Effects of unfamiliar diverse names on elementary students' passage comprehension.

Elementary school multicultural reading curricula include characters with diverse proper names, which are often unfamiliar and differ phonetically from students' native language. These names could impact reading outcomes by increasing students' cognitive load and/or creating cognitive disfluency. In Study 1, students in grades 1 through 2 read a standard passage including common names and a matched passage including unfamiliar names of Russian origin. A paired samples t test indicated unfamiliar diverse names in grade-level passages significantly reduced students' reading comprehension. Study 2 was designed to determine if preteaching diverse names would mitigate their adverse effects on reading comprehension. Results indicated second-grade students who received preteaching comprehended significantly more of the passage than those who did not receive preteaching. Discussion focuses on the need for research clarifying the relationship between multicultural learning materials and academic outcomes and validating efficient methods for familiarizing students with difficult, phonetically unfamiliar words. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Evaluating a computer flash-card sight-word recognition intervention with self-determined response intervals in elementary students with intellectual disability.

A concurrent multiple-baseline across-tasks design was used to evaluate the effectiveness of a computer flash-card sight-word recognition intervention with elementary-school students with intellectual disability. This intervention allowed the participants to self-determine each response interval and resulted in both participants acquiring previously unknown words across all word sets. Discussion focuses on the need to evaluate and compare computer flash-card sight-word recognition interventions with fixed and self-determined response intervals across students and dependent variables, including rates of inappropriate behavior and self-determination in students with intellectual disability. (PsycINFO Database Record

Accurate reading comprehension rate as an indicator of broad reading in students in first, second, and third grades.

The relationship between reading comprehension rate measures and broad reading skill development was examined using data from approximately 1425 students (grades 1-3). Students read 3 passages, from a pool of 30, and answered open-ended comprehension questions. Accurate reading comprehension rate (ARCR) was calculated by dividing the percentage of questions answered correctly (%QC) by seconds required to read the passage. Across all 30 passages, ARCR and its two components, %QC correct and time spent reading (1/seconds spent reading the passage), were significantly correlated with broad reading scores, with %QC resulting in the lowest correlations. Two sequential regressions supported previous findings which suggest that ARCR measures consistently produced meaningful incremental increases beyond %QC in the amount of variance explained in broad reading skill; however, ARCR produced small or no incremental increases beyond reading time. Discussion focuses on the importance of the measure of reading time embedded in brief accurate reading rate measures and directions for future research.

Screening for secondary intervention: concept and context.

The article by Speece (in this issue) underscores the disappointing accuracy results of early screening for reading difficulties and argues that development conceptualized as rate of learning matters. We respond by emphasizing three points. First, the purpose of early screening could be identifying students not at risk so that instructional objectives can be established for students potentially at risk. Second, monitoring progress in mastering the alphabetic principle is reflected in item-based learning. Third, response to instruction is multilevel and contextualized. These points are illustrated with data from an early reading assessment used widely in Texas and from high-performing/high-poverty schools in Texas that serve as models of multitiered instruction.