Reading Recognition Research Articles

The Causal Effect of Class Size on Academic Achievement

This article addresses three questions: Does reduced class size cause higher academic achievement in reading, mathematics, listening, and word recognition skills? If it does, how large are these effects? Does the magnitude of such effects vary significantly across schools? The authors analyze data from Tennessee’s Student/Teacher Achievement Ratio study (STAR) of 1985, where students and teachers are randomly assigned to a small or regular class. The authors propose a three-level multivariate simultaneous equation model with an instrumental variable (IV) and estimation via maximum likelihood (ML) to analyze the data under an assumption of data missing at random (MAR). The IV, random assignment of students to a small or regular class, reduces class size which, by hypothesis, improves academic achievement in these domains. The authors extend Rubin’s Causal Model (RCM) by involving a modified Stable Unit Treatment Value Assumption (SUTVA), requiring no interference between classrooms and intact schools. The method accommodates data with a general missing pattern and extracts full information for analysis from the STAR data. The authors investigate both homogenous and heterogenous causal effects of class size on academic achievement scores across schools. The results show that reducing class size improves reading, mathematics, listening, and word recognition test scores from kindergarten to third grade, although the effects appear relatively small in second grade. The authors find no evidence that the causal effects vary across schools.

Associatieve visuele agnosie. De minder zichtbare gevolgen van een herseninfarct

After a cerebral infarction, some patients acutely demonstrate contralateral hemiplegia, or aphasia. Those are the obvious symptoms of a cerebral infarction. However, less visible but burdensome consequences may go unnoticed without closer investigation. The importance of a thorough clinical examination is exemplified by a single case study of a 72-year-old, right-handed male. Two years before he had suffered from an ischemic stroke in the territory of the left posterior cerebral artery, with right homonymous hemianopia and global alexia (i.e., impairment in letter recognition and profound impairment of reading) without agraphia. Naming was impaired on visual presentation (20%-39% correct), but improved significantly after tactile presentation (87% correct) or verbal definition (89%). Pre-semantic visual processing was normal (correct matching of different views of the same object), as was his access to structural knowledge from vision (he reliably distinguished real objects from non-objects). On a colour decision task he reliably indicated which of two items was coloured correctly. Though he was unable to mime how visually presented objects were used, he more reliably matched pictures of objects with pictures of a mime artist gesturing the use of the object. He obtained normal scores on word definition (WAIS-III), synonym judgment and word-picture matching tasks with perceptual and semantic distractors. He however failed when he had to match physically dissimilar specimens of the same object or when he had to decide which two of five objects were related associatively (Pyramids and Palm Trees Test). The patient thus showed a striking contrast in his intact ability to access knowledge of object shape or colour from vision and impaired functional and associative knowledge. As a result, he could not access a complete semantic representation, required for activating phonological representations to name visually presented objects. The pattern of impairments and preserved abilities is considered to be a specific difficulty to access a full semantic representation from an intact structural representation of visually presented objects, i.e., a form of visual object agnosia.

Word recognition and syntactic attachment in reading: Evidence for a staged architecture.

In 3 experiments, the author examined how readers' eye movements are influenced by joint manipulations of a word's frequency and the syntactic fit of the word in its context. In the critical conditions of the first 2 experiments, a high- or low-frequency verb was used to disambiguate a garden-path sentence, while in the last experiment, a high- or low-frequency verb constituted a phrase structure violation. The frequency manipulation always influenced the early eye movement measures of first-fixation duration and gaze duration. The context manipulation had a delayed effect in Experiment 1, influencing only the probability of a regressive eye movement from later in the sentence. However, the context manipulation influenced the same early eye movement measures as the frequency effect in Experiments 2 and 3, though there was no statistical interaction between the effects of these variables. The context manipulation also influenced the probability of a regressive eye movement from the verb, though the frequency manipulation did not. These results are shown to confirm predictions emerging from the serial, staged architecture for lexical and integrative processing of the E-Z Reader 10 model of eye movement control in reading (Reichle, Warren, & McConnell, 2009). It is argued, more generally, that the results provide an important constraint on how the relationship between visual word recognition and syntactic attachment is treated in processing models.

Syllable structure is modulating the optimal viewing position in visual word recognition

There is an ongoing debate in cognitive psychology as to whether syllables have to be seen as functional units not only for speech perception and production, but also for the process of silent reading or visual word recognition. For the present study, we used a perceptive identification task where single disyllabic 5-letter German words were briefly presented to the participants for 50 or 60 milliseconds. The percentage of errors in identifying these stimuli was the dependent variable. During presentation in the experiment we manipulated the viewing position for these items, so that initial fixation for each repeatedly presented word varied systematically across all five letter positions. Typically, for such manipulations, word recognition is best when initial fixation is at a position slightly left from the word center — a finding referred to as the optimal viewing position effect. We found that the shape of the optimal viewing position function is sensitive to syllabic structure: The optimal viewing position shifted one letter position to the right with increasing initial syllable length (two vs. three letters in our stimulus material). This finding suggests that efficient reading benefits from a very early processing of syllabic information. It corroborates other recent empirical findings suggesting that also during silent reading orthographic word forms are automatically segmented into their syllabic constituents.

Reading, Writing, and Face Recognition

Reading, Writing, and Face Recognition

The Flynn Effect within subgroups in the U.S.: Gender, race, income, education, and urbanization differences in the NLSY-Children data

Although the Flynn Effect has been studied widely across cultural, geographic, and intellectual domains, and many explanatory theories have been proposed, little past research attention has been paid to subgroup differences. Rodgers and Wänström (2007) identified an aggregate-level Flynn Effect (FE) at each age between 5 and 13 in the Children of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSYC) PIAT-Math data. FE patterns were not obtained for Reading Recognition, Reading Comprehension, or Digit Span, consistent with past FE research suggesting a closer relationship to fluid intelligence measures of problem solving and analytic reasoning than to crystallized measures of verbal comprehension and memory. These prior findings suggest that the NLSYC data can be used as a natural laboratory to study more subtle FE patterns within various demographic subgroups. We test for subgroup Flynn Effect differences by gender, race/ethnicity, maternal education, household income, and urbanization. No subgroups differences emerged for three demographic categories. However, children with more educated (especially college educated) mothers and/or children born into higher income households had an accelerated Flynn Effect in their PIAT-M scores compared to cohort peers with lower educated mothers or lower income households. We interpret both the positive and the null findings in relation to previous theoretical explanations.

An index of local sensitivity to non‐ignorability for multivariate longitudinal mixed data with potential non‐random dropout

Multivariate longitudinal data with mixed continuous and discrete responses with the possibility of non-ignorable missingness are often common in follow-up medical studies and their analysis needs to be developed. Standard methods of analysis based on the strong and the unverifiable assumption of missing at random (MAR) mechanism could be highly misleading. A way out of this problem is to start with methods that simultaneously allow modelling non-ignorable mechanism, which includes somehow troubling computations that are often time consuming, then we can use a sensitivity analysis, in which one estimates models under a range of assumptions about non-ignorability parameters to study the impact of these parameters on key inferences. A general index of sensitivity to non-ignorability (ISNI) to measure sensitivity of key inferences in a neighborhood of MAR model without fitting a complicated not MAR (NMAR) model for univariate generalized linear models and for models used for univariate longitudinal normal and non-Gaussian data with potentially NMAR dropout are well presented in the literature. In this paper we extend ISNI methodology to analyze multivariate longitudinal mixed data subject to non-ignorable dropout in which the non-ignorable dropout model could be dependent on the mixed responses. The approach is illustrated by analyzing a longitudinal data set in which the general substantive goal of the study is to better understand the relations between parental assessment of child's antisocial behavior and child's reading recognition skill.

Susceptibility to false memories in patients with ACoA aneurysm

We examined ACoA patients regarding their susceptibility to a range of false memory phenomena. We targeted provoked confabulation, false recall and false recognition in the Deese–Roediger–McDermott-paradigm (DRM-paradigm) as well as false recognition in a mirror reading task. ACoA patients produced more provoked confabulations and more false recognition in mirror reading than comparison subjects. Conversely, false recall/false recognition in the DRM-paradigm were similar in patients and controls. Whereas the former two indices of false memories were correlated, no relationship was revealed with the DRM-paradigm. Our results suggest that rupture of ACoA aneurysm leads to an increased susceptibility to a subset of false memories types.

Comparison of presentation modes for reading and face recognition in simulated prosthetic vision

Comparison of presentation modes for reading and face recognition in simulated prosthetic vision

Do image descriptions underlie word recognition in reading?

This article is a commentary on 'The utility of image descriptions in the initial stages of vision: A case study of printed text' (Watt & Dakin, 2010).

Crowding in Peripheral Vision: Why Bigger Is Better

We enjoy the illusion that visual resolution is high across the entire field of vision. However, this illusion can be easily dispelled by trying to identify objects in a cluttered environment out of the corner of your eye. This reflects, in part, the well-known decline in visual resolution in peripheral vision; however, the main bottleneck for reading or object recognition in peripheral vision is crowding. Objects that can be easily identified in isolation seem indistinct and jumbled in clutter. Crowding is thought to reflect inappropriate integration of the target and flankers in peripheral vision [1, 2]. Here, we uncover and explain a paradox in peripheral crowding: under certain conditions, increasing the size or number of flanking rings results in a paradoxical decrease in the magnitude of crowding-i.e., the bigger or more numerous the flanks, the smaller the crowding. These surprising results are predicted by a model in which crowding is determined by the centroids of approximately 4-8 independent features within approximately 0.5x the target eccentricity. These features are then integrated into a texture beyond the stage of feature analysis. We speculate that this process may contribute to the illusion of high resolution across the field of vision.

Chinese character recognition in mirror reading: Evidence from event‐related potential

As is well known, mirror reading in language requires recognition of words and letters in mirror-reversed pattern compared with normal reading, and the cognitive mechanism underlying the mirror reading may involve two critical processes: visuospatial transformation and linguistic regulation. Chinese characters, different from English, are characterized by some unique features in orthography and spelling. Using ERP techniques, the present study investigated neural correlates underlying the mirror reading of Chinese characters, and whether the cognitive processes underlying the recognition of mirrored Chinese characters is different from those of alphabetic words. Twelve native Chinese speakers participated in the experiment, during which they were instructed to make an animal/nonanimal distinction. The stimuli varied with the word category (animal vs nonanimal) and presentation format (normal vs mirror-reversed). The data analyses focused on three aspects: the reaction times (RT) for Chinese words of normal and mirror-reversed formats, peak latencies, and peak amplitudes of ERP components elicited by mirror-reversed and normal Chinese words. The results from implicit reading provide evidence for a mirror-reversed effect. The behavioural data showed that mirror-reversed words were more difficult to identify than normal words, with RTs delayed for mirror-reversed words over normal words. Moreover, a clear N2 component, with maximal activity occurring at 200-250ms interval (N2), was more negative for mirror-reversed words than for normal words at posterior regions. However, there were no latency differences between normal and mirror-reversed words. The occipital N2 might be closely related to abstract word form representation. Larger N2 amplitude in response to mirror-reversed Chinese words is interpreted as reflecting visuospatial transformation in order to compensate for impaired word form analysis. The result of no N2 latency delay indicated that word form analysis and visuospatial transformation might be processed in parallel.

Electronic subretinal implants allow blind retinitis pigmentosa patients to read letters and recognize the direction of fine stripe patterns

Abstract Purpose Restoration of letter reading and stripe pattern recognition in blind RP patients by placing subretinal implants transchoroidally near the macula, consisting of two arrays: 4x4 electrodes controlled retroauricularly via a subdermal line for direct stimulation (“DS array”) and a "chip" (3x3x0,1 mm),1500 electrodes. Methods Letters and stripe pattern were presented to 3 patients via the light sensitive chip – by patterns steadily presented at a screen. On the DS array the sensation evoked by each individual pulse consists of whitish round dot, clearly separated from its neighbor. Patterns consisting of such 4 x 4 dots correspond to letters of approximately 5 cm diameter presented at 60 cm distance. Results Pat.1 correctly (20/24) recognized the direction of the letter “U”, presented with the opening in four different directions (DS array). Pat.2 correctly (12/12) differentiated letters via DS array (e.g. COIL). With the light sensitive chip, he correctly (22/24) differentiated letters (e.g. LITZ; 8,5 cm high, 1.7 cm line width) steadily presented on a screen at 62 cm distance Pat.3 recognized (15/20 correct, 4AFC) the direction of lines or stripe patterns with the chip, as did Pat.1 (11/14, 2AFC) and Pat.2 (11/12 4AFC) up to 0.35 cycles/deg. Conclusion Active subretinal multielectrode implants with currents close to produce retinotopically correct patterns that allow for the first time recognition of individual letters and stripe patterns up to 0.35 cycles/deg clearly supporting the feasibility of light sensitive subretinal multi‐electrode devices for restoration of useful vision.

Literacy and Informed Consent

Literacy and Informed Consent

The cognitive and linguistic foundations of early reading development: A Norwegian latent variable longitudinal study.

The authors present the results of a 2-year longitudinal study of 228 Norwegian children beginning some 12 months before formal reading instruction began. The relationships between a range of cognitive and linguistic skills (letter knowledge, phoneme manipulation, visual-verbal paired-associate learning, rapid automatized naming (RAN), short-term memory, and verbal and nonverbal ability) were investigated and related to later measures of word recognition in reading. Letter knowledge, phoneme manipulation, and RAN were independent longitudinal predictors of early reading (word recognition) skills in the regular Norwegian orthography. Early reading skills initially appeared well described as a unitary construct that then showed rapid differentiation into correlated subskills (word decoding, orthographic choice, text reading, and nonword reading) that showed very high levels of longitudinal stability. The results are related to current ideas about the cognitive foundations of early reading skills.

Activation of the Left Inferior Frontal Gyrus in the First 200 ms of Reading: Evidence from Magnetoencephalography (MEG)

BackgroundIt is well established that the left inferior frontal gyrus plays a key role in the cerebral cortical network that supports reading and visual word recognition. Less clear is when in time this contribution begins. We used magnetoencephalography (MEG), which has both good spatial and excellent temporal resolution, to address this question.Methodology/Principal FindingsMEG data were recorded during a passive viewing paradigm, chosen to emphasize the stimulus-driven component of the cortical response, in which right-handed participants were presented words, consonant strings, and unfamiliar faces to central vision. Time-frequency analyses showed a left-lateralized inferior frontal gyrus (pars opercularis) response to words between 100–250 ms in the beta frequency band that was significantly stronger than the response to consonant strings or faces. The left inferior frontal gyrus response to words peaked at ∼130 ms. This response was significantly later in time than the left middle occipital gyrus, which peaked at ∼115 ms, but not significantly different from the peak response in the left mid fusiform gyrus, which peaked at ∼140 ms, at a location coincident with the fMRI–defined visual word form area (VWFA). Significant responses were also detected to words in other parts of the reading network, including the anterior middle temporal gyrus, the left posterior middle temporal gyrus, the angular and supramarginal gyri, and the left superior temporal gyrus.Conclusions/SignificanceThese findings suggest very early interactions between the vision and language domains during visual word recognition, with speech motor areas being activated at the same time as the orthographic word-form is being resolved within the fusiform gyrus. This challenges the conventional view of a temporally serial processing sequence for visual word recognition in which letter forms are initially decoded, interact with their phonological and semantic representations, and only then gain access to a speech code.

Phonological Awareness and Word Recognition in Reading by Children With Autism

This research examined phonological awareness (PA) and single word reading in 14 school-age children with autism and 10 age-matched, typically developing (TD) children between 5-7 years. Two measures of PA, an elision task (ELI) and a sound blending task (BLW), were given along with two measures of single word reading, word identification for real words (WID) and phonetic decoding of nonwords (WATTK). Group differences were found for performance on PA tasks but no group differences were found for WID or WATTK. All the children with autism scored within the average range on WID and WATTK, although a statistical bias was noted for WID. No relationship was found between PA and measures of word reading in children with autism. Children with autism have adequate ability in single word reading but below average PA. Word reading does not appear to be related to PA for some of the children with autism

MEASUREMENT OF CHOROIDAL NEOVASCULAR AREA IN AGE-RELATED MACULAR DEGENERATION USING MODIFIED OTSU’S THRESHOLDING METHOD

Introduction: Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD) is one of the most important causes of irreversible blindness in the developed world and prevents the affected person from performing simple tasks such as reading, driving and facial recognition. In the AMD, new blood vessels grow underneath the retina in a process called choroidal neovascularisation (CNV). There is much interest in the quantification of the angiographic features of CNV, as these parameters are used as markers for monitoring the response to CNV treatment. To date, the techniques used in angiographic analysis are based on subjective interpretation by experienced clinicians. The goal of the present study was to propose an automatic algorithm for determining the extent of CNV. Materials and Methods: The proposed algorithm was used to analyze indocyanine angiograms of 12 patients with CNV. The angiograms were acquired by a confocal scanning laser ophthalmoscope. The algorithm included an adaptive Wiener filtering technique, a top-hat morphology method and a new thresholding technique based on a modification of Otsu’s method. The area of each lesion was obtained and compared with a subjective evaluation of CNV. Finally, each area was expressed in square millimeters by making a cylindrical tube filled with indocyanine green. Results: The CNV area was determined by the proposed algorithm and an observer. No significant differences were observed between the two data sets (p>0.05). Discussion and conclusion: This study demonstrates that the proposed algorithm based on a modification of Otsu’s method can be used to measure the area of CNV.

Enlightened: the art of finger reading*

Abstract. For some forty years the eye‐tracking technology has facilitated the study of eye movement patterns for sighted people during reading and other visual activities. Today – a newly developed automatic finger tracking system makes it possible to reconstruct blind people’s tactile reading in real time and to automatically analyze finger movements during Braille text reading and tactile picture recognition. In this case study, the very first automatic finger tracking system is presented together with results indicating how Braille readers can increase awareness of their own reading styles. This opens up for future Braille education to become more evidence‐based and, at the same time, for a new research field: contrastive studies of language in its auditory, visual and tactile manifestations.

The Effects of Single Mothers’ Welfare Use and Employment Decisions on Children’s Cognitive Development

This research examines the effects of mothers' welfare and work decisions on their children's attainments using a random effect instrumental variables (REIV) estimator. The estimator employs sibling comparisons in a random effect framework and an instrumental variables approach to address the unobserved heterogeneity that may influence mothers' work and welfare decisions. The identification comes from the variation in mothers' different economic incentives that arises from the AFDC benefit structures across U.S. states. We focus on children who were born to single mothers with twelve or fewer years of schooling. The short-run child attainments under consideration are the Peabody Individual Achievement Test math and reading recognition scores from the Children of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 cohort. Long-run attainments are a child's number of years of schooling by age 25 and his or her early adulthood labor income, drawn from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics. The REIV estimates imply that, relative to no welfare participation, participating in welfare for one to three years provides up to a 5 percentage point gain in a child's Picture Individual Achievement Test (PIAT) scores. The negative effect of childhood welfare participation on adult earnings found by others is not significant if one accounts for mothers' work decisions. At the estimated values of the model parameters, a mother's number of years of work contributes between $3,000 and $7,000 1996 dollars to her child's labor income, but has no significant effect on the child's PIAT test scores. Finally, children's number of years of schooling are relatively unresponsive to mothers' work and welfare participation choices.