The current study examined the potentially changing relations of vocabulary knowledge and attentional control with word reading and spelling from Grade 2 to Grade 4. Spelling was scored using a conventional correctness score and an alternative nonbinary scoring method that reflects the degree of correctness (i.e., text distance). A total of 165…

This study measured the effectiveness of sight word practice using flashcards and the growth results were compared based on presentation formats when administered to a group of second grade students. The data were later disaggregated to compare the success rates of each platform among three different subgroups within the test population, based on…

Sight-word interventions are often implemented when students show delays in word recognition. However, few studies have investigated the effects of teaching sight words using phrases. The current study investigated the effects of a tablet-based flashcard intervention on the acquisition of sight phrases. A multiple-baseline design across word sets…

Adapted alternating treatment designs were used to evaluate and compare the effectiveness of two computer-based sight-word-reading interventions among three elementary school students with an intellectual disability. Each intervention provided 30 stimulus--response--stimulus--response learning trials. One intervention included fixed 3-s response…

This study compares the effectiveness and efficiency of constant time delay (CTD) and simultaneous prompting (SP) to teach decoding and word reading to four students, 7 to 9 years of age, with intellectual disabilities (ID) in the mild to moderate range. An adapted alternating treatment design was implemented to assess the two methods. The results…

The purpose of this study was to examine word learning efficiency in at-risk first grade students (N = 93) participating in a yearlong study evaluating a multicomponent intervention targeting word reading and decoding skills. As part of each intervention lesson, students participated in a 1 to 3-min sight word reading activity in which…

Many children with different kinds of learning problems struggle with reading. To help them combat their challenges, easy-to-implement interventions are needed. Reading racetracks have proven to be effective tools to increase sight word fluency in students with disabilities. The purpose of this single-case study was to evaluate this technique, for…

The current two-experiment study examined the effects of a regressive prompt-delay procedure on sight-word reading of four elementary school students. In contrast to traditional progressive prompt-delay procedures in which the latency of prompts is increased, the regressive prompt-delay latency is decreased over time. Data indicate that…

Considerable evidence supports that close to two thirds of all fourth-grade students read at less than adequate levels on reading achievement tests and that the problem has persisted for decades. This study of 1,064 third-grade students at risk for reading failure uses path analytic techniques to measure a hypothesized model linking developmental…

The present study investigates common word reading dilemmas across 3 word types among children learning English as a foreign language (EFL). It also examines the effectiveness of a new word reading strategy, perceptual diacritics, for facilitating EFL children's word reading dilemmas through an experimental design in which the experimental group…

This dissertation will serve four purposes. First, findings will be presented from a systematic review of the literature related to literacy interventions for students who are deaf/hard of hearing from prekindergarten through high school. Second, findings will be presented from an experimental study that will investigate the effects of a reading…

In a test-driven educational environment, teachers see a great need for more engaging resources that produce the literacy results needed for students to thrive academically. In 2015, The National Assessment of Educational Progress reported that only 36% of fourth graders scored at or above the Proficient level of reading. This statistic was…

Strategic Incremental Rehearsal (SIR) is a recently developed flashcard intervention that blends Traditional Drill with Incremental Rehearsal (IR) for teaching sight words. The initial study evaluating SIR found it was more effective than IR for teaching sight words to first-grade students. However, that study failed to assess efficiency, which is…

Small group instruction in classrooms provides children opportunities to collaborate on academic tasks, as well as opportunities for social interactions. Although such arrangements are common for children with typical development, children with moderate to severe disabilities (MSD) may receive few or no opportunities to participate meaningfully in…

The purpose of this phenomenological bound case study was to explore the effect of acquiring sight words on reading fluency and comprehension skills for early literacy learners during a summer reading camp at one elementary campus in south Texas. Study findings indicated that through prescribed learning experiences with sight words that included…