Annals of Dyslexia最新文献

Alphabet knowledge is a vital learning target during early childhood, including for children who are at risk for reading difficulties. For these children, we need to provide effective, efficient, evidence-based instruction. In this study, we examined the uppercase facilitation effect (i.e., children are more likely to identify lowercase letters when they know the corresponding uppercase forms) in the context of alphabet learning and thus its potential to be leveraged as an instructional strategy. Thirty-six 3:5 to 5:5 years old children at risk for reading difficulties due to low alphabet knowledge (18 girls; 50 months old on average; 22 English monolinguals and 14 emergent bilinguals) participated in a within-subjects experiment. Children received 1:1 alphabet instruction on individually selected letters, with other letters serving as controls. We evaluated participating children's letter name and sound production pre- and post-instruction. We accounted for letters being nested within each child using multilevel logistic regression. Children were more likely to know lowercase letters if they knew the corresponding uppercase letters, regardless of whether the letters were taught or not taught. The uppercase facilitation effect did not apply in the context of alphabet learning. We discuss instructional implications.

Event-related potentials (ERPs) are widely used to investigate the neural underpinnings of reading and developmental dyslexia, yet there are significant disparities in methodological approach. This poses a challenge for generalizability and interpretation. This systematic review synthesizes studies that investigate ERPs associated with cognitive-linguistic correlates of reading and dyslexia in the "triangle" framework of reading: orthography, phonology, and semantics. Using the 2020 PRISMA guidelines, we performed title/abstract and full-text screening of 1,286 papers identified via database search. Included studies (N = 56) were categorized in terms of the cognitive-linguistic processes examined: (1) orthographic (including lexico-orthographic processing), (2) phonological, (3) orthographic-phonological (integration/processing), and/or (4) semantic. This comprehensive review synthesizes prominent ERP components and time windows that characterize these processes. Across studies, individuals with dyslexia generally exhibit atypical ERP responses during orthography and phonology, whereas results for semantic processing are ambiguous and underexplored. Nonetheless, inconsistencies across studies were noted, and quality assessment indicates a greater need for transparency in methods/results reporting, that is critical for reproducible sciences in dyslexia research.

Children and young people with dyslexia face a variety of challenges in everyday school life, which can affect their intellectual and emotional development. While the potential consequences of dyslexia are well-documented, little is known about the specific challenging situations in the school context these children face. This scoping review addresses this gap by systematically identifying and categorising school-related stressors experienced by students with dyslexia. A literature search between 2000 and 2025 was conducted via EBSCOhost across five databases in the fields of education and psychology. A total of 30 peer-reviewed studies were included for full-text analysis. The majority of studies (n = 23) were qualitative, complemented by quantitative (n = 4) and mixed-method studies (n = 3). All participants had a formal diagnosis of dyslexia and described their school-related experiences either currently or retrospectively. The reported school-related challenging situations were assigned to two main categories: social environment and student-related stressors. Many typical school routines-such as reading aloud in front of the class, peer comparisons, or public error correction-emerged as particularly distressing. These practices are rarely questioned but can lead to humiliation, anxiety, and fear of failure for students with dyslexia. Recognising the subjective experiences of students with dyslexia offers valuable insights for developing more inclusive educational practices and targeted socio-emotional support.

The present study examined 1) basic biliteracy difficulty subtypes in Chinese (L1) and English (L2) Hong Kong Chinese children, 2) genetic-versus-environmental aetiologies for the subtypes, and 3) the moderating role of SES and school language use in the aetiologies. Four hundred fifty-six twin pairs (91.08 ± 13.20 months, 50% female) were assessed on Chinese and English word reading and spelling skills. Results of latent profile analysis identified four biliteracy profiles: 51.2% Chinese-dominant learners (CDL), 17.0% poor biliterate learners (PBL), 12.4% English-poor Chinese-dominant learners (EPCDL), and 19.4% English-dominant learners (EDL). Focusing on the difficulty profiles, results of familial resemblance showed that the additive genetic factor (55%) contributed more than the environmental factors to the probability of PBL, while the shared environmental factors (56%) contributed more than the genetic (25%) and unique environmental factors to the probability of EPCDL. Low SES was associated with a higher probability of PBL and EPCDL, and it exacerbated the genetic contribution to both difficulty profiles. The current findings suggest the influence of environmental factors underlying basic biliteracy difficulties, although we cannot rule out the possibility of high heritability, which appears to be the case for both L1 Chinese and L2 English.

While dyslexia is often considered a uniformly persistent condition, research has identified two additional developmental pathways: resolving and late-emerging dyslexia. Yet, most studies have focused on Western languages, and only a few have examined kindergarten predictors of these pathways, with morphological awareness largely overlooked. This five-year longitudinal study examined dyslexia pathways and their kindergarten predictors, including morphological awareness, in Hebrew-a Semitic language with distinct orthographic and morphological features. A cohort of 515 Hebrew-speaking children was followed from kindergarten through Grades 1 and 4. Dyslexia pathways were classified using dual cut-off criteria (≤ 16th percentile for dyslexia, ≥ 25th percentile for typical readers) based on word-reading fluency in Grades 1 and 4. Kindergarten measures included phonological awareness, letter knowledge, rapid automatized naming, and morphological awareness. Among children with dyslexia, three pathways were identified: persistent (35%), resolving (33%), and late-emerging (32%). Multinomial logistic regression, with typically developing readers as the reference group, revealed distinct kindergarten predictors. Letter knowledge deficits characterized all pathways. Phonological awareness predicted persistent and resolving dyslexia. Rapid naming predicted only persistent dyslexia, distinguishing it from resolving dyslexia. Morphological awareness uniquely predicted late-emerging dyslexia. These findings extend dyslexia pathway research to Semitic languages, showing how typological features shape pathway prevalence. They provide the first evidence that kindergarten morphological awareness deficits uniquely predict late-emerging dyslexia, demonstrating how the universal phonological-to-morphological shift in reading manifests in dyslexia trajectories and underscoring the need for comprehensive early screening approaches.

Currently, most states in the United States have enacted legislation mandating universal screening for literacy risk in kindergarten through 3rd grade. However, the degree to which these policies translate into consistent, high-quality screening practices remains unclear. In this survey study, we collected responses from a diverse sample of K–3 educators (N = 251) across 39 states, representing varied school types, professional roles, and experience levels, to examine the real-world implementation of universal screening. Guided by the Exploration, Preparation, Implementation, and Sustainment (EPIS) framework, we analyzed quantitative and qualitative data to identify real-world factors that could impede the fidelity and effectiveness of screening implementation. We found substantial variability across multiple dimensions of literacy screening implementation. Educators described considerable variation in screener selection, administration practices, testing environments, training quality, scoring accuracy, and the use of results to guide intervention. Notably, many indicated insufficient training and professional development, expressing uncertainty about administering and interpreting screeners, particularly for English language learners. Nearly half also reported the absence of systematic procedures for developing intervention plans, suggesting that many students identified as at risk do not receive appropriate follow-up support. These implementation challenges occurred despite widespread recognition among educators of screening’s importance for early literacy intervention. Educators from lower-socioeconomic status schools reported significantly greater time burdens in conducting screenings and more technology-related challenges compared to their higher-SES counterparts. Without systematic improvements to implementation support and training, current screening initiatives may fail to achieve their intended goal of early identification and intervention for struggling readers.

The overall goal of this study was to examine pre-service teachers' knowledge of language and literacy concepts across different provinces in Canada. Eight hundred and eighty-three pre-service teachers completed a survey measuring their knowledge of three literacy components (phonological awareness, phonics and morphology). Results showed first that they had an overall score of 65% in phonological awareness, 62% in phonics and 37% in morphology. Second, they did significantly better in questions of implicit knowledge than explicit knowledge. Finally, their ratings of perceived ability in teaching the aforementioned concepts correlated significantly (rs ranged from .24 to .30) with their respective knowledge score. Taken together, these results suggest that many Canadian pre-service teachers have a rather limited understanding of the basic language and literacy concepts, particularly in the area of morphology. Given that these scores are not much different than those reported in the literature 10 years ago, we recommend that more substantive measures are put in place to bring that required knowledge to our pre-service teachers.