Developmental Psychology · 2005 · 330 citations · 50 references
EducationEarly Childhood EducationLiteracy EducationChild DevelopmentEarly LiteracyReading DevelopmentEarly Literacy DevelopmentEarly Literacy SkillsEmergent Reading SkillsLiteracy DevelopmentReading AcquisitionReading DifficultiesEarly Childhood Literacy DevelopmentEarly Literacy PredictionEarly Reading AssessmentEarly Reading DevelopmentLow-income StudentsOral Language AssessmentReading Oral Language DevelopmentStruggling Readers
The study examined how early literacy and behavioral skills predict improvement in first‑grade reading‑impaired children. Researchers followed 146 low‑income first‑grade readers below the 30th percentile through fourth grade, assessing kindergarten emergent literacy and behavioral skills to predict fourth‑grade outcomes. By the end of second grade, differences in improvement were evident, with kindergarten linguistic and behavioral skills substantially predicting fourth‑grade outcomes, highlighting the need for early intervention.
This study investigated the role of early literacy and behavioral skills in predicting the improvement of children who have experienced reading difficulties in 1st grade. The progress of 146 low-income children whose reading scores in 1st grade were below the 30th percentile was examined to determine (a) how the poorest readers in 1st grade progressed in reading achievement through 4th grade and (b) which emergent literacy and behavioral skills measured in kindergarten predicted differential 4th grade outcomes. Results indicated that the divergence between children who improved and those who did not was established by the end of 2nd grade. Further, individual linguistic skills and behavioral attributes measured in kindergarten contributed substantively to this difference. Implications for intervention timing and educational policy are discussed.
50