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- Volume 25, Issue 1, 2022
Written Language & Literacy - Volume 25, Issue 1, 2022
Volume 25, Issue 1, 2022
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Representation of sublexical structure of the word among bilingual and monolingual kindergartners
Author(s): Elena Zaretskypp.: 11–39 (29)More LessAbstractEarly spelling development is an important area of research as it presents an opportunity for our understanding of how children begin to represent sounds within words through application of letter-sound mapping. The development of spelling is often characterized by stage-like theories, although it has been suggested that children may draw on different patterns of representations (Integration of Multiple Patterns). This study examined early spelling acquisition among monolingual English-speaking and ELL kindergartners with Spanish as L1. ELLs receive all academic instruction, including written language, in English (L2) while continuously using oral L1 for all other communications. As languages differ in their linguistic and structural composition, our aim was to identify possible influences of oral L1 on spelling abilities in L2. We were particularly interested in representation of sublexical units within the words, as English and Spanish differ in their intrasyllabic awareness. Our results showed expected differences in psycholinguistic profiles of language groups as well as differences in allocation of resources in spelling attempts. While there were no statistically significant differences in representation of sublexical units between language groups, there were notable differences in percentage of correct responses pointing to language specific influences. These findings support the Dual System Model of phonological representations development among bilingual individual and suggests that in the early stages of spelling acquisition in L2, L1 Spanish kindergartners are still influenced by their native language although they use it in their oral modality only.
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Concurrent predictors of spelling accuracy in secondary education in a semi-consistent orthography
Author(s): Naymé Salaspp.: 40–66 (27)More LessAbstractSpelling is a complex skill that requires mobilizing various levels of linguistic and orthographic representation. While there is substantial evidence of the impact of phonological skills in its development, less is known about the explanatory value of non-phonological (e.g., morphological, orthographic) strategies in conventional spelling scores. This study assessed the unique impact of non-phonological spelling strategies after accounting for a large set of linguistic and cognitive predictors, as well as contextual variables (e.g., SES) in a language with a semi-consistent orthography: Catalan. Participants were 328 eighth-grade students from low-income households. Results showed that non-phonological spelling skills explained a substantial proportion of the variance in conventional spelling, over and above the rest of predictor variables, including phonographic skills, with the final model explaining more than 80% of the variance. Theoretical and educational implications are discussed.
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How can a fine-grained analysis of spelling errors inform our understanding of the development of spelling in EFL?
Author(s): Susie Russakpp.: 67–98 (32)More LessAbstractBecoming a proficient speller in English is a challenging task requiring integration of knowledge from multiple linguistic and cognitive sources. Spelling in English as a foreign language (EFL) is more complex when the distance between the different languages of the speller is great. Whereas binary scoring practices are prevalent, they are not as informative as analyses of errors based on linguistic characteristics. The present longitudinal study examined the development of spelling in EFL among speakers of Semitic L1, Arabic and Hebrew (N = 354). A dictation task on a one-word level assessed spelling from 4th–6th grades. Spellings were first scored for accuracy and then analyzed based primarily on phonological and orthographic characteristics. Errors were then grouped according to four predominant developmental trends. While similarities with L1 spelling development were noted, some of the error types could be attributed to unique characteristics of linguistic distance between Semitic languages and English. Both theoretical and practical implications are considered.
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Predictors of adult spelling in an orthography of intermediate depth
Author(s): Ana B. Mesquita, Inês Salomé Morais, Luís Faísca, Alexandra Reis and São Luís Castropp.: 99–125 (27)More LessAbstractWhat is the hallmark of a good speller? Spelling is a critical component in learning to become literate, but how it works in literate adults remains poorly explored. We examined word and pseudoword spelling in 214 adults in relation to general cognitive abilities, vocabulary, reading history, reading performance, phonological processing and rapid automatized naming. We conducted hierarchical multiple regression analyses to uncover predictors of spelling performance and compared a subsample of good and poor spellers to identify patterns of cognitive and language abilities associated with high vs. low spelling ability. In the regression model under test, which progressed from general cognitive and language abilities to specific reading-related skills, the most important predictor for word spelling was vocabulary, and for pseudoword spelling phonological processing (phoneme deletion). The model explained 20% of word spelling, and 8% of pseudoword spelling, variance. Good spellers outperformed poor spellers in reading connected text and pseudowords, and in phonological processing; poor spellers typically had a history of reading difficulties but similar levels of cognitive ability, word reading and RAN performance. Overall, our findings indicate that adult spelling relies more strongly on word knowledge than on reading proficiency and that, as in literacy acquisition, good phonology-related abilities are a hallmark of proficient adult spellers.
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Review of Reynolds & Teng (2021): Innovative Approaches in Teaching English Writing to Chinese Speakers
Author(s): Mostafa Morady Moghaddampp.: 126–132 (7)More LessThis article reviews Innovative Approaches in Teaching English Writing to Chinese Speakers
Volumes & issues
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Volume 26 (2023)
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Volume 25 (2022)
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Volume 24 (2021)
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Volume 23 (2020)
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Volume 22 (2019)
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Volume 21 (2018)
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Volume 20 (2017)
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Volume 19 (2016)
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Volume 18 (2015)
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Volume 17 (2014)
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Volume 16 (2013)
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Volume 15 (2012)
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Volume 14 (2011)
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Volume 13 (2010)
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Volume 12 (2009)
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Volume 11 (2008)
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Volume 10 (2007)
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Volume 9 (2006)
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Volume 8 (2005)
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Volume 7 (2004)
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Volume 6 (2003)
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Volume 5 (2002)
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Volume 4 (2001)
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Volume 3 (2000)
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Volume 2 (1999)
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Volume 1 (1998)
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