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Toward modeling reading comprehension and reading
fluency in English language learners
Zohreh Yaghoub Zadeh Fataneh Farnia
Esther Geva
Published online: 21 August 2010 Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2010
Abstract This study investigated the adequacy of an expanded simple view of
reading (SVR) framework for English language learners (ELLs), using mediation
modeling approach. The proposed expanded SVR included reading fluency as an
outcome and phonological awareness and naming speed as predictors. To test the fit
of the proposed mediation model, longitudinal data from 308 ELLs from different
linguistic backgrounds were analyzed using structural equation modeling. We
examined the mediating role of Grade 2 word-level reading skills in the associationbetween Grade 1 phonological awareness, naming speed, and listening compre-
hension and Grade 3 reading comprehension and reading fluency. The results
indicated that word-level reading skills fully mediated the association between
phonological awareness, reading comprehension and reading fluency. Word-level
reading skills partially mediated the association between naming speed and reading
fluency. Listening comprehension contributed directly to reading comprehension
and reading fluency. It appears that reading development in ELLs is better under-
stood when reading fluency is added to the SVR framework as an outcome and
naming speed as a building block of SVR. Theoretical aspects of the mediationmodel in relation to ELL reading development are also addressed.
Z. Yaghoub Zadeh (&)
Directions Evidence and Policy Research Group, 1055 Dunsmuir, Suite 1254,
Four Bentall Centre, P.O. Box 48448, Vancouver, BC V7X 1A2, Canada
e-mail: [email protected]
F. Farnia
Adolescent Biliteracy Development, Department of Human Development and Applied Psychology,
The Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, Hincks-Dellcrest Centre/Institute,Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, 252 Bloor St,
West Toronto, ON M5S 1V6, Canada
E. Geva
Department of Human Development and Applied Psychology, The Ontario Institute for Studies
in Education, University of Toronto, 252 Bloor St, West Toronto, ON M5S 1V6, Canada
1 3
Read Writ (2012) 25:163187
DOI 10.1007/s11145-010-9252-0
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Keywords English language learners Reading comprehension
Reading fluency Simple view of reading Mediation modeling Primary level
Introduction
According to the Simple View of Reading (SVR), reading comprehension is a
product of the joint effect of word-level reading skills (decoding) and linguistic
comprehension (Hoover & Gough, 1990; Gough & Tunmer, 1986). The SVR
framework has been the focus of numerous studies that examined its adequacy in
addressing the complexities of reading comprehension. For example Kirby and
Savage (2008) maintained that in spite of the broad appeal for SVR framework, it is
not sufficiently specified. This framework does not address the relationship between
reading comprehension and reading fluency, nor does it explicitly address the role ofunderlying cognitive processes in reading comprehension. The adequacy of SVR
framework is not well understood in the context of English Language Learners
(ELLs), that is, students whose home language is different from English, the societal
and school language. The present study targeted ELLs, and examined longitudinally
the adequacy of an expanded mediation SVR framework that includes reading
fluency as an outcome, word-level reading as a mediator, and cognitive processes as
predictors of reading fluency and reading comprehension.
Considering a longitudinal expanded mediation SVR framework
Very few published studies (e.g., Gottardo & Mueller,2009; Proctor, Carlo, August,
& Snow,2005) have examined the reading comprehension of ELLs within the SVR
framework, though parts of the model have been examined in various second
language (L2) contexts. In particular, there is evidence that word-level reading and
reading comprehension skills are highly correlated in L2 learners, just as they are in
monolinguals (Chiappe, Siegel, & Wade-Woolley,2002; Lesaux, Lipka, & Siegel,
2006; van Gelderen et al., 2004; Verhoeven,2000), and that word reading fluency
(conceptualized in terms of accuracy and speed) correlates with reading compre-
hension (e.g., van Gelderen et al., 2004).
It is also well-documented in the L2 literature that oral language is strongly
related to literacy outcomes such as reading comprehension and reading fluency
(e.g., Droop & Verhoeven,2003; Geva & Yaghoub Zadeh, 2006; Lesaux, Rupp, &
Siegel,2007; Miller et al.,2006; Nakamoto, Lindsey, & Manis,2008; Proctor et al.,
2005), but weaker in relation to accurate word-level reading skills (for a systematic
review, see Geva, 2006). Unlike children learning to read in their first language
(L1), ELLs have, by definition, less developed oral language skills to draw on when
they read for fluency and comprehension in their L2. Because reading for fluency or
comprehension may be a more challenging task for ELLs than for their monolingualcounterparts, they may need to rely more heavily on basic cognitive skills such as
phonological awareness and naming speed that are less dependent on language
proficiency to support the decoding of the written text. For example, in a study of
Grade 2 ELLs and monolingual English speaking (EL1) students, Geva and
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Yaghoub Zadeh (2006) found that phonological awareness, rapid naming, accurate
word recognition, and oral language proficiency, concurrently predicted reading
fluency in ELLs, but for EL1s only rapid naming and word recognition predicted
reading fluency, and the contribution of language proficiency was negligible in this
group. This study, however, did not examine whether phonological awareness andnaming speed would make additional longitudinal contributions to reading fluency,
over and above their role in word-level reading skills. In another longitudinal study,
Lesaux et al. (2007) showed that there were associations between phonological
awareness, word recognition, and oral language assessed in kindergarten and Grade
4 reading comprehension.
Additional nuances concerning the direct or mediated nature of the relations
between underlying cognitive skills, word reading and reading comprehension, and
the validity of the SVR framework for L2 learners were reported in a recent study of
Spanish-speaking ELLs (Gottardo & Mueller,2009). In this two-year, longitudinalstudy, the relations between phonological awareness and language proficiency
assessed in Grade 1 in childrens L1 (Spanish) and their L2 (English) were used to
predict word reading accuracy and reading comprehension in Grade 2. The
researchers tested the SVR using structural equation modeling (SEM) and
concluded that the SVR framework is indeed a valid framework for understanding
the English reading comprehension skills of these children. In particular, the results
showed that oral language skills assessed in Grade 1 and word reading skills
assessed in Grade 2 contributed to Grade 2 reading comprehension. However, unlike
Lesaux et al.s (2007) findings, phonological awareness measured in Grade 1 did notcontribute to reading comprehension directly but rather through accurate word
recognition in Grade 2.
Proctor et al. (2005) examined the reading comprehension of Grade 4 Spanish-
speaking ELLs within the SVR framework. Using path analysis, these researchers
examined concurrently the contribution of two language proficiency measures
(vocabulary and listening comprehension), word reading fluency, and reading
comprehension. They reported that Grade 4 vocabulary contributed to reading
comprehension directly and indirectly through listening comprehension, but that
Grade 4 word reading fluency had a lesser effect on Grade 4 reading comprehension.
Evidence from studies involving monolinguals suggests that text reading fluency has
a stronger relationship with reading comprehension than does word reading fluency.
It has been argued that text reading fluency plays a more prominent role in reading
comprehension than word reading fluency because it is a more complex task that
draws not only on word-level accuracy and speed, but also on the understanding of
connected discourse (cf. Cutting, Materek, Cole, Levine, & Mahone,2009; Jenkins,
Fuchs, van den Broek, Espin, & Deno,2003). In light of this evidence coming from
the L1 literature, it may not be surprising that Proctor et al. (2005) did not find a
correlation between word reading fluency and oral language skills of ELLs.
The inconsistent findings concerning the role of reading fluency in L2 reading
comprehension may be due to different analytical and modelling approaches,
diversity in sample characteristics, the nature of the reading fluency tasks used,
different time frames (concurrent or longitudinal), and different research objec-
tives. Given that the nature of reading changes with schooling and development,
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it is necessary to carry out research that delineates the longitudinal relations
between reading-related skills that develop early, reading competence that builds on
these early skills, and subsequent reading comprehension in ELLs. To the best of
our knowledge, to date, no longitudinal study of ELL reading has attempted to
expand the SVR framework by examining the role of word-level reading asmediating between prerequisite skills that develop early, and the subsequent
emergence of higher order text processing outcomes, such as reading comprehen-
sion and reading fluency. Mediation modeling (Maxwell & Cole, 2007) is a useful
methodological tool for unpacking the complexity of longitudinal associations
between these reading components.
Reading fluency as an outcome in an expanded SVR framework
Reading fluency is often conceptualized as involving accuracy and speed of reading
words in isolation and in text (Crosson & Lesaux, 2010; Meyer & Felton, 1999;
Torgesen, Rashotte, & Alexander, 2001). This definition stems from automaticity
theories which posit that effortless reading results in less involvement of cognitive
resources in lexical retrieval, and leads to allocation of cognitive resources to higher
level reading comprehension (Perfetti, 2007).
Slocum, Street, and Gilberts (1995) reviewed correlational and experimental
research on the association between reading comprehension and reading fluency in
monolingual students. They concluded that although correlational studies point to
an association between reading fluency and reading comprehension, experimental
studies failed to show that enhancing students reading fluency (speed) improved
their reading comprehension. They also concluded that the extent of this association
may vary as a function of the type of reading comprehension measures used in
different studies. Relatedly, in a recent review of the research, Collins and Levy
(2008) discussed the nature of the relationship between reading comprehension and
reading fluency. They concluded that reading comprehension and reading fluency
develop side by side and share similar underlying factors such as text representation.
Studies that examined reading fluency as a predictor of reading comprehension
provide further evidence on the lack of association between reading fluency andreading comprehension. For example, Adlof, Catts, and Little (2006) examined the
association between reading fluency and reading comprehension in monolingual
students in Grades 2, 4, and 8. Their findings indicate that reading fluency did not
add any unique variance to the SVR framework.
Research focusing on monolingual students has shown that, similar to reading
comprehension, text reading fluency is associated with oral language (e.g., Cohen-
Mimran,2009; Cutting et al.,2009; Puranik, Petscher, Al Otaiba, Catts, & Lonigan,
2008) and with word-level reading skills (Biemiller, 1999; Carver & David, 2001;
Wolf & Katzir-Cohen,2001). Such findings suggest that reading comprehension andreading fluency draw on similar prerequisite processing skills such as phonological
awareness and naming speed that are related to word-level reading skills. In other
words, reading fluency and reading comprehension of ELLs may be considered as
two separate, complex aspects of reading that draw, to some extent, on similar
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underlying predictors. Over time, however, these two components may become
mutually facilitating as is the case in EL1s (e.g., Jenkins et al., 2003).
Riedel (2007) examined the association between oral reading fluency and reading
comprehension in a large sample of children in first and second grade, the majority
of whom were EL1 students. Riedel found that students with adequate levels of oralreading fluency but poor reading comprehension had lower vocabulary scores than
those with adequate levels of oral reading fluency and reading comprehension.
Similar results were reported for ELLs by Buly and Valencia (2002). They
conducted a cluster analysis to determine whether word identification, reading
fluency and reading comprehension were similar across the majority of students or
represented various patterns for different groups of students. Buly and Valencia
reported that in two clusters students had relatively stronger word recognition and
fluency skills than they did in reading comprehension, and that more than 60%
(n =12) of the students in these two clusters were ELLs. These findings suggestthat the association between reading fluency and reading comprehension in ELLs is
not as strong as it is in EL1s. Buly and Valencia (2002) attributed the weak
association between reading fluency and reading comprehension in ELLs to the lack
of English language proficiency. In a similar vein, Wiley and Deno (2005) studied
the association between oral reading fluency and reading comprehension in Grade 3
and Grade 5 ELLs and EL1s. They found a stronger association between oral
reading fluency and reading comprehension in EL1s than in ELLs. They also
reported that the association between oral reading fluency and reading comprehen-
sion was stronger in the older ELLs than in younger ELLs.A recent study by Crosson and Lesaux (2010) involving fifth grade Spanish-
speaking ELLs provides additional support for the notion that the relationship
between reading fluency and reading comprehension may not be identical in ELLs
and EL1s. They focused on the role of English language proficiency in the
concurrent association between reading fluency and reading comprehension.
Crosson and Lesaux reported that text reading fluency was associated with reading
comprehension in the case of ELLs with high levels of oral language proficiency,
but not for ELLs with low levels of oral language proficiency.
Taken together, these studies suggest that the relationship between reading
comprehension and reading fluency is not identical in EL1s and ELLs, and it
probably varies as a function of the age of the learners and their language
proficiency. In the early stages of learning to read, when oral language skills are not
well developed, the association between oral reading fluency and reading
comprehension may be low in ELLs. This body of research suggests that it may
be of theoretical value to consider an expanded SVR framework, in which reading
fluency and reading comprehension are treated as distinct, yet related, parallel
outcome behaviors.
Cognitive processing skills as predictors in an expanded SVR framework
Ample research involving the SVR framework supports the view that oral language
and word-level reading skills play an important role in understanding reading
comprehension. However, the SVR framework ignores cognitive processes that have
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been shown to play a significant role in predicting reading comprehension in
monolingual (Cain, Oakhill, & Bryant, 2004) and bilingual learners (e.g., van
Gelderen, Schoonen, de Glopper, & Hulstijn, 2007). Previous research has shown that
both phonological awareness and naming speed are predictors of word-level reading
(e.g., Bowers,1995; McBride-Chang, Wagner, & Chang,1997; Wagner et al.,1997;see also Vukovic & Siegel, 2006 for a review). Phonological awareness has been
shown to contribute to reading comprehension in monolingual (e.g., Cain, Oakhill, &
Bryant,2000) and in second language learners (Carlisle, Beeman, Davis, & Spharim,
1999; Manis, Seidenberg, & Doi,1999; Proctor et al.,2005; Verhoeven,2000).
Furthermore, research on monolingual students has shown that processing skills
such as naming speed are related to reading comprehension concurrently and
longitudinally (Johnston & Kirby, 2006; Joshi & Aaron, 2000; Parrila, Kirby, &
McQuarrie, 2004). These studies provide support for the unique role that
phonological awareness and naming speed may play in reading comprehension inmonolingual children, over and above the known SVR components. What is not yet
clear is the extent to which these findings are applicable to models of ELL reading
comprehension, and whether phonological awareness and naming speed exert their
role on reading comprehension directly, or their influence is mediated through word-
level reading skills.
Mediation modeling: rationale and procedures
Mediation modeling is one of the best available statistical procedures to modelsimultaneously the nature of the interrelationship between hypothesized precursors,
mediator(s), and outcomes (Shrout & Bolger, 2002). Mediation can be best
modelled when using longitudinal databases, because the sequence of data points
allows the direction of effect to be modeled. Importantly, modeling mediation
follows a specific procedure that does not require the inclusion of autoregressors in
the model (e.g., Baron & Kenny, 1986). It is notable that although mediation
procedures allow one to model the direction of the effects among various constructs,
it is important to be mindful of the fact that causal conclusions can only be made
with caution in the absence of an experimental design (Shrout & Bolger, 2002).
When testing integrative models using procedures such as SEM, intercorrelations
among the predictor variables are taken into account. Therefore, unlike regression
and path analysis approaches, SEM is considered to be an appropriate analytical
technique for multivariate data analyses that enables testing mediation models that
highlight longitudinal, developmental relationships among the components.
In the context of reading development in ELLs, a mediation approach facilitates
unpacking associations between precursors of reading (e.g., phonological aware-
ness, naming speed, language comprehension), the hypothesized mediator, namely,
word-level reading, and outcome variables, namely, reading comprehension and
reading fluency. Furthermore, the mediation approach allows for the possibility to
be examined that some early predictors exert their influence on reading outcomes,
whether directly and/or indirectly, through the mediator. This elaboration is
necessary in order to examine the adequacy of an expanded SVR framework for
understanding reading comprehension and reading fluency in ELLs.
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To the best of our knowledge, no previous studies have used mediation modelling
as an analytical approach for understanding reading development in young ELLs.
From a theoretical perspective, a mediation model is juxtaposed with a direct model.
It is possible to think of the direct model as a benchmark in which all precursors
have a direct effect on all reading constructs, namely, word-level reading, readingcomprehension, and reading fluency. According to the direct model, the contribu-
tions of all hypothesized prerequisite cognitive and language skills to reading
measures are independent and direct.
When the mediation model provides the best fit, it may support partial or full
mediation. In the present context, partial mediation might show, for example, that
phonological awareness or naming speed not only contribute to the reading
outcomes through the mediator (in this case, word-level reading), but also that
contribute directly to the outcome measures. Alternatively, full mediation would
indicate that the only contribution of the prerequisites to the outcome measures isthrough the mediator. Note that, regardless of what model is supported, it is
presumed that listening comprehension, an aspect of language proficiency, will be
directly related to the outcome measures (i.e., reading comprehension and reading
fluency). The extent to which the results of the mediation model support the SVR
framework depends on whether full or partial mediation is supported. Full mediation
of word-level reading between earlier phonological awareness and naming speed
and subsequent reading outcomes would confirm the adequacy of the SVR
framework. Support for partial mediation might suggest that the SVR is not
sufficient to understand the attainment of reading comprehension and readingfluency in primary level ELLs. In this study we fitted two models to compare the
direct-effect and the mediation models. No direction of effect was proposed for the
concurrent hypothesized prerequisite constructs assessed in Grade 1 or for the
outcomes measured in Grade 3, though correlations between precursor measures
and outcome measures were assumed.
To examine the direct-effect model (see Fig.1), we modeled all possible
longitudinal direct paths from Grade 1 predictors (i.e., phonological awareness,
naming speed, and listening comprehension) to the mediator (i.e., word-level
reading in Grade 2), and to the outcome variables (reading fluency and reading
comprehension in Grade 3). We expected that listening comprehension would
contribute directly to reading comprehension and reading fluency. However, given
previous research findings (August & Shanahan, 2006), a significant path was not
expected between listening comprehension and word-level reading. Similarly, based
on previous findings (Manis et al., 1999; Pennington, Cardoso-Martins, Green, &
Lefly, 2001; Torgesen, Wagner, Rashotte, Burgess, & Hecht, 1997; van Gelderen
et al., 2004), no significant path was expected from naming speed to Grade 3
reading comprehension.
In the mediation model (Fig. 1), we added two paths: one from the word-level
construct to reading fluency (path A), and one from the word-level construct to
reading comprehension (path B). We hypothesized that these two paths would be
significant. For a full mediation model to be supported, it was expected that the
direct paths from phonological awareness to reading comprehension and reading
fluency, and the path from naming speed to reading fluency, would not be
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significant. For a partial mediation model to be supported, the magnitude of the
relationships between phonological awareness, naming speed, and the outcome
measures were expected to decrease significantly (in comparison to the direct
model).
In sum, we hypothesized that the mediation model would fit the data better than
the direct-effect model. More specifically, we expected that as ELLs graduallydevelop their reading skills, (a) Grade 1 rapid naming would contribute both directly
and indirectly (through Grade 2 word-level reading skills) to reading fluency; (b)
Grade 1 phonological awareness would contribute to Grade 3 reading comprehen-
sion and reading fluency either indirectly through Grade 2 word-level reading (full
mediation), or both directly and indirectly through word-level reading (partial
mediation); and (c) Grade 1 listening comprehension would contribute directly to
Grade 3 reading comprehension and reading fluency.
Method
Participants
Longitudinal data from 308 ELLs from diverse linguistic backgrounds were
collected in three sequential cohorts. The students came from 12 schools spread
across four boards of education in a large metropolitan area in Canada. Thirty-five
classes were involved. Fifty-two percent of the participants were male. The
participants came from a variety of home language backgrounds comprising 33%
Punjabi, 23% Portuguese, 14% Tamil, 14% Cantonese, 11% from three language
groups (Urdu, Hindi, and Gujarati), and 5% from other language backgrounds.
All three cohorts were first assessed in Grade 1; they were drawn from the same
schools and there were no changes in schools curricula or policy during the study.
The data from the three cohorts were combined and all analyses were done on the
A
B
Listening
Comprehension
Grade 1
Phonological
Awareness
Grade 1
Naming Speed
Grade 1
Word-level
Reading
Grade 2
Reading
Comprehension
Grade 3
Reading Fluency
Grade 3
Fig. 1 Direct-effect model (benchmark) and mediation model (dotted lines are added for mediation
model)
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total sample. In order to determine ELL status, the information gathered from a
number of sources was triangulated. The identification began with school
nominations as ELLs. This information was gathered in order to distribute the
appropriate translated consent form to parents. We then checked official school files
for all the nominated students to confirm the information. We also asked teachers toidentify students in their classrooms who spoke a language other than English at
home. This information was verified through parental consent forms and child
questionnaires. In order to make sure that ELL students had sufficient knowledge of
the English language to understand the English instructions, the testers were
instructed to chat with students before administering the tasks while accompanying
them from their class to the testing room. Before administering any of the tasks, the
testers also monitored whether the participants followed the instructions and did as
they were asked in order to develop an index of the adequacy of the students
English oral language.Typically, in Canada, recent immigrants from non-English speaking countries or
with limited English proficiency are placed in regular English classrooms. In the
province where the study took place, ELL students with minimal command of
English are withdrawn from their classrooms daily for 3040 min of English
language instruction, provided by teachers with English as a second language (ESL)
specialist training. The ESL classes comprise students of various ages and home
language backgrounds, and they are grouped by level of English language
proficiency. ELLs receive instruction in ESL classes for up to 2 years. For the
remainder of the day, the students are integrated into the regular classroom. Regularclassroom teachers are expected to make appropriate adaptations to the program-
ming and curriculum for their ELLs.
Demographic background
We were not able to obtain demographic information directly from parents.
However, we were able to access Canadian census data to obtain demographic
information in the neighborhoods where the schools were situated, by using relevant
postal codes. This information provided useful information that helped tocontextualize the study. According to the 2001 Canadian Census, about 58% of
the families living in the neighborhoods where the participating schools were
located reported a language other than English or French (the two Canadian official
languages) as the home language. About 91% of the families were first-generation
immigrants, and 68% of the adults immigrated when they were 20 years of age or
older. The average poverty rate in these neighborhoods was 23%, ranging from 0 to
50%. The median income of these families was considerably lower than the median
income for the metropolis in which they lived. There was also substantial variation
in the level of education of the adults living in these neighborhoods: 36% of theindividuals living in the relevant postal code blocks had not obtained a high school
diploma or had not finished high school, 13% had a high school diploma, 27% had
either a trade certificate or college education, and 20% had obtained at least a
bachelors degree.
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Grade 1 measures
Phonological awareness
Two measures of phonological awareness skills were used: the Auditory AnalysisTask and the Oddity Task.
Auditory analysis task An adapted version of the Auditory Analysis Task (AAT)
developed by Rosner and Simon (1971) was used to measure students phonological
awareness. To minimize the effect of lexical knowledge, only high frequency words
were used for the initial stimuli and target responses (e.g., sunshine, picnic, leg).
The 20-item task consists of 3 subtests of progressive difficulty. In the first subtest,
students were asked to delete one syllable morpheme in either initial or final
position (e.g., Say sunshine; Say it again but dont say shine). The secondsubtest aimed at the isolation and deletion of initial or final single phonemes in one-
syllable words (e.g., Say hand; Say it again but dont say the/h/). The third
subtest involved deletion of single phonemes in initial or final consonant blends
(e.g., Say left; Say it again without the/f/). The test was discontinued after
five consecutive errors. Each correct answer scored one point. The Cronbach a
coefficient was 0.92 for the sample used in this study.1
Oddity task This is an experimental task in which children listened to a series of
three, single-syllable CVC pseudowords played on a tape-recorder (e.g., wom, wob,vog) and were asked Which one starts with a different sound? wom, wob, vog?.
The same vowel was used within all items in a set. As each item was presented, the
experimenter pointed to a corresponding wooden counter (e.g., a square, a star, or a
triangle). A tone separated each set of items and alerted children to the next set. To
ensure that children remembered the set of items, the entire sequence was presented
twice in a row. Three practice items and 19 test items were presented in a fixed
sequence. The raw score was used in the analyses. The Cronbach acoefficient was
0.70 for the sample used in this study.
Naming speed
Two subtests of rapid automatized naming (RAN) developed by Denckla and Rudel
(1976) were used to measure naming speed: letters and objects. Such tasks tap basic
lower level cognitive processes by estimating the speed with which participants
access the names of highly automatized printed symbols (Bowers, Golden,
Kennedy, & Young,1994; Wolf, Pfeil, Lotz, & Biddle, 1994).
Letter naming This task consists of the presentation of a series of five highly
frequent letters of the English alphabet (O, A, S, D, P). Each letter appears 10 times
in random order. Participants are instructed to name the items as quickly and
1 Note that when data collection commenced, commercial, standardized measures of phonological
processing, such as the CTOPP, were not yet available.
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accurately as possible. Accuracy and time (in seconds) in naming all 50 items were
recorded.
Object naming This task consists of the presentation of a series of five highly
frequent objects (i.e., table, door, box, ball, hat). Each of the items appears 10 timesin random order. Participants are instructed to name the objects as quickly and
accurately as possible. Accuracy and time (in seconds) in naming all 50 items were
recorded.
The standardized scores of the two naming speed measures were calculated by
converting the speed in seconds and the number of errors to respective Z scores.
Listening comprehension
Listening comprehension (LC), as an indicator of linguistic comprehension, is anexperimental measure adapted from the Durrell Analysis of Reading Difficulty
(Durrell, 1970). This measure comprises two short stories (about a paragraph in
length) that represent different difficulty levels (Merbaum & Geva, 1998). Each
story is read to the child, and the child is instructed to pay attention because he/she
will be asked to retell the story and answer some questions about it. LC was
evaluated in two complementary manners. There were eight idea units in each story.
After listening to each story, the child was asked to retell it, and answer one
inferential and four factual questions which were presented orally to the child. Both
Story 1 and Story 2 had a maximum score of 13.Childrens story retelling and answers were tape-recorded. The recordings were
later transcribed and scored by two native English-speaking raters. For the free
recall component, children were given one point for each idea unit recalled. One
point was also given for each correctly answered oral comprehension question.
Children were not penalized for making grammatical errors in the free recall or the
questionanswer components of this task. There was an 85% agreement rate
between the two raters. However, following discussion of answers that were not
initially agreed upon, the raters were able to reach a full consensus on all protocols,
and the resulting scores were used in the analyses. The Cronbach a coefficient was
0.76 for the sample used in this study.
Grade 2 measures
Word-level reading skills
Two measures were used to assess childrens word-level reading skills: a word
identification test, and a pseudoword decoding test.
Word identification The word identification subtest of the Wide Range Achieve-
ment Test-Revised (WRAT-R; Wilkinson, 1993) was used to assess childrens
ability to read isolated words in English. WRAT is a standardized test with an
internal consistence of 0.88 at Grade 2. This test consists of 42 monosyllabic and
polysyllabic words. The word items involve nouns, verbs, adjectives, and
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prepositions. The test was discontinued after 10 consecutive errors. The total
number of correctly read words was considered as each childs score on the test.
Pseudoword decoding The Word Attack subtest of the Woodcock Reading
Mastery Test-Revised (Woodcock, 1987) was administered to assess childrensability to employ grapheme-phoneme correspondence rules in decoding pseudo-
words. The test consists of 45 items that conform to the rules of English
orthography, but are not real words in English (e.g., bufty, mancingful). The
total of correctly read items was considered each childs total score. The split half
reliability reported for Grades 13 ranged from 0.91 to 0.94.
Grade 3 measures
Reading comprehension
An experimental measure of reading comprehension was adapted from the Durrell
Analysis of Reading Difficulty (Durrell, 1970). Children were asked to read aloud
three short stories. They were instructed to pay close attention to the stories. These
were not the same stories used for the LC condition. Children were asked to retell
each story and then answer five open-ended questions, four of which were of a
factual nature (e.g., What did the men look like?) and one which was inferential
(e.g., Where was the money returned to?). The childrens story retelling and
responses to the questions were tape-recorded. As in the LC condition, they weregiven one point for each idea unit recalled and one point for each correct answer.
There was an 87% agreement rate between the raters. However, following
discussion of answers that were not initially agreed upon, the raters were able to
reach a full consensus on all protocols, and the resulting ratings were used in the
analyses. The Cronbach a coefficient was 0.83 for the sample used in this study.
Reading fluency
Two subtests of the Biemiller Test of Reading Processes (Biemiller,1981) were used
to measure reading fluency, oral text reading fluency, and oral word reading fluency.
Each subtest yields a measure of accuracy and a measure of speed of reading.
Oral text reading fluency Children were asked to read a short narrative text as
quickly as possible. The text consists of 100 primary level words.
Oral word reading fluency The children were asked to read, as quickly as possible,
a corresponding word list containing 50 randomly ordered words taken from the
narrative text described above.
The number of correctly read words within the word and text reading fluencyconditions yielded measures of word- and text-reading accuracy respectively, and
the number of seconds it took children to read the text and the words provided
corresponding measures of word and text reading speed. Errors and speed scores
were standardized to Z scores. The word fluency scores were based on the average
174 Z. Yaghoub Zadeh et al.
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of the errors and speed Z scores (Stanovich & West,1989). The same procedure was
used to calculate standard scores for text fluency. The lower the scores, the more
fluent the children are in reading words and texts.
Procedure
Consent forms in English and in the students home languages were distributed in
each of the participating classrooms. Only children with parental consent
participated. Students were tested on a large battery of tests, administered across
four testing sessions; each session lasted approximately 30 minutes. Students were
assessed in the winter/spring of each successive year. Testing was done on an
individual basis by fully trained graduate students and research assistants.
Results
Missing data points are unavoidable in longitudinal research. The sample size in Grade
1 was 308. The rate of attrition for data gathered in Grade 2 was about 27% (n = 225)
(i.e., word identification and word attack), and in Grade 3 about 42% (n = 179) (i.e.,
reading comprehension and reading efficiency measures). To examine whether
participants with partial data were different from participants with full data, we
compared the two groups on Grade 1 data. The two groups did not differ on measures
of listening comprehension, phonological awareness, naming speed or nonverbal
ability (see Appendix). However, due to the bias that emerges from analyzing onlythe data from participants with complete data, multiple imputation procedures were
used to estimate the missing data points. Multiple imputation is one of the best
procedures to deal with missing data (Allison,2003; Collins, Schafer, & Kam,2001;
Schafer & Graham, 2002). The LISREL 8.72 (Joreskog & Serbom, 2001) program was
used to impute the missing points using an expected maximization (EM) algorithm.
This procedure resulted in complete data for 308 ELLs.
All measures had normal distributions and nonsignificant skewness and kurtosis.
Table1 presents means, standard deviations, and correlation coefficients for all
variables. On the whole, there were significant correlations among all variables ofinterest. As can be seen in Table 1, there were significant bivariate correlations
among (a) early (Grade 1) cognitive and phonological processing predictors (i.e.,
phonological awareness, naming speed), and linguistic comprehension, and Grade 2
word-level reading (i.e., word identification and pseudoword decoding); (b) early
cognitive and phonological processing predictors and outcome variables (i.e.,
reading comprehension, reading fluency); and (c) measures of word-level reading
(i.e., word identification and pseudoword decoding), and outcome variables. In
addition, there were significant, albeit moderate, correlations between the two
outcome measures, reading comprehension and reading fluency.
Measurement model
In this study, we considered six latent variables: phonological awareness, rapid
naming, listening comprehension (assessed in Grade1), word-level reading skills
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Table1
Means,standarddeviations,andcorrelationcoefficientsforallmeasures
Measures
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
Grade1
1.LC-S1
2.LC-S2
0.6
4
3.AAT
0.3
3
0.3
5
4.Oddity
0.1
4
0.2
0
0.45
5.Letternaming
-0.0
5
-0.02
-0.10
-0.1
3
6.Objectnamin
g
-0.0
8
-0.13
-0.15
-0.1
2
0.3
9
Grade2
7.Decoding
0.2
4
0.2
4
0.68
0.47
-0.1
9
-0.20
8.WordID
0.2
7
0.2
7
0.67
0.45
-0.2
5
-0.26
0.8
8
Grade3
9.RC-S1
0.3
4
0.2
2
0.42
0.25
-0.0
1
0.04
0.3
9
0.4
6
10.
RC-S2
0.4
3
0.4
0
0.43
0.31
0.1
5
-0.07
0.4
7
0.5
0
0.51
11.
RC-S3
0.4
6
0.3
7
0.45
0.37
-0.0
8
-0.11
0.4
8
0.5
3
0.44
0.6
8
12.
Fluency-W
-0.2
4
-0.17
-0.23
-0.1
6
-0.1
8
0.13
-0.2
7
-0.2
7
-0.2
7
-0.3
1
-0.3
5
13.
Fluency-T
-0.2
8
-0.2
4
-0.11
-0.0
9
0.2
6
0.15
-0.2
5
-0.2
2
-0.1
0
-0.2
1
-0.2
8
0.7
5
Means
7.1
3
4.3
0
7.02
10.6
6
0.0
02
0.01
1
14.0
3
24.6
9
6.70
9.6
5
9.6
5
-0
.03
-0.0
3
SDs
3.1
6
2.7
9
4.21
3.65
0.5
0
0.59
10.4
6
5.1
1
1.44
2.2
9
2.0
3
0.3
3
0.2
8
Allcorrelationcoefficientsabove0.1
1aresignifican
tatp\
0.001;LC-S1listeningcomprehension-story1,L
C-S2listeningcomprehension-story2,A
ATauditoryanalysis
task,
Odditypseudowordfirstphonemeidentification,RC-S1readingcomprehension-story1,
RC-S2readingcomprehension-story2,RC-S3readingcomprehension-story
3,
Fluency-Wwordfluency,
Fluency-Ttextfluency
176 Z. Yaghoub Zadeh et al.
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(assessed in Grade 2), and reading comprehension and reading fluency (assessed in
Grade 3). Each latent variable comprised two measures, except for reading
comprehension which consisted of three measures. We used confirmatory factor
analysis to test the measurement model. All the measures loaded significantly on the
respective latent variables. As shown in Fig. 2, factor loadings for Grade 1 predictormeasures ranged from 0.55 to 0.88; factor loadings for the two Grade 2 measures,
comprising the mediator, were 0.930.95, and factor loadings for Grade 3 outcome
measures ranged from 0.61 to 1.00.
Since chi-square is sensitive to sample size, we used fit indices that are less
sensitive to sample size to assess goodness of fit for the models. The ratio between
chi-square and degrees of freedom is considered a good fit when it is less than 3
(Cole, 1987; Kline, 1998). In this study, this ratio was 1.97 for the measurement
model. The root-mean squared error of approximation (RMSEA) is also one of the
indices that is less dependent on sample size, and a value of 0.06 or less indicates a
Phonological Awareness
Grade 1
Auditory
analysis task
Oddity
.83
.55
Naming Speed
Grade 1
Letters naming
Objects naming.58
.69
Word ID
Decoding
.95
.93
Word-level reading
Grade 2
Listening Comprehension
Grade 1
List. Comp-
Story 1
List. Comp-
Story 2
.88
.73
Word Fluency
Text Fluency
.76
1.0
Reading Fluency
Grade 3
Reading Comp-
Story 1
Reading Comp-
Story 2
Reading Comp-
Story 3
.61
.79
.85
Reading Comprehension
Grade 3
Fig. 2 Measurement model: factor loadings on the six latent constructs. Note. v2 (46) =90.03;
RMSEA =0.06; GFI =0.96; AGFI =0.92; CFI =0.98; NFI =0.97; NNFI =0.97
Mediation model of ELL reading 177
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model with good fit (Hu & Bentler,1999). The RMSEA for the measurement model
was 0.06, indicating a good fit. Other indices of fit, independent of sample size, are
the model goodness of fit (GFI), adjusted goodness of fit (AGFI), comparative fit
index (CFI), normed fit index (NFI), non-normed fit index (NNFI); values of 0.90 or
higher indicated a good fit of the model. For the measurement model, all theseindices were above 0.90, indicating a good fit. Fit indices of the measurement model
(v2 (46) = 90.03; RMSEA = 0.06) indicated that the model fit the data well and it
was feasible to test the full models.
First, we fitted a direct and a mediation model to the data. We then compared the
two models in terms of their fit indices, including chi-square values and degrees of
freedom. This was done to determine which of the alternative theoretical models
best fit the data. The model with significantly lower chi-square would be the one that
best fits the data.
Direct-effect model
Figure3depicts the direct-effect model. For simplicity, only the structural models
with the estimated standardized coefficients for the paths is presented. The loadings
of the measures on the latent variables remained similar to the loadings presented in
Fig.2. As expected, listening comprehension did not contribute to word-level
reading, but phonological awareness and rapid naming did. Of the three Grade 1
latent constructs, listening comprehension and phonological awareness were
directly related to reading comprehension in Grade 3, but rapid naming was not.For reading fluency, the direct model indicated that all Grade 1 constructs were
related to reading fluency in Grade 3. The fit indices, and the ratio between chi-
square and degrees of freedom (2.01) indicated that the direct model fit the data well
(v2 (48) = 96.53; RMSEA = 0.06). This model explained 62% of the variance in
reading comprehension and 23% of the variance in reading fluency.
Naming SpeedGrade 1
.34
.58-.19
.95
.47
-.23 -.20
-.19
Listening
Comprehension
Grade 1
Phonological
AwarenessGrade 1
Word-level
Reading
Grade 2
Reading
ComprehensionGrade 3
Reading Fluency
Grade 3
.30
Fig. 3 Direct-effect model: structural equation model indicating coefficients for all the significant paths.
Dotted arrows indicate the non-significant path coefficients. v2 (48) =96.53; RMSEA =0.06,
GFI =0.95, AGFI =0.91; CFI =0.98; NFI =0.97; NNFI =0.97
178 Z. Yaghoub Zadeh et al.
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Mediation model
To examine the fit for the mediation model (see Fig.4), we added the paths from the
Grade 2 word-level reading construct to Grade 3 reading comprehension and
reading fluency. While the path from word-level reading to reading comprehensionwas significant, the direct paths from Grade 1 phonological awareness and naming
speed to reading comprehension were nonsignificant. Instead, the word-level
reading construct fully mediated the association between phonological awareness,
naming speed, and subsequent reading comprehension. In other words, the effect of
phonological awareness and naming speed on reading comprehension was solely
through their effect on word-level reading. As hypothesized, the relationship
between listening comprehension and reading comprehension was direct, and not
mediated through word-level reading.
As for reading fluency, while the path from word-level reading to reading fluencywas significant, the direct path from Grade 1 phonological awareness to reading
fluency was nonsignificant. That is, the effect of phonological awareness on reading
fluency was solely through its effect on word-level reading. The standardized path
coefficient from naming speed in Grade 1 to reading fluency in Grade 3 decreased
from 0.30 to 0.20, once the path from word-level reading to reading fluency
construct was included, indicating that word-level reading partially mediated the
effect of naming speed on reading fluency. In other words, unlike phonological
awareness, naming speed made an additional contribution to reading fluency aside
from its contribution through word-level reading.As hypothesized, the relationship between listening comprehension and reading
fluency was direct, and not mediated through word-level reading. The nonsignificant
path between the reading fluency and reading comprehension constructs in the
mediation and direct-effect models should be considered in conjunction with the
.42Listening
Comprehension
Grade 1
Phonological
AwarenessGrade 1
Naming Speed
Grade 1
Word-level
Reading
Grade 2
Reading
Comprehension
Grade 3
Reading Fluency
Grade 3
.46 .43
.87
-.23 -.20
.20
-.28
.51
Fig. 4 Mediation model: structural equation model indicating coefficients for all the significant paths.
Note. Dotted arrows indicate the non-significant path coefficients; bolded arrows indicate mediation
paths. v2 (46) =90.03; RMSEA =0.06, GFI =0.96; AGFI =0.92; CFI =0.98; NFI =0.97;
NNFI =0.97
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correlation tables. Table1 indicates that there was a small but significant
association between measures of reading fluency and reading comprehension, prior
to fitting the structural model. The correlations hovered between 0.21 and 0.35 with
one exception (0.10). Therefore, the nonsignificant bidirectional path between the
reading fluency and reading comprehension constructs might be the result ofmodeling the role of early predictors of these reading skills.
The fit indices of the mediation model indicated that the model fit the data well
(v2 (46) = 90.03; RMSEA = 0.06). The model explained 61% of variance in
reading comprehension and 25% of variance in reading fluency. Comparisons
between the fit indices for the direct-effect and mediation models indicated that the
mediation model had a significantly better fit than the direct-effect model
(Dv2 = 6.50, df =2, p\0.05).
Finally, it is important to note that in both the direct model and the mediation
model, the correlation between reading comprehension and reading fluency was notsignificant. As for the predictors, all correlations except the correlation between
naming speed and listening comprehension were significant.
Discussion
Findings of this study add to an emerging body of L2-based literature by suggesting
an expanded SVR framework. The study expands the SVR framework in three
interrelated perspectives. First, it affords a long-range perspective that delineates thelongitudinal relationships among component reading skills through a mediation
model. Second, it suggests that the expanded SVR framework needs to include
reading fluency and reading comprehension as outcomes, at least in the case of
young ELLs. Third, it draws attention to additional cognitive processes that underlie
reading comprehension and reading fluency in young ELLs. In what followswe
discuss the findings in turn, from each of these perspectives.
Component reading skills and subsequent reading outcomes: a mediation model
Research has shown that regardless of the L1s spoken by ELLs, cognitive-linguistic
processes, such as phonological awareness and naming speed, are more consistent
and potent predictors of subsequent word-level reading skills than are L2 oral
language skills (Geva, 2006). At the same time, well-developed language skills (in
conjunction with well developed word-level reading skills) are essential for deriving
meaning from texts. In this study we delineated the longitudinal relationships
among component reading skills that build on each other and develop gradually in
ELLs. The mediation model enabled us to examine the influence that early cognitive
and linguistic proficiency predictors (i.e., phonological awareness, naming speed,
listening comprehension) exert on reading outcomes, reading comprehension and
reading fluency (whether directly or indirectly), through word-level reading. By
design, and based on previous theoretical frameworks of reading development (e.g.,
Catts, Fey, Zhang, & Tomblin, 1999; Chall, 1983; Cutting & Scarborough, 2006;
Francis et al., 2005), in this study, certain skills were assessed at developmentally
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appropriate times. The longitudinal, developmental perspective is an asset to
mediation modelling, but it raises interesting questions pertaining to causal
longitudinal relations between constructs. That is how findings might have differed
if for example reading fluency data were used at multiple time points and any
potential causal relations that could be explored may be the subject of futureresearch.
The expanded SVR framework demonstrates within a longitudinal framework
that the impact of oral language proficiency on subsequent reading comprehension
and reading fluency is direct, and independent of word-level reading skills. These
longitudinal relationships are present in ELLs whose language skills in English are
far from being at an optimal level. Importantly, even as ELLs continue to develop
their language skills, individual differences in their language proficiency is directly
related to subsequent reading comprehension and reading fluency. At the same time,
individual differences in language proficiency of ELLs are not related to the moremodularized word-level reading skills. Futhermore, the results point to the fact that
early predictors, such as phonological awareness and naming speed, are related to
subsequent reading outcomes in a more complex manner. Phonological awareness
exerts its influence solely through the mediator (word-level reading); naming speed
exerts its influence both directly and indirectly. That is, once ELLs have had
sufficient opportunities to develop their word-level reading skills, individual
differences in phonological awareness no longer contribute directly to the higher
level reading components (i.e., reading fluency and reading comprehension), though
they continue to do so, as shown, through the mediator. At the same time, individualdifferences in naming speed continue to exert an influence on reading fluency
beyond their contribution to effortless word reading.
More generally, these findings should be considered in light of language exposure
and early literacy instruction. At the onset of systematic exposure of ELLs to
language and literacy skills in Grade 1, individual differences in underlying
processing skills, such as phonological awareness and naming speed, play a key role
in developing word-level reading skills. Gradually, with schooling, literacy
development, and systematic exposure to English, the word-level reading skills of
ELLs become more automatized, and their command of the societal and school
language improves. Improvement in word-level reading and language skills enables
ELLs to read texts with more fluency and ease, and with more comprehension.
Along with word reading skills, individual differences in language comprehension
continue to play a sustained role in reading fluency and reading comprehension.
An expanded SVR: reading fluency and reading comprehension as outcomes
As noted in the introduction, there is no agreement in the literature on the
relationship between reading fluency and reading comprehension. Some L1-based
researchers argue that reading fluency is a bridge from word identification to reading
comprehension (e.g., Bashir & Hook,2009). Others maintain that reading fluency is
not merely a component of reading comprehension, but that it is an aspect of higher
level reading that is distinct from reading comprehension (Adlof et al., 2006;
Collins & Levy,2008). Our ELL-based findings are in line with the latter position.
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The univariate associations between reading comprehension and word and text
reading fluency in Grade 3 is significant but rather low. Once entered into the
mediation or direct-effect models, there is no significant association between these
two outcome constructs. In other words, once the prerequisite reading skills
(phonological awareness, naming speed, word reading, and language proficiency)that underlie these two higher level reading components are modeled, the
association between them becomes nonsignificant.
These findings suggest that, to a large extent, the positive association between
reading fluency and reading comprehension depends on the factors that drive this
association. That is, at least in the case of young ELL students, the oft-cited
correlations between reading fluency and reading comprehension can be understood
in terms of common underlying factors. The findings support an argument for an
expanded SVR framework that takes a developmental stance, that includes reading
fluency and reading comprehension as outcomes, and that allows for direct andindirect contribution of cognitive processes and language proficiency related skills to
the outcomes. Such a developmental framework provides a more complex, yet
parsimonious, model of the factors that contribute to subsequent reading achieve-
ment in ELLs. While reading comprehension and reading fluency draw on similar
processes, they are distinct constructs in the primary grades. As suggested elsewhere,
a closer alignment or amalgamation between reading comprehension and reading
fluency in ELLs is likely to emerge in later years (Wiley & Deno, 2005). This
distinction has important theoretical implications and implications for instruction.
While compelling, it is important to acknowledge that these conclusions might bean artifact of the methodology used. For example, in this study, reading
comprehension was an untimed measure and the reading fluency measure focused
on accuracy and speed and not on meaning. The degree of association between these
two reading measures might have been stronger had we used a timed measure for
reading comprehension or a measure of reading fluency that included meaning. In
this regard it is also important to note that when testing for reading fluency, the
nature of the instructions might affect the results. Instructions of the kind given in
this study to read as fast as you can have been shown to affect participants
performance as they are less likely to focus on accuracy or meaning (Colon &
Kranzler, 2006). In addition, reading development in ELL populations can be the
result of a complex interaction of linguistic and cultural factors which may impede
second language development. Lack of information on cultural factors is one of the
limitations of this study.
Cognitive processes that underlie reading comprehension and reading fluency
Notwithstanding contextual factors, such as instructional approaches, background
knowledge, and home literacy, that affect reading achievement and reading fluency
(beyond the scope of this paper), individual differences in language competence
underlie these longitudinal relationships. Even under optimal instructional and
contextual conditions, individual differences in L2 language competence exist. Even
under similar instructional conditions, some children will have the competence to
develop their English language skills faster and with more ease than others.
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Naturally, these children are likely to attain subsequently better developed
comprehension of written language and more fluent reading skills. Before being
exposed systematically to the L2 in the school context, some ELLs are better
language learners than others. Good language learners acquire vocabulary faster, are
more sensitive to phonemic contrasts, are better at parsing morphemes and atprocessing complex sentences, and have better developed metalinguistic skills. In
turn, in a cascading fashion, these early differences in language skills also underlie
the potential for acquiring the L2, and in the long run, enhance better reading
comprehension, more fluent reading, and further language development (for a
similar argument, see Sparks & Ganschow, 2001). In conjunction with language
skills, good word-level reading skills are essential for reading fluency and reading
comprehension. However, a model that includes only these building blocks is not
sufficient, in the case of reading fluency. Instead, reading fluency is better
understood when naming speed, an important underlying cognitive skill is added tothe SVR building blocks.
It is noteworthy that the expanded mediation SVR framework explains more than
twice as much variance in reading comprehension compared with reading fluency.
Other factors, not included in this study, such as short-term memory (Cohen-
Mimran, 2009), morphology (Cohen-Mimran, 2009), orthographic speed (Wood,
2009), orthographic representation (Berninger et al.,2010), and orthographic pattern
recognition (Katzir et al.,2006) may explain additional variance in reading fluency
and contribute further to this model. The results pertaining to reading fluency in
ELLs are in line with L1-based research pointing to a complex view of readingfluency (Katzir et al.,2006, p. 77). Clearly, more research is needed to understand
what cognitive processes contribute to the reading comprehension and reading
fluency of ELLs, in addition to those associated with language comprehension and
word-level reading skills (Cain et al.,2004; Kirby and Savage,2008; van Gelderen
et al., 2007).
This study expands the SVR framework for young ELLs coming from different
language backgrounds. However, because the sample size for students from
different language backgrounds was not large enough, it was not possible to
examine the mediation model for different language groups in this study. The extent
to which the predictability of this expanded mediation model might be upheld,
regardless of typological language differences and across different ages, is open for
further investigation.
These findings have practical implications for assessment of at-risk ELLs. Our
findings suggest that phonological awareness, naming speed, and oral language
measured in Grade 1 ELLs have predictive power for how well their reading
comprehension and reading fluency will develop subsequently. While mindful of
their ELL status, poor performance of young ELLs on phonological awareness,
naming speed and oral language can be a warning sign of potential difficulties in
their subsequent word reading, reading fluency, and reading comprehension. The
model suggests that early identification can take place even before ELLs
demonstrate reading problems. When failing to complete preliteracy tasks, such
as phonological awareness and speed of processing, ELLs should be supported to
develop these skills to avoid word reading problems. If this support is accompanied
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with activities to enhance their linguistic comprehension, ELLs may be less likely to
develop difficulties in reading comprehension and reading fluency. By Grade 2,
additional information about risk status can be determined if students have
difficulties with word-level reading skills. These findings could be used as a starting
point for identification and validation of screening tools for ELLs with readingdifficulties.
Appendix
See Table2.
References
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August, D., & Shanahan, T. (2006). Introduction and methodology. In D. August & T. Shanahan (Eds.),
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Baron, R. M., & Kenny, D. A. (1986). The moderator-mediator variable distinction in social
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ucational Assessment, 28, 318.
Table 2 Means, standard deviations,F-value, and p-value for missing group and the group with com-
plete data
Variables Mean (SD) for
missing group
Mean (SD) for
complete group
F p
LC-S1 7.26 (3.43) 7.36 (3.31) 0.06 0.80
LC-S2 4.25 (2.92) 4.66 (3.04) 1.27 0.26
AAT 7.36 (4.28) 7.37 (4.59) 0.001 0.98
Oddity 10.81 (3.85) 10.91 (4.01) 0.05 0.82
Letter naming 0.03 (0.49) -0.09 (0.68) 2.94 0.09
Object naming 0.04 (0.61) -0.11 (0.71) 3.09 0.08
Decoding 98.82 (15.26) 95.56 (17.12) 2.46 0.12
WID 100.77 (15.21) 98.66 (16.95) 1.05 0.31
MAT (ss) 97.34 (11.92) 98.07 (11.73) 0.14 0.71
LC-S1 listening comprehension-story 1, LC-S2 listening comprehension-story 2, AAT auditory analysis
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non-verbal IQ. The sample size for missing group was 83 for the Grade 1 measures and 129 for the Grade
2 measures. For complete group, the sample size was 225 for Grade 1 measures and 179 for Grade 2
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