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(ROCKVILLE, MD-November 11, 2004) Many low-income children fail to acquire basic literacy, though they appear to have normal cognitive/linguistic abilities. Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania believe that reading deficits between mainstream and minority children reinforces and intensifies social inequality. They have found that it is possible to improve reading levels of normal children by understanding the reader's primary language and culture. Researchers will discuss the results of a study using a process called The Individualized Reading Program in a session during the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association's (ASHA) annual convention at the Philadelphia Convention Center November 18-20, 2004.
Researchers based their study on the notion that linguistics can play a significant role in raising reading levels of children from differing linguistic/ethnic groups in low-income schools. The Individualized Reading Program is an instructional approach that combines direct instruction in alphabetic principles with narratives that address the emotional concerns and interests of inner-city children. A manual for tutors and children was developed to help with instruction and includes direct instruction in specific sound to letter correspondences, followed by texts with controlled vocabulary.
Students from extended day and summer programs in West Philadelphia schools during the 1999-2000 school year were administered The Individualized Reading Program. Use of the program has shown to be effective in improving reading errors, say researchers.
The session "When Normal Children Don't Learn to Read" will be held on Saturday, November 20, 2004, 2:00 - 4:00 p.m. in the Pennsylvania Convention Center. It is one of more than 1,500 sessions on communication problems affecting people across the life span that will be addressed at ASHA's annual convention. More than 12,000 audiologists, speech-language pathologists, and researchers will convene to present new research and discuss treatment of communication disorders.
ASHA is the national professional, scientific, and credentialing association for more than 115,000 audiologists, speech-language pathologists, and speech, language, and hearing scientists. Audiologists specialize in preventing and assessing hearing disorders as well as providing audiologic treatment including hearing aids. Speech-language pathologists identify, assess, and treat speech and language problems including swallowing disorders
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Editor's Note: Press passes to this or other sessions at the ASHA convention, or interviews with the presenters can be arranged by contacting Mona Thomas at 301-897-0156. From November 18-20, ASHA's press room will be in Room #304 of the Pennsylvania Convention Center. The press room phone number is 215/418-5329.
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