Linking Behavioral and Computational Approaches to Better Understand Variant Vowel Pronunciations in Developing Readers.

The overarching goal of the new Florida State University/Haskins Laboratory/University of Connecticut Learning Disability (LD) Hub project is to align computational and behavioral theories of individual word reading development more closely with the challenges of learning to read a quasi-regular orthography (i.e., English) for both typically developing (TD) children and, more specifically, children with dyslexia. Our LD Hub adopts an integrated approach to better understand the neurocognitive bases of individual differences in word reading development by specifically examining the experiential (exogenous) and child-specific (endogenous) factors that determine acquisition of orthographic-phonological knowledge at different subword granularities using behavioral and computational modeling. Findings are intended to enrich understanding of the processes that influence individual differences in word reading development in TD and dyslexic children and significantly inform issues of practice (e.g., curriculum, instruction, diagnosis, and intervention). Here, we briefly provide the rationale for the Hub and present findings from the initial behavioral and computational modeling studies.

The Role of Set for Variability in Irregular Word Reading: Word and Child Predictors in Typically Developing Readers and Students At-Risk for Reading Disabilities.

In a quasiregular orthography like English, children inevitably encounter irregular words during reading. Previous research suggests successful reading of an irregular word depends at least partially on a child's ability to address the mismatch between decoded form and stored word pronunciation, referred to as a child's set for variability, and the word's relative transparency, measured here using a spelling to pronunciation transparency rating. Item-level analyses were used to explore the relationship between general child performance on the set for variability mispronunciation task, word specific set for variability (predicting reading of that word), spelling to pronunciation transparency rating, and irregular word reading. Significant predictors included general word reading, general set for variability performance, and item-specific set for variability performance; word frequency and spelling to pronunciation transparency rating; and interaction between word reading and the transparency rating. Results underscore the importance of considering both general and item-specific factors affecting irregular word reading.

Spatial Properties of Mismatch Negativity in Patients with Disorders of Consciousness.

In recent decades, event-related potentials have been used for the clinical electrophysiological assessment of patients with disorders of consciousness (DOCs). In this paper, an oddball paradigm with two types of frequency-deviant stimulus (standard stimuli were pure tones of 1000 Hz; small deviant stimuli were pure tones of 1050 Hz; large deviant stimuli were pure tones of 1200 Hz) was applied to elicit mismatch negativity (MMN) in 30 patients with DOCs diagnosed using the JFK Coma Recovery Scale-Revised (CRS-R). The results showed that the peak amplitudes of MMN elicited by both large and small deviant stimuli were significantly different from baseline. In terms of the spatial properties of MMN, a significant interaction effect between conditions (small and large deviant stimuli) and electrode nodes was centered at the frontocentral area. Furthermore, correlation coefficients were calculated between MMN amplitudes and CRS-R scores for each electrode among all participants to generate topographic maps. Meanwhile, a significant negative correlation between the MMN amplitudes elicited by large deviant stimuli and the CRS-R scores was also found at the frontocentral area. In consequence, our results combine the above spatial properties of MMN in patients with DOCs, and provide a more precise location (frontocentral area) at which to evaluate the correlation between clinical electrophysiological assessment and the level of consciousness.

Increased Response to Altered Auditory Feedback in Dyslexia: A Weaker Sensorimotor Magnet Implied in the Phonological Deficit.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine whether developmental dyslexia (DD) is characterized by deficiencies in speech sensory and motor feedforward and feedback mechanisms, which are involved in the modulation of phonological representations. Method: A total of 42 adult native speakers of Dutch (22 adults with DD; 20 participants who were typically reading controls) were asked to produce /bep/ while the first formant (F1) of the /e/ was not altered (baseline), increased (ramp), held at maximal perturbation (hold), and not altered again (after-effect). The F1 of the produced utterance was measured for each trial and used for statistical analyses. The measured F1s produced during each phase were entered in a linear mixed-effects model. Results: Participants with DD adapted more strongly during the ramp phase and returned to baseline to a lesser extent when feedback was back to normal (after-effect phase) when compared with the typically reading group. In this study, a faster deviation from baseline during the ramp phase, a stronger adaptation response during the hold phase, and a slower return to baseline during the after-effect phase were associated with poorer reading and phonological abilities. Conclusion: The data of the current study are consistent with the notion that the phonological deficit in DD is associated with a weaker sensorimotor magnet for phonological representations.

GraphoGame - a catalyst for multi-level promotion of literacy in diverse contexts.

GraphoGame (GG) is originally a technology-based intervention method for supporting children with reading difficulties. It is now known that children who face problems in reading acquisition have difficulties in learning to differentiate and manipulate speech sounds and consequently, in connecting these sounds to corresponding letters. GG was developed to provide intensive training in matching speech sounds and larger units of speech to their written counterparts. GG has been shown to benefit children with reading difficulties and the game is now available for all Finnish school children for literacy support. Presently millions of children in Africa fail to learn to read despite years of primary school education. As many African languages have transparent writing systems similar in structure to Finnish, it was hypothesized that GG-based training of letter-sound correspondences could also be effective in supporting children's learning in African countries. In this article we will describe how GG has been developed from a Finnish dyslexia prevention game to an intervention method that can be used not only to improve children's reading performance but also to raise teachers' and parents' awareness of the development of reading skill and effective reading instruction methods. We will also provide an overview of the GG activities in Zambia, Kenya, Tanzania, and Namibia, and the potential to promote education for all with a combination of scientific research and mobile learning.