Speech, reading, and writing are the basic forms of linguistic communication. Therefore, it is very important to diagnose any problems with them as early and completely as possible, particularly in children with special needs. One of the methods that focuses primarily on the diagnosis and therapy of such learning difficulties is the one developed…

Visual processes in Grade 1 were examined for their predictive influences in nonalphanumeric and alphanumeric rapid naming (RAN) in 51 poor early and 69 typical readers. In a lagged design, children were followed longitudinally from Grade 1 to Grade 3 over 5 testing occasions. RAN outcomes in early Grade 2 were predicted by speeded and nonspeeded…

The aims of this study were to analyze the relationship between dyslexia and eye movements and to assess whether this method can be added to the workup of dyslexic patients. The sample was comprised of 11 children with a diagnosis of dyslexia and 11 normal between 8 and 13 years of age. All subjects underwent orthoptic evaluation, ophthalmological…

A dissociation between phonological and visual attention (VA) span disorders has been reported in dyslexic children. This study investigates whether this cognitively-based dissociation has a neurobiological counterpart through the investigation of two cases of developmental dyslexia. LL showed a phonological disorder but preserved VA span whereas…

The purpose of this study was to compare three variables in terms of how well they predict orthographic functioning. To this end, the authors examined the relative contributions of rapid automatic naming, exposure to print, and visual processing to a composite measure of orthographic functioning in a heterogeneous group of 8- to 12-year-old…

Two studies were conducted to evaluate the extent to which visual discrimination (VisD) skills play a role in developing letter identification abilities, which are essential in learning to read. Results from a correlational analysis of 73 4- and 5-year-olds revealed a significant association between VisD and letter identification abilities, which…

Among 40 reading disabled volunteers (ages 9-74), subjects with high scotopic sensitivity demonstrated significantly better performance on visual processing tasks when they used colored overlays which maximized visual efficiency, compared with task performance under conditions using overlays of a random color or no color. (JW)

Reports a study in which the letters F, G, and K were presented in normal and backward versions, in varying angular orientations, in left and right visual fields. (Author/NH)

Contrast thresholds for sine-wave gratings of spatial frequencies of 2, 4, 12, and 16 cycles per degree were determined for normal and disabled readers at a range of stimulus durations. The differences in sensitivity pattern across spatial frequencies was greatest at stimulus durations approximately equal to fixation durations during reading.…

This study examined relationships among lens color, visual grating, visual detection task performance, and peripheral retinal brightness thresholds among four adults and four children with reading disabilities and age-matched controls. Subjects with reading disabilities displayed significantly lower contrast sensitivity when tested with sine-wave…

Twenty-two readers (ages 10 to 35) with scotopic sensitivity parsed sentences under scotopic correction (using colored transparent overlays) and control conditions. Although eye movements suggested enhanced parsing, comprehension scores were not significantly improved with correction. (DB)

Article refers to EJ 045 083. (CB)

This study explored whether visual discrimination problems impair achievement in children with and without learning disabilities. Children (N=66) with learning disabilities were tested for visual discrimination problems, tracked throughout elementary school, and compared to a normally achieving sample. Results indicated lower reading and general…

Using normal adult readers, this study examined the relative involvement of magnocellular and parvocellular processes in reading English phonologically regular pseudowords and irregular words presented in isolation and in contiguity from left to right. The data showed that a low temporal frequency visual measure that implied more parvocellular…

THE LABELING AND DISCRIMINATION OF COLORS WERE STUDIED IN CHILDREN WITH PRIMARY READING RETARDATION AND IN A MATCHED GROUP OF NORMAL CHILDREN. TEN MALE STUDENTS IN MICHIGAN REPRESENTING AN AGE RANGE OF 9 YEARS 10 MONTHS TO 14 YEARS 10 MONTHS WERE CHOSEN AS SUBJECTS. DEVELOPMENTAL, MEDICAL, EDUCATIONAL, NEUROLOGICAL, PSYCHIATRIC, AND PSYCHOMETRIC…