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Rapid Automatic Naming (RAN) has been widely recognized as a reliable predictor of reading proficiency. Although RAN represents the speed of cognitive processing, there are few studies that have addressed RAN as a cognitive process in its own right Furthermore, RAN performance of ELL (English Language Learners) has been less frequently investigated. We have two parts to this study. First, we examine the factor structure of an enlarged composite measure of speed measure by adding four additional tests comprising color naming, and two number naming tasks to the traditional RAN of digit and letter naming. In the second part, we determine the association of Speed with broad cognitive processes comprising Executive Functions, and Information processing. Participants were students in English medium schools in India. They were divided into two age groups (8-14 and 15-20) for statistical analyses of six Speed measures Results show a strong unitary speed factor in the 8 to 14 age group. In contrast, in the 15 to 20 group RAN tests comprising digits and letters showed a very small loading on the same factor. Addressing the second objective, which is the impact of speed on various cognitive tasks, the results show that response speed has a minimal influence on Nonverbal Configurations (simultaneous) tasks, and tasks of executive functions comprising Working Memory, and Visual-Spatial Processing. These tests will enable us to isolate specific cognitive deficiencies from response speed. In a re-examination of the relation between Reading & RAN-type tests, we could suggest that serial articulation is the common and essential feature that binds rapid naming tasks and reading fluency.

Although several studies have shown that planning, attention, simultaneous, and successive (PASS) cognitive processes--operationalized with the cognitive assessment system (CAS; Naglieri & Das, 1997)--are significant predictors of academic performance in the general population, little is known about their role among children with superior academic skills. Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine whether PASS processes can predict superior performance in reading and mathematics. We used the standardization sample of CAS (n = 1210) and further identified children with superior reading (n = 62) and mathematics (n = 73) performance on Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Achievement--Revised (Woodcock & Johnson, 1989). Results of the initial regression analyses showed that the PASS processes were significant predictors of superior reading and mathematics performance. Next, a classification and regression tree approach showed that the PASS scores could classify superior or not-superior readers and mathematicians with 89% and 82% accuracy, respectively. Theoretical and practical implications of our results are discussed.

The purpose of this study was to examine which of the components of executive functions (EF)--inhibition, shifting, and working memory--predict reading and mathematics achievement and if the effects of these components are the same across two cultures (Western and East Asian). One hundred twenty English-speaking Canadian (65 females, 55 males; M[subscript age] = 82.12 months) and 181 Mandarin-speaking Chinese (82 females, 99 males; M[subscript age] = 85.85 months) children were assessed on nonverbal IQ, speed of processing, rapid naming, inhibition (Color-Word Stroop), shifting (Planned Connections), working memory (Digit Span Forward and Backward), reading (word identification and reading comprehension), and mathematics (numerical operations and math reasoning). The results of structural equation modeling indicated first that among the EF components only working memory predicted reading and mathematics in the Canadian sample, while inhibition and working memory predicted reading and mathematics in the Chinese sample. The results also showed that inhibition was a stronger predictor of reading and mathematics in the Chinese sample. Taken together, these findings suggest that not all EF components are equally important for reading/mathematics and that culture may influence the relations between specific EF components and academic achievement.

The purpose of this study was to examine whether components of the Planning, Attention, Simultaneous, and Successive (PASS) processing theory of intelligence predict reading and mathematics proficiency in a group of intellectually gifted children. One hundred forty-two intellectually gifted children (70 females, 72 males; M[subscript age] = 127.41 months, SD = 10.76) were assessed on PASS processes as well as on reading and mathematics. Results of regression analyses showed that planning was a significant predictor of both reading and mathematics. In addition, simultaneous processing predicted mathematics and successive processing predicted reading. These findings suggest that when intelligence is operationalized on the basis of neurocognitive processes it can explain individual differences in academic achievement even among a restricted range of high ability students.

The purpose of this study was to examine what components of executive function (EF)--inhibition, shifting and updating/working memory--predict reading comprehension in young adults. Ninety university students (65 females, 25 males; mean age = 21.82 years) were assessed on shifting (Planned Connections and Colour/Shape Shifting), inhibition (Colour-Word Stroop and Number Stroop), updating/working memory (Digit Memory and Listening Span), reading fluency (Word Reading Efficiency), vocabulary (Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test), and reading comprehension (Nelson-Denny Reading Test). The results of path analysis indicated that only shifting predicted directly reading comprehension. These findings extend those of previous studies showing that different EF components predict different reading outcomes and suggest that EF has a place in reading comprehension models over and above traditional predictors of reading comprehension such as reading fluency and vocabulary.

Although the role of cognitive processes, such as planning, attention, simultaneous, and successive (PASS) processing in reading ability has been examined in samples of typically developing children and children with reading difficulties, it remains unclear if these processes also contribute to superior reading performance. Thus, in this study we examined (a) which PASS processes differentiate superior readers from average readers and (b) what is the individual profile of the superior readers. Thirty-six children with superior reading performance (standard score in Broad Reading equal to or higher than 130) and 43 average readers (standard score in Broad Reading between 85 and 115) were assessed on measures of general intelligence, planning, attention, simultaneous, and successive processing. The results of multivariate analyses indicated that the superior readers performed significantly better than the average readers only in simultaneous and successive processing. However, the superior readers exhibited diverse individual profiles of cognitive assets. The psychoeducational implications of these findings are discussed.

In this article, the author reminisces about his 40 years with the J.P. Das Developmental Disabilities Centre. He begins by recalling his early years with the Centre. He follows it up with his middle years, as well as his later years with the Centre. The author ends his flashback by "bragging" about some of the extraordinary scholars who have visited the Centre.

Math difficulties share many common features with reading difficulties. In as much as they do so, the general approach to reading disability overlaps with math disability. Both math and learning to read share several domain-general features such as long-term and short- term memory, successive and simultaneous processing, flexibility in strategies, attention to details and knowledge-base. The paper reviews the foundational concepts for learning math--magnitude, value, procedure, and estimation. Math disability, therefore, can be identified in terms of the domain-general cognitive processes as well as difficulties in mathematical operations involving Magnitude, Value, Procedure, and Estimation. The review, in its final section, presents some empirical studies of math learning and cognitive intervention from contemporary literature. The authors conclude that there are many different kinds of learning difficulties, and many varieties of math learning disabilities. It should be recognized that many areas of the brain contribute to the successful learning and application of math skills.

The present study provides empirical evidence to support the hypothesis that pre-school children's cognitive functions can be developed by virtue of a training tool named COGENT (Cognitive Enhancement Training). We assumed that COGENT (COGEST in Spain) which is embedded in speech and language, will enhance the core cognitive processes that are required for reading acquisition. The participants included 97 students aged four and five, who received COGEST for six months. The two core cognitive processes targeted were simultaneous and successive. These were measured before and after the application of COGEST. Simultaneously, we assessed a control group in the same manner, but it did not receive any COGEST training. Results showed that the COGEST group improved its simultaneous and successive processing performance significantly (p?

The present study aimed to examine the nature of the working memory and general cognitive ability deficits experienced by university students with a specific reading comprehension deficit. A total of 32 university students with poor reading comprehension but average word-reading skills and 60 age-word-matched controls with no comprehension difficulties participated in the study. The participants were assessed on three verbal working memory tasks that varied in terms of their processing demands and on the "Das-Naglieri Cognitive Assessment System," which was used to operationalize intelligence. The results indicated first that the differences between poor and skilled comprehenders on working memory were amplified as the processing demands of the tasks increased. In addition, although poor comprehenders as a group had average intelligence, they experienced significant difficulties in simultaneous and successive processing. Considering that working memory and general cognitive ability are highly correlated processes, these findings suggest that the observed differences between poor and skilled comprehenders are likely a result of a deficient information processing system.

We examined how Planning, Attention, Simultaneous and Successive (PASS) processes predict reading comprehension in a sample of university students (Study 1) and what PASS processes distinguish adults with and without reading difficulties (Study 2). In Study 1, 128 university students were tested on Das-Naglieri Cognitive Assessment System, reading fluency and reading comprehension. The results of path analysis indicated that successive processing predicted reading comprehension only through the effects of text- and word-reading fluency, whereas simultaneous processing predicted reading comprehension both directly and through the effects of text-reading fluency. In Study 2, university students with (n = 20) and without (n = 23) reading difficulties were assessed on the same measures as in Study 1. The results of group comparisons indicated that the university students with reading difficulties were experiencing cognitive weaknesses primarily in successive processing. The implications of these findings for PASS theory and comprehension are discussed.

Two Canadian First Nations samples of Grades 3 and 4 children were assessed for cognitive processing, word reading, and phonological awareness skills. Both groups were from Plains Cree rural reservations in different provinces. The two groups showed significant differences on several key cognitive variables although there were more similarities than differences. Groups, separately and combined, showed a significant relationship between decoding, phonological awareness variables, word decoding, and successive processing that has also been observed among children from the mainstream culture. In general, the cognitive processing, reading, and reading subskills of First Nations children are, on average, below the norms for these measures. The findings are discussed in terms of reading disability identification practices from a Discrepancy Model and the Consistency-Discrepancy Model using PASS (Planning, Attention, Simultaneous, and Successive) theory among First Nations children.

The purpose of this study was to examine the contribution of PASS (Planning, Attention, Simultaneous, and Successive) processes to Chinese reading accuracy and fluency. One-hundred-forty Grade 3 to 5 Mandarin-speaking children were assessed on measures of PASS processes, phonological awareness, and orthographic knowledge. A year later they were assessed on reading accuracy and fluency. The results indicated that successive processing predicted reading through the effects of phonological awareness and simultaneous processing predicted reading through the effects of orthographic knowledge. The results were similar for reading accuracy and fluency. Implications for the PASS theory are discussed. (Contains 4 tables.)

The purpose of the present study was twofold: (a) to examine the extent to which Chinese dyslexic children experience deficits in phonological and orthographic processing skills and (b) to examine if Chinese dyslexia is associated with deficits in Planning, Attention, Simultaneous, and Successive (PASS) processing. A total of 27 Grade 4 children with dyslexia (DYS), 27 Grade 4 chronological age (CA) controls, and 27 Grade 2 reading age (RA) controls were tested on measures of phonological awareness, rapid naming, phonological memory, PASS, reading accuracy, and reading fluency. The results indicated that the DYS group performed significantly poorer than the CA and RA groups on both measures of phonological awareness and on a measure of orthographic processing but comparably to the RA group on a measure of rapid naming and both measures of phonological memory. In regard to the PASS processing skills, the DYS group performed worse than the CA controls on Successive and Simultaneous processing but comparably to the RA group on all PASS processing skills. Implications of these findings for early identification and intervention of reading difficulties are discussed. (Contains 3 tables.)

This study aims to measure the psychometric properties of the Das-Naglieri Cognitive Assessment System (D-N CAS) and to determine its clinical utility in a Chinese context. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was conducted to examine the construct validity of the Chinese version of the D-N CAS among a group of 567, normally developed children. Test-retest reliability was examined in a random subsample of 30 children at a five-week interval. The clinical discrimination of the D-N CAS was also examined by comparing children with and without ADHD (18 children in each group) and by comparing children with and without Chinese reading disabilities (18 children in each group). The current Chinese sample demonstrated a four-factor solution for cognitive performance among children with normal development: Planning, Attention, Simultaneous processing and Successive processing (chi[superscript 2](48) = 91.90, p = 0.000; chi[superscript 2]/df = 1.92, RMSEA = 0.050, GFI = 0.966, CFI = 0.954). Moreover, all subtests of the battery demonstrated acceptable test-retest reliability (r = 0.72-0.90, p less than 0.01) at a five-week interval among the subjects of the small subsample. Children with ADHD performed significantly worse than normal children on the Attention factor (p less than 0.001) and the Planning factor (p less than 0.05) of the D-N CAS, and children with Chinese reading disabilities performed significantly worse than normal children on the Simultaneous processing factor (p less than 0.01), the Successive processing factor (p less than 0.001) and the Planning factor (p less than 0.05) of the D-N CAS. These findings suggested that the current four-factor structure of the D-N CAS was similar to the original factor structure of the test. The latent factor of the D-N CAS was fairly stable across the cultures. Moreover, the D-N CAS can distinguish between children with ADHD or Chinese reading disabilities and normally developed children. (Contains 1 figure and 2 tables.)

The efficacy of a cognitive-based remediation program was investigated with 14 English-as-a-second-language (ESL) poor readers in Grade 4 who had significant difficulty in comprehension and 14 normal ESL readers in Grade 4 who received no remediation. Both groups were selected from 2 English-medium schools in India. We examined pretest-to-posttest changes in word reading, comprehension, and planning-attention-simultaneous-successive cognitive processes. Analyses of variance (ANOVAs) showed marked improvement in comprehension and some improvement in simultaneous processing for the treated group. The results indicate that the cognitive-based remediation program has potential for substantially improving comprehension and its underlying cognitive process among ESL children. (Contains 1 table.)

According to Gough and Tunmer's Simple View of Reading, Reading Comprehension = Decoding (D) x Listening Comprehension (C). The purpose of this study was to evaluate the model with a sample of First Nations children, known to have average decoding and listening comprehension but poor reading comprehension. In addition, the authors examined the contribution of naming speed and phonological awareness to reading comprehension beyond the effects of D and C. Consistent with the findings of previous studies, the children exhibited poor reading comprehension despite average performance in decoding and listening comprehension, a finding that challenges the simple view of reading. The results also revealed that an additive model (D + C) fitted the data equally well as a product model (D x C). Neither naming speed nor phonological awareness accounted for unique variance. (Contains 4 tables.)

The purpose of this study was to compare the contribution of two different versions of working memory to word reading and reading comprehension in relation to phonological awareness and rapid naming speed. Fifty children were administered two measures of working memory, namely an adaptation of the Daneman and Carpenter sentence span task and Sentence Question, tests of phonological awareness, rapid naming speed, word reading and reading comprehension. The results indicated that Sentence Question accounted for unique variance over and beyond the effects of Daneman and Carpenter's sentence span task, whereas the latter did not when the effects of Sentence Question were partialled out. In addition, both phonological awareness and rapid naming were accounting for unique variance beyond the effects of working memory in predicting reading. The role of working memory on reading is discussed, and future directions for research are suggested.

The objectives of the present study were twofold: (a) to explore the interrelationship among distal, proximal cognitive skills, and word reading; and (b) to identify those cognitive processes that predict phonological awareness and rapid naming. Seventy First-Nation Canadian children attending grades 3 and 4 were examined on phonological awareness, rapid naming, Word Identification, Word Attack, and the cognitive processing measures of planning, attention, successive, and simultaneous (PASS). Results indicated that phonological awareness and rapid naming uniquely predicted reading, whereas PASS variables did not, when the effects of phonological awareness and rapid naming were controlled. Finally, both phonological awareness and rapid naming were predicted by planning. Implications for diagnosis of children at risk for reading difficulties and remediation are discussed. (Contains 3 tables.)

Executive functions in 100 incarcerated adolescent female offenders were examined using the Cognitive Assessment System (CAS). As hypothesized, mean scores for the sample were significantly lower than norms on measures of Planning and Successive Processing. Contrary to our hypothesis, the Attention mean did not differ significantly from the normative data. The Simultaneous mean was also significantly lower than norms although no hypothesis had been made and only a small effect size was noted. These findings suggest that incarcerated delinquent females can be differentiated from non-delinquent females on the basis of specific neuropsychological deficits in much the same way that male delinquents can be differentiated from non-delinquent males. (Contains 1 table.)

Individual differences in reading and cognitive processing among a sample of generally poor readers were studied in order to answer two major questions: Do they have a specific cognitive style that favors global-simultaneous strategies and a weak sequential strategy? If they do not have a distinct cognitive style or strategy, but are merely poor in using sequential (Successive) strategies, then, would the same processes that influence reading performance in the general population determine their performance as well? A sample of 84 Canadian First Nations (FN) children were assessed in word and pseudoword reading, rapid naming speed, and ability to process information using the Planning, Attention, Successive, and Simultaneous (PASS) theory of intelligence. Results confirmed that this sample of children did not exhibit a specific cognitive style. Rather, there was evidence of a weakness in Successive processing only in the subgroup of poor readers. The importance of understanding the role of Successive processing and rapid naming speed relative to reading is further discussed.

Forty-five Grade 3 students from a reservation school in Western Canada were divided into two remedial groups and a no-risk control group. One remedial group was given a classroom-administered cognitive enhancement program (COGENT) throughout the school year. The second group received COGENT for the first half of the year followed by a pull-out cognitive-based reading enhancement program (PREP). Children were assessed across phonological awareness, rapid naming, reading, and cognitive ability at the beginning of the year, midterm, and at the end of the school year. MANOVA results showed a significant interaction for reading measures, with students receiving classroom intervention over the school year making the greatest gains. Results are discussed in terms of group, remediation program, and individual participant improvements.

Executive functions in 111 adolescent male offenders were examined using the Cognitive Assessment System (CAS). As hypothesized, mean scores for the sample were significantly lower than norms on CAS measures of Planning, Attention, and Successive Processing, and deficits remained for individuals with a childhood-onset when the sample was divided by age-of-onset for antisocial behaviors. Contrary to our hypothesis, mean scores for individuals with adolescent-onset antisocial behaviors were significantly below norms for Planning and Successive Processing. The study provides a direct rather than putative assessment of executive functions and identifies specific executive function deficits regardless of age-of-onset of antisocial behaviors. Implications for practice and limitations of the study are reviewed. (Contains 3 tables.)

In this article, the authors present several justifications in favor of the position that the constructs of planning and attention as described in the planning, attention, simultaneous, and successive (PASS) theory of information processing are separate but interdependent processes. There are two parts to the article. The first part comprises a discussion of issues on the need for separating planning and attention and provides evidential validity by reviewing some selected studies. The second part reexamines a factor-analytic study that has questioned the separation of planning and attention processes. The reexamination showed a negligible statistical difference between the proposed three-factor model and the previously established four-factor model. Because the evidential validity of the four-factor model seems reasonably strong, the authors conclude by suggesting that there is little reason to choose the three-factor model that combines attention with planning. (Contains 1 table.)

In 1691 Michel Rolle (1652?1719) first published his famous result, now widely known as "Rolle's theorem", in an obscure book on geometry and algebra, named "Methode pour resoudre les egalites." Joseph Louis Lagrange (1736-1813) and Augustin-Louis Cauchy (1789-1857) derived their mean-value theorems easily using Rolle's theorem on suitably chosen functions. The geometrical interpretations of Rolle's theorem and Lagrange's mean-value theorem are well known. In the present work, attempts have been made to generalize Rolle's theorem and thereafter to interpret the results geometrically. It turns out that Cauchy's mean-value theorem is a generalization of Rolle's theorem in the line presented here and hence its geometrical interpretation follows. In the present work, attempts have been made to generalize Rolle's theorem and thereafter to interpret the results geometrically. It turns out that Cauchy's mean-value theorem is a generalization of Rolle?s theorem in the line presented here and hence its geometrical interpretation follows.

Reports two different experiments as part of a longitudinal study. The first experiment examines the long-term efficacy of two brief remedial procedures focusing on the differences in phonological and cognitive test performance of children who needed remediation. The second study reports the outcomes of an intensified version of the program that emphasizes strengthening the cognitive processes underlying reading. (Contains 58 references, 3 tables, 1 figure, and 1 appendix.) (GCP)

This note generalizes the well-known Leibnitz rule of successive differentiation for the product of two functions to a similar result for the product of three functions.

Two studies evaluated the Process-Based Reading Enhancement Program (PREP) with 150 grade 4 economically disadvantaged children. Pre- and posttesting with the Word Attack and Word Identification subtests of the Woodcock Reading Mastery Tests-Revised found significant group-by-time interactions. Results support the efficacy of the PREP to improve word-reading and decoding skills. (DB)

Comparison of cognitive performance of 51 students with hearing loss and 64 hearing students indicated that, at age 10, students with hearing loss performed better on nonverbal tasks and worse on verbal tasks. At age 13, students with hearing loss performed poorly in both verbal and nonverbal tasks. (Author/SW)

The PASS Remedial Program (PREP), a word reading program which focuses on 4 major cognitive processes (planning, attention, simultaneous, and successive processing) was evaluated with 51 grade-4 children with decoding difficulties. The "global process" and curriculum-related "bridging" program components were separately and jointly evaluated. Students receiving the combined treatment showed the largest improvement in word decoding. (Author/DB)

Comparison of cognitive processes in 23 individuals with Down's syndrome (DS) and 23 individuals of comparable mental handicap without Down's syndrome found that older (above 40 years) DS subjects had significantly poorer outcomes. The areas of speech rate, number finding, and expressive attention appeared to show the earliest signs of dementia of Alzheimer type. (Author/DB)