The contribution of linguistic skills to reading has been reported in different languages; however, this contribution varies according to the specific features of each language. Arabic is characterized by diglossia, i.e. the existence of two distinct varieties: Spoken Arabic (SpA) and Standard Arabic (StA). This study examined the extent to which…

Oral language competence (skill in everyday talking and listening) is critical in the early years of school in two key respects: it underpins the transition to literacy in the early years, and is the means by which children form and maintain interpersonal relationships in the school setting. In this paper, the role of oral language competence with…

In England, Higher Education institutions, together with the schools whose staff they train, are being required to incorporate synthetic phonics as one of the key approaches to the teaching of reading. Yet even if synthetic phonics can be identified as one of the component "skills" of reading, an assumption vigorously contested in this…

ONE OF THE INTERNATIONAL READING ASSOCIATION'S ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY SERIES IS CONCERNED WITH THE APPLICATION OF LINGUISTICS TO READING INSTRUCTION AND WAS PREPARED TO SERVE A WIDE RANGE OF USERS. IT CONTAINS ABOUT 100 CITATIONS OF BOOKS, RESEARCH REPORTS, DOCTORAL DISSERTATIONS, AND ARTICLES FROM PERIODICALS, YEARBOOKS, AND CONFERENCE…

Selected research studies dealing with linguistics and reading are reviewed under the following headings: (1) claims by linguists, (2) research on phoneme-grapheme correspondences, (3) research comparing linguistic approaches with basal reader approaches, (4) modified alphabets, and (5) syntax studies. It is concluded that the missing dimension in…

"EFF HOT (Highlights on Teaching Topics) Topics" is a publication of the EFF (Equipped for the Future) Center for Training and Technical Assistance. Each issue concentrates on a specific topic, highlighting examples of actual practice and offering strategies and tools for using EFF in the classroom. In this issue, "HOT Topics" focuses on the EFF…

Research on reading has tried, and failed, to account for wide disparities in reading skill even among children taught by the same method. Why do some children learn to read easily and quickly while others, in the same classroom and taught by the same teacher, don't learn to read at all? In "Language Development and Learning to Read", Diane…