Recently, there has been a growing interest in inquiries about dysgraphia, the impairment in writing. Existing research inquiries into dysgraphia often overlook the underlying cognitive impairment and focus on generalized approaches to improve impaired writing skills. Little attention has been paid to interventions targeting the specific cognitive mechanisms to improve dysgraphia. In order to fill this gap, this review attempts to provide a comprehensive account of the varied intervention strategies that directly and indirectly target improving the cognitive mechanisms of writing and, thereby, dysgraphia. As a background to the review, the multiple cognitive writing processes, their disruption, and the corresponding deficit profile of dysgraphia are also discussed.
Frequency of print reading is associated with reading ability and reading-related skills across the lifespan. With the increasing adoption of digital technologies, a wide range of screen-based reading opportunities are becoming more prevalent. However, the frequency of some forms of digital reading, such as emails and blogs, is negatively associated with reading skills. Given the variety of reading opportunities on digital devices, it is important to develop reliable and valid assessment of digital reading and device use to study its influence on young readers. To address this need, we conducted a validation study of a self-report measure of leisure-time reading habits in the print and digital medium and digital device use in sample of 110 students in grades 4-6 (52 female, ages 9-12.7) in Germany. The instrument demonstrated good internal consistency. An exploratory factor analysis yielded four distinct factors: general print reading, digital fiction reading, digital mixed genre reading, and leisure activities on smartphones. Validity was assessed by examining associations with print exposure, a title recognition test, and reading-related skills (vocabulary, word recognition). We found convergent construct validity for print comparable to previous research and evidence for divergent construct validity for digital reading habits. Criterion-related validity was supported for print, but not for digital, reading.
Reading fluency is a key component of literacy development and an important indicator of reading comprehension and academic achievement. However, traditional fluency assessment methods are often time-consuming, difficult to scale, and dependent on subjective evaluation procedures, limiting their use in large-scale educational contexts. This study proposes a multilayer educational framework for automated reading fluency assessment that integrates audio processing, fluency indicator computation, and interpretive modeling within a structured assessment system. The proposed framework conceptualizes fluency assessment as a multilayer process that transforms oral reading audio into interpretable educational outputs through successive stages of acoustic processing, indicator computation, interpretive modeling, and feedback generation. This architecture allows fluency to be evaluated as a multidimensional construct, including reading rate, temporal continuity, pausing patterns, and rhythmic features, rather than relying on single metrics such as words per minute. The system is designed to support classroom assessment, large-scale literacy evaluation, and formative feedback processes by providing scalable, consistent, and interpretable fluency assessments. The study outlines the conceptual foundations of the framework, describes its system architecture, and discusses its potential applications in educational assessment and literacy development monitoring. The findings suggest that multilayer automated assessment systems can contribute to more efficient, scalable, and pedagogically meaningful approaches to reading fluency assessment, supporting data-informed decision-making in educational contexts.
Vocabulary and knowledge are important to literacy development. This paper investigates aspects of each that contribute to learning new words in the early elementary classroom and to reading comprehension. First- and second-grade students (N = 137) partook in classroom vocabulary instruction and completed measures of language skills. Second-grade students (n = 71) also completed measures of academic knowledge and reading. Multilevel modeling showed that vocabulary and grammatical awareness each contributed unique variance to word learning, with grammatical awareness more strongly predictive for first- than for second-grade students. Academic knowledge explained unique variance in second-grade students' word learning and comprehension. Prior language and academic knowledge facilitate classroom word learning, and general academic knowledge contributes to general reading comprehension as early as second grade. Findings underscore the need for further explication of the roles and interactions of different sources of language and knowledge in theories of literacy development.
Intellectual disability (ID) is a neurodevelopmental condition characterized by significant limitations in cognitive functioning and adaptive behavior, which profoundly influence language development and reading acquisition. This review synthesizes psychological and empirical literature to examine the cognitive and linguistic mechanisms underlying reading difficulties among children with ID, with a specific focus on phonological awareness, decoding, working memory, processing speed, vocabulary, and comprehension. Drawing on theoretical frameworks, such as the simple view of reading, information processing theory, and the dual-route model, the article critically analyses why conventional literacy instruction often fails to meet the needs of this population. The review integrates findings from empirical studies on assessment tools, national policies, and evidence-based interventions, including systematic phonics, multisensory instruction, repeated reading, scaffolded comprehension, and assistive technologies. While these approaches demonstrate effectiveness, the literature reveals inconsistencies in implementation and limited context-specific research in India. The article argues for early identification, targeted instruction, and cognitively informed pedagogy to improve literacy outcomes. It further highlights gaps in teacher preparation, intervention research, and classroom practice, emphasizing the need for culturally responsive and evidence-based reading programs.
Critical discourse analysis (CDA) has proven to be beneficial for a better understanding of various phenomena. This analytical lens is versatile enough not to be confined to a single method, which can be considered a plus point. However, although versatility is an advantage, it increases ambiguity, which in turn might lead to impracticality. To address this issue, it falls upon scholars to enhance its practicality. In doing so, this paper seeks to introduce Bloom's taxonomy of knowledge as a framework to provide structure to the otherwise shapeless CDA. Moreover, as this taxonomy comprises multiple layers and components, the practicality of CDA might improve, and its ambiguity might fade away.
While research has explored reading flow and empathy as independent constructs, few studies have simultaneously examined the associations between these variables within a single model. This study investigated the pathways between personality, empathy, and aspects of reading flow state in a sample of undergraduate students in the midsouth United States (n = 197). We investigated whether openness and extraversion relate to reading flow and the degree to which empathy functions as a mediator in this process. Results indicated that openness significantly predicted reading flow, whereas extraversion served as a significant negative predictor. The mediation hypothesis was not supported, empathy failed to significantly predict reading flow despite its associations with personality subscales. Results revealed that reading flow impacts reading behavior, significantly predicting increased genre variety and annual reading volume. These findings suggest that the flow state in reading is primarily a function of openness rather than social-emotional processing associated with empathy.
This study examined the impact of explicit phonological and morphological instruction in the students' first language, Arabic, on the literacy-related skills in English as a typologically distant third language (L3). Eighty-six typical fifth-grade readers, Arabic speakers, took part in a quasi-experimental intervention in a classroom setting. Two intact classes (n = 28) received systematic instruction of Arabic phonological and morphological skills twice a week over four months. Three other comparison classes (n = 58) adhered to the standard Arabic curriculum. The pre-and post-intervention assessments of phonological and morphological awareness were conducted in Arabic and English, and the parallel tasks of deletion, segmentation, blending, and identification and inflectional morphology were used. The results of the repeated-measures analyses showed that the intervention students made significantly more improvement, as compared to control students, in both Arabic and English. Improvements in English phonological and morphological awareness were observed. The results indicate initial evidence suggesting that the positive influence of L1 teaching with a metalinguistic approach, even if it is explicit, can transfer to cross-linguistic literacy in pairs of languages that are morphologically and orthographically distinct.
Children's rate of literacy development is influenced by the writing system in which they are learning to read. Studies of reading development in Arabic are few in number in comparison to those conducted in English and other European languages. The current study examined predictors of single word reading in 116 third-grade Arabic speaking children. Measures included nonverbal ability, vocabulary, verbal STM, phonological awareness (PA), rapid automatized naming (RAN), orthographic processing, morphological awareness, word recognition, and nonword reading fluency. PA was the strongest predictor of reading accuracy and nonword reading fluency, followed by verbal STM, RAN and orthographic processing, which also made significant contributions. Morphological awareness explained a modest but statistically significant proportion of variance in word recognition. The findings are discussed in terms of orthographic depth. It is argued that these findings highlight the need for a multidimensional framework of orthographic depth that encompasses linguistic and orthographic features.
The study examined the reliability and validity of a widely used criterion-referenced Informal Reading Inventory (IRI) designed by researchers to provide an estimate of beginning level for reading intervention, if indicated. Based on our findings with 182 elementary students (grades 2-5), we recommend basic standards for reading inventory word list and passage selection, standardized administration, and decision-making criteria. Evidence from tests of alternate form and interrater reliability, as well as content, criterion, and construct validity indicated that the selected IRI is a reliable and valid measure of instructional reading level. Notably, median student instructional levels were closely aligned with chronological grade level. We also provide recommendations for increased rigor in psychometric standards for commercial and researcher-developed IRIs.
Research suggests that both the comprehension processes readers use and their background knowledge about a text's topic influence reading comprehension. It is less clear whether and how building knowledge through reading shapes readers' use of comprehension processes. In this study, fourth-grade students were randomly assigned to read and respond to a set of informational texts that cohere around concepts about the ocean or a set that addresses a range of science concepts. We assessed students' (a) knowledge of ocean vocabulary and concepts, (b) reading processes revealed through think-alouds while reading new ocean texts, and (c) retelling of the new tests. Results indicated that the students who read the ocean texts acquired more knowledge about the ocean, used a higher proportion of higher-level processes in their think-alouds, and offered stronger retellings. These findings suggest that building knowledge through reading may fuel students' use of higher-level comprehension processes and their reading comprehension.
This study investigated how morphological awareness contributes directly or indirectly through word reading to sentence reading comprehension in French-speaking children third-and-fifth graders and how grade moderates these relations. Participants completed a morphological word analogy task, a standardized word reading fluency test, and a silent sentence reading comprehension test. Vocabulary knowledge, non-verbal reasoning, and phonological awareness were included as control variables. Using path analysis within a structural equation modeling framework, we tested moderated mediation models assessing both direct and indirect effects of morphological awareness on sentence reading comprehension through word reading fluency, as well as moderation by grade level. Results showed a weak but significant direct effect of morphological awareness on sentence reading comprehension, whereas the indirect effect through word reading fluency was not significant. Grade level did not moderate either pathway. Findings indicate that, in a moderately opaque orthography such as French, morphological awareness directly supports word reading fluency but also reading comprehension directly and beyond this former, suggesting the need for explicit morphological instruction in upper-elementary education.
This study examines the effects of texts' interestingness and difficulty on students' strategy use and multiple text task performance when learning from multiple texts. Building on prior correlational work, we systematically manipulated texts' interestingness and difficulty by varying topics (i.e., high-interest texts: marijuana legalization, low-interest texts: the home mortgage interest deduction) and vocabulary difficulty (i.e., high-frequency vis-& agrave;-vis low-frequency vocabulary). Students were asked to rate texts' situational interest and comprehensibility during multiple text reading. In addition, students were asked to report their strategy use following multiple text reading. The findings showed that students used more vocabulary-focused strategies (e.g., using context clues) in the difficult text condition, while students reported more surface-level strategy use when reading easier and more interesting texts. Furthermore, although students' strategy use was not directly associated with multiple text task performance, we identified the significant role of situational interest, when reading difficult and less interesting texts. Implications for future research are discussed.
Critical reading is a complex cognitive activity that depends on the effective interconnectivity between cognitive skills such as general reading, critical thinking, memory, and attention, which collectively enable critical engagement with the text. Although neuroimaging studies have identified neural structures associated with these skills in isolation, little is known about how these structures interact to support critical reading as a unified process. To our knowledge, no study has directly explored the neuroanatomical basis underlying the interconnectivity among these cognitive skills, which together result in critical reading. Addressing this gap, the study proposes a network-level integrated neuroanatomical framework of critical reading, synthesizing findings and implications of neuroanatomical insights on general reading, critical thinking, memory, and attention. In addition, the study seeks to highlight the simultaneous development of these skills through their continuous engagement in critical reading. We contend that this attempt will provide a holistic neuroanatomical perspective of critical reading, which would advance understanding of its underlying foundations.
Meta-analysis can theoretically support effective interventions by identifying key factors influencing reading comprehension. A meta-analysis of 330 papers (2,637 effect sizes) reveals that text decoding (0.48) and speech comprehension (0.43) are the most significant of six dimensions affecting reading comprehension. Of the 16 factors, listening comprehension (0.52) has the greatest impact, followed by reading fluency (0.494), syntactic skills (0.49), vocabulary skills (0.44), and prior knowledge (0.45). Listening comprehension, syntactic skills, and vocabulary skills are strong and consistent factors across all age groups, with intellectual influence increasing with age. The conclusions of this study can provide references for educational researchers to further investigate the influencing factors and intervention strategies of reading comprehension, for educational policymakers to formulate compensatory education policies for reading comprehension, and for educational practitioners to adopt appropriate educational strategies for reading comprehension.
Although independent learning with complex course materials is a standard component of college coursework, students may encounter challenges in comprehending and interpreting the dense content often found in textbooks. We focus here on how readers resolve a specific aspect of this difficulty, what we term definitional ambiguity - terminology in text characterized by what readers perceive as incomplete, unclear, or contradictory information that allows for multiple plausible interpretations. We explore how college students dynamically respond to definitional ambiguity experienced during a specific textbook-reading event. We use a qualitative approach to understand the reading approaches of three college students, exploring interviews and eye-tracking scan paths. We find distinct strategies used to resolve definitional ambiguity, including structural mapping of where relevant information is found on a page of text; a focus on connecting content across different parts of the text; and a readiness to explore and utilize different aspects of the text. Our findings underscore the importance of working with students to move beyond passively scanning text and toward an active, connection-oriented approach that links the various parts of the text to resolve comprehension issues that can arise in textbook reading.
Over the past decade, the ability of Australian primary school students to comprehend written passages has declined, a trend that is worrying given the strong links between literacy and future academic, social, and economic prospects. Research over 40 years has indicated background knowledge makes a substantial contribution to the reading comprehension abilities of children and adults.The objective of this quasi-experimental intervention study was to examine the impact of explicitly teaching relevant background knowledge on the ability of Year 2 students to read a related text. Participants were a complete cohort (n = 73) of Year 2 children from a regional primary school in Victoria. They were explicitly taught a knowledge-base as part of their regular classroom instruction and then tested on the degree to which they acquired that knowledge. Participants then read a series of texts and answered comprehension questions that required them to recall and use the knowledge base. The effects of delay between learning a knowledge-base and reading a related text were tested for different texts.Results indicate that an explicit knowledge building strategy for developing reading comprehension has some support. The knowledge-base built in an ecologically valid environment enabled both skilled and less skilled readers to make inferences in a related text. However, less skilled readers were both less likely to master the knowledge-base in a unit of time and more likely to show negative effects of delay between learning the knowledge-base and reading a related text than skilled readers. This study also highlights the importance of schema maintenance as part of a knowledge-based reading improvement strategy. Recommendations for both further research and for classroom practice are made.
Close reading has recently gained popularity in schools to help students deal with complex texts. In this literature review, which includes 19 close reading studies, we analyze the operationalization of close reading approaches for students in grades 3-9 and provide an overview of the current research base. Close reading interventions systematically incorporated (1) rereading with meaning-focused goals, (2) pencil tasks, which predominantly involved systematic annotation approaches, and (3) text-dependent questions, typically focused on citing text evidence. Post-reading writing or discussion tasks were less systematically implemented, and several studies did not intentionally mention the use of complex texts. With regards to the current research base, the quality, quantity, and generalizability of available research is still limited for this age group, and findings are mixed. Close reading approaches that include appropriate levels of scaffolding (e.g., discussion prompts) may be promising, but the research evidence is limited.
Running records have recently been questioned as a valid assessment tool for determining students' use of reading strategies (Unger et al., 2025). This mixed-methods study extended previous research findings (Pratt, 2020) to investigate similarities and differences in data collected from oral reading analysis through running records and student self-report of strategies used to self-monitor and self-correct reading errors. Seventy-seven first-grade students engaged in think-aloud interviews while orally reading grade-level texts. Data were analyzed through qualitative coding and Epistemic Network Analysis to identify similarities and differences between the two assessment methods. Findings reveal that student self-report provided insights into metacognitive awareness not fully captured by running records alone, highlighting the importance of integrating student perspectives into assessment. These findings can be used in selecting assessments that enhance instructional decision-making to support the development of autonomous, strategic readers.
This study examines the effects of syntactic complexity, reading skills, and socioeconomic status (SES) on the comprehension of primary school textbooks among Chilean students. The research involved 237 students from 6th, 7th, and 8th grades attending public and private schools. Cloze tests, based on texts from school textbooks with varying levels of syntactic complexity, were administered to assess comprehension. The findings indicate that syntactic complexity alone does not significantly affect comprehension. However, interactions between syntactic complexity, SES, and reading skills reveal that the influence of syntactic complexity is moderated by individual and contextual factors. In particular, students with high SES and strong reading skills demonstrated the best performance in both levels of syntactic complexity, while those from low-SES backgrounds and with weak reading skills showed generally lower accuracy across conditions. Interestingly, within this latter group, performance was slightly higher in texts with greater syntactic complexity. These results highlight the complex interplay between linguistic, cognitive, and socioeconomic factors in shaping reading comprehension and underscore the need for educational interventions that account for both individual differences and contextual inequalities.
