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Thesis/Dissertation Information
- Degree Disciplines:
- Psychology
Notes
- Abstract:
- This study contributed to the understanding of the way bilingual students learn to read by examining and comparing the growth rates of two fundamental pre-literacy skills: Phonemic Awareness and Phonics skills. Native English speakers (NS) and English Language Learners (ELL) were compared using the scores from the Dynamic Indicator of Basic Literacy Skills (DIBELS). Archival data from two subtests: Phonemic Segmentation Fluency (PSF) and Nonsense Word Fluency (NWF) were collected from a random sample of 2288 first graders All participants (1165 girls and 1122 boys) were individually assessed three times during the 2005-2006 school year. A 6 (language proficiency: native speaker and 5 ESOL levels) X 3 (time of testing) mixed analysis of variance (ANOVA) was computed for each dependent variable: PSW and NWF. There was a significant main effect for time of testing for both dependent variables. Scores improved significantly in all groups across testing times. There was a significant main effect for language proficiency for both dependent variables: The higher the initial English proficiency, the higher the scores across testing times. There was a significant but not large interaction between time of testing and English language proficiency for the scores in PSF but there was no significant interaction for the scores in NSW. The present study found that phonemic awareness skills for ELL and for NS improved with similar trajectories of growth. However, the scores obtained by bilingual students at ESOL level 4 and NS were not significantly different. In addition, the scores obtained by the students at ESOL level 5 were consistently and significantly higher than those obtained by any other group. The current findings provide support for the theory that bilingualism increases children’s metalinguistic ability and awareness. Furthermore, the scores on the DIBELS were also analyzed based on the pre-established risk levels: High, Moderate, and Low risk. All correlations were significant and high. That is, the initial risk level obtained highly correlated with the risk level obtained on the 2nd and 3rd times assessed.
- Thesis:
- Thesis (S.S.P.)--Barry University, 2006.
- Bibliography:
- Includes bibliographical references (leaves 57-67).
Record Information
- Source Institution:
- Barry University
- Holding Location:
- Barry University Archives and Special Collections
- Rights Management:
- Copyright Juliette Sefair-Montoya. Permission granted to Barry University to digitize, archive and distribute this item for non-profit research and educational purposes. Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions requires permission of the copyright holder.
- Resource Identifier:
- LB1573.S44 2006_Sefair-MontoyaJuliette ( BU-Local )
- Classification:
- LB1573.S44 2006 ( lcc )
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