in lezen

The effect of teacher expectations on boys’ underperformance in reading Prior research indicates a gender gap in reading performance among primary school students in which boys underperform compared to girls. Based on theories on gender differences in teacher expectations and how low teacher expectations lead to low student reading performance, we, firstly, examined to what extent teacher expectations can explain this gender gap in reading performance. Secondly, by including theories on gender stereotype threat and stigmatization, we studied the possible ‘buffering’ effect of high teacher expectations against boys’ underperformance in reading. The 2016 Dutch PIRLS data were used to examine the mediating and moderating effect of teacher expectations on the effect of student gender on students’ actual reading performance. The conducted multilevel analyses show that, although the gender gap in reading performance indeed exists, teacher expectations do not significantly explain or buffer it. Limitations of the current research and implications for future research are discussed.

Utilization of Online Oral Reading Test in Determining the Reading Skills of the Grade 6 Pupils in English

Reading is every child’s foundation where great learning is involved and evidently proved one’s comprehension. Reading teachers play a vital role in assessing their pupils’ reading skills and administering intervention programs for learners’ reading development. This action research employed the Phil-IRI (Philippine Informal Reading Inventory) Oral Reading Test. This is an informal measure that assesses the pupils’ reading skills, both their reading speed and comprehension. It consists of graded reading passages from Grade I to Grade VI. Each graded passage is followed by 7 comprehension questions for Grades I-III and 8 comprehension questions for Grades IV-VI. The questions are categorized into three dimensions, namely literal, interpretive, and applied. Hence, reading speed and comprehension of the pupils will be classified into three levels as frustration, instructional and independent with the applied criteria given by the Phil-IRI. Furthermore, the results of the study exhibited that the ten groups of pupils demonstrated low reading performance in their oral reading test both in speed and comprehension. The struggle of the online oral reading test was evidently shown through the weak internet connection provided by the internet servers in the country. With this, the researcher designed a reading intervention program through reading remedial class during asynchronous class. This will be administered using the online platform and available reading resources for the enhancement of pupils’ reading skills amidst these trying times of global pandemic, where distance learning has been practised first in the public schools’ setting in the Philippines.

Higher Cognitive Reserve Is Associated with Better Working Memory Performance and Working-Memory-Related P300 Modulation.

This study aims to examine how two levels of cognitive reserve, as evidenced by reading syntactic skill, modify performance and neural activity in a two-load-level (high vs. low) working memory (WM) task. Two groups of participants with different reading skills, high and low, were obtained from clustering analysis. We collected the P300 event-related potential component during the performance of the WM Sternberg task. The high reading performance (HRP) group showed a higher percentage of correct answers than the low reading performance (LRP) group in the negative probes of the WM task, which were probe stimuli not included in the memory set presented immediately before. Both groups showed P300 amplitude modulations, that is, larger WM-related P300 amplitudes for low than for high WM loads. Following the behavioral results, the HRP group displayed smaller WM-related amplitude modulations than the LRP group in the negative probes. The findings together suggest that higher levels of reading skill are associated with improved neural efficiency, which reflects in a better working memory performance.

Mind the gap: Examining migrant-native disparities in reading performance and subjective wellbeing among 15-year-old students in different education systems

Contemporary European and North American societies have experienced changing demographics due to migration. School classrooms reflect this dynamic. To-date, few studies have examined migration effects on both reading skills and subjective wellbeing from an international comparative perspective. Using the 2018 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) dataset, this paper addresses the issue by examining migrant-native gaps in reading, happiness, and life satisfaction among 15-year-old students in four education models. Regression results illustrate that migrant students in general tend to experience a double inequality: they have lower reading performance and report lower life satisfaction when compared to native students (although in some cases they report higher happiness levels). However, such effects are also context-dependent. While a migration background has significant negative effects on students’ reading in Germanic and Nordic schools, its negative effects in Anglo-Saxon systems are above all manifested in students’ level of life satisfaction. In addition, compared to first-generation migrants, being of second generation is positively associated with reading performance in all education models, with the strongest effect in the Nordic countries. Such positive generation effects are statistically insignificant, on the other hand, on students’ wellbeing. Other individual factors such as socio-economic status and gender present mixed correlations with reading and wellbeing. Such findings invite scholars and practitioners to reflect, through the prism of migration, on how reading proficiency and wellbeing can differ in diverse educational approaches, and correspondingly seek context-specific intervention measures.

Standardized Testing, Use of Assessment Data, and Low Reading Performance of Immigrant and Non-immigrant Students in OECD Countries.

This paper investigates the effects of standardized testing and publication of achievement data on low reading performance for immigrant and non-immigrant students in 30 OECD countries. The paper aims to test hypotheses derived from a principal-agent framework. According to this theoretical perspective, standardized assessments alone should not be associated with reading performance. Instead, the model proposes that the provision of the results to the principle (parents and education authorities) is associated with higher student performance, as this reduces the information asymmetry between principal (parents and educational authorities) and agent (teachers and schools). The results of our analyses of PISA 2009 and 2015 reading data from 422.172 students show that first, the use of standardized achievement tests alone was not associated with the risk of low performance. Second, making the results of standardized tests available to the public was associated with a decreased risk of low reading performance among all students, and, third, particularly among first generation immigrant students. These results were robust across various modeling approaches. In accordance with the predictions from the principal-agent framework, our findings suggest that the mere implementation of standardized assessments has no effects on low performance. Testing along with the public provision of the testing results, which decreases the information asymmetry between schools and teachers on the one hand and parents and education authorities on the other, was associated with a decreased risk of low performance, with the effect being stronger for immigrant students.

Teacher-rated school readiness items in a kindergarten sample: Outcomes in first grade.

The purpose of the study was to investigate the effectiveness of a brief and feasible universal screener for kindergarten readiness for predicting follow-up outcomes in first grade. Participants included kindergarten and first-grade teachers and students from 6 urban elementary schools. Students included slightly more males than females (54%; 46%), the race/ethnicity of the students was predominantly African American (74%) or White (23%), and 36% of students qualified for free or reduced lunch. Data included in this study were collected for children in the fall (October) of their kindergarten year and the Spring (April) of their first-grade year. Kindergarten teachers completed single-item ratings of student readiness as well as full-scale ratings of student behaviors and academic competence. Students also completed a standardized academic achievement test. Main findings from this study include that the single-item screener continued to predict negative academic and social behavior outcomes at a follow-up 18 months later. The percentage of unique variance explained by the readiness items was significant and, in the majority of cases, remained significant even after the baseline variables were entered into the analyses. Children rated poor in their academic readiness were over 9-10 times as likely to have low reading performance at the end of their first-grade year. Furthermore, children rated as poor in their behavior readiness were at over 6 times greater risk for low prosocial and high disruptive behavior teacher ratings in first grade. The screener could be used to screen for children low in readiness in order to provide supports and monitoring for early intervention. Kindergarten entry is a critical time to screen children and support them in developing skills to ameliorate deficits and build essential early academic and social behavior skills. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

How Stable Is Early Academic Performance? Using Cluster Analysis to Classify Low Achievement and EF

We explored whether and how cognitive measures of executive function (EF) can be used to help classify academic performance in Kindergarten and first grade using nonparametric cluster analysis. We found that EF measures were useful in classifying low-reading performance in both grades, but mathematics performance could be grouped into low, average, and high groups without the use of EF tasks. Membership in the high-performing groups was more stable through first grade than membership in the low or average groups, and certain Kindergarten EF tasks differentially predicted first-grade reading and mathematics cluster membership. Our results suggest a stronger link between EF deficits and low performance than between EF strengths and high performance. We highlight the importance of simultaneously using academic and cognitive skills to classify achievement, particularly since existing classification schemes have been largely based on arbitrary cutoffs using limited academic measures.

The Relationship between White Matter and Reading Acquisition, Refinement and Maintenance

Reading requires efficient communication between brain regions that are situated all over the cortex. These brain areas are structurally connected by white-matter pathways that develop over the period of reading acquisition. Here, we conducted a cross-sectional study to assess the relationship between white-matter tracts and reading performance across the lifespan. Methods: Behavioral (reading performance) and neuroimaging (diffusion tensor imaging [DTI]) data were collected from participants aged 3–21 years as a part of the multi-site project called the pediatric imaging neurocognition genetics study. DTI measures (fractional anisotropy [FA], mean diffusivity, radial diffusivity and axial diffusivity) of bilateral dorsal tracts (arcuate fasciculus, superior longitudinal fasciculus, and posterior superior longitudinal fasciculus) and ventral tracts (uncinate fasciculus, inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus, and inferior longitudinal fasciculus) were extracted. Reading performance was calculated as the number of items correctly read (words for older children and letters in the case of young children). Correlational and regression analyses were conducted between the DTI measures and reading scores. Results: During the early stages of reading acquisition (ages 3–6), the dorsal tracts were positively related to reading performance (as FA goes up, reading performance goes up). For ages 6–10, the dorsal tracts remain positively associated with reading performance and a relationship between ventral tracts and reading performance emerges. From the age of 10 onwards, the dorsal tracts no longer correlate with reading performance, and a brain-behavior relationship in the right ventral tracts begins to shift, whereby higher FA is associated with lower reading performance. In addition to the involvement of left hemispheric tracts, this study revealed the initial engagement of right hemispheric tracts during the early stages of reading acquisition. Conclusion: We discuss these different associations of white-matter tracts with reading during development in the context of the biological processes model of myelination and pruning.

Relations Between Reading, Vocabulary and Phonological Awareness in low-Income Children

Abstract: Phonological awareness, intelligence, vocabulary and socioeconomic status (SES) have been considered important variables in the acquisition of reading. Nevertheless, attention deficit is associated to low reading performance. The purpose of this work was to investigate correlations among phonological awareness, vocabulary, intelligence, focused attention and reading skills in children with low SES exposed to a non-effective teaching environment. This study included 111 children belonging to socioeconomic classes D and E who were enrolled at a state school. Results pointed to a positive correlation among vocabulary, intelligence, phonological awareness and reading scores. There was no significant correlation between attention measures and reading ability. The relations among the variables continued, even in a population with low SES, although bad teaching environment acts as a limiting factor for the students’ development of their reading ability.

Text Comprehension and Oral Language as Predictors of Word-Problem Solving: Insights into Word-Problem Solving as a Form of Text Comprehension

ABSTRACTThis study was designed to deepen insights on whether word-problem (WP) solving is a form of text comprehension (TC) and on the role of language in WPs. A sample of 325 second graders, representing high, average, and low reading and math performance, was assessed on (a) start-of-year TC, WP skill, language, nonlinguistic reasoning, working memory, and foundational skill (word identification, arithmetic) and (b) year-end WP solving, WP-language processing (understanding WP statements, without calculation demands), and calculations. Multivariate, multilevel path analysis, accounting for classroom and school effects, indicated that TC was a significant and comparably strong predictor of all outcomes. Start-of-year language was a significantly stronger predictor of both year-end WP outcomes than of calculations, whereas start-of-year arithmetic was a significantly stronger predictor of calculations than of either WP measure. Implications are discussed in terms of WP solving as a form of TC and a theoretically coordinated approach, focused on language, for addressing TC and WP-solving instruction.