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Possibly some of the most important skills that one can have are those needed to become fully literate. We all wish our children to reach such a goal. Unfortunately, the focus of attention in reading research has been on acquiring readiness to sound out written language, i.e., the basic reading skills. Full literacy is the readiness to learn knowledge by reading. Thus, one has to be able to take two steps to reach full literacy. Indications related to both of these steps can be observe in the brain. This may be easiest when we observe the brain activity of a learner who faces difficulties in taking these steps. In fact, the serious difficulty of taking the first step can be observed soon after birth, shown below as a summary of relevant details from the paper published earlier in this journal. The step from a basic reading skill to reading comprehension requires that one must learn to read for the mediating meanings of the text, i.e., its morphological information, on top of the phonological one. This can also be approached using brain-related observations, as we show here, too. Taking these steps varies between orthographies. Here, we illustrate the learning of these steps in the context of transparently written alphabetic writings by choosing it as our concrete example because its readers form the majority of readers of alphabetic writings. After learning these facts, we had to be able to help those who face difficulties in these steps to overcome her/his bottlenecks. We summarize how we have tried to do that. Each step can be taken using a digital game-like training environment, which, happily, is now open to be distributed for the use of (almost) all in the world. How we have already tried that concerning the first step is illustrated below. Additionally, how we plan to do that concerning the second step, the final goal, completes our present story. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies the preshot brain slow potential (SP) shifts from frontal, central, centro-lateral, and occipital areas for 12 national-caliber sharpshooters during rifle-shooting performance. Comparison of superior performance and poor performance; Learned performance pattern.

This is a story about the fate of a psychological application: from its conception to the optimistic vision surrounding its future. We hope that this application – an enjoyable learning game (www or mobile phone-based, available free of charge to the end users) for children – can at best help millions of children in their reading acquisition in the future. Its basis was created by following intensively the development of children with ( N = 107) and without ( N = 92) genetic (familial) risk for dyslexia from birth to puberty in the Jyväskylä Longitudinal study of Dyslexia (JLD)-project. We summarize some of the major findings of the JLD in order to facilitate understanding of the reasons and logic behind the development of the game. Originally intended as a research tool for reading acquisition, its potential for prevention of reading difficulties was quickly recognized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to understand why some children are vulnerable to difficulties in their language development and their acquisition of reading skill, the Jyväskylä Longitudinal Study of Dyslexia followed 200 Finnish children from birth to school age. Half of these children had a family history of reading problems and were considered at risk for dyslexia; the other half were not at risk. A novel analysis, mixture modeling, revealed four subgroups with differential developmental trajectories to early reading. The subgroups who showed either a ‘dysfluent trajectory’(n = 12; 11 at risk vs. 1 control) or a ‘declining trajectory’)n = 35; 24 vs. 11) contained more children with familial risk for dyslexia. The subgroup showing an ‘unexpected trajectory’ contained equal numbers of at-risk and non-risk children (n = 67; 33 vs. 34). The subgroup displaying a ‘typical trajectory’ )n = 85, 38 vs. 47) contained more children born without dyslexia risk. This differential development of skills revealed that there are at least three troubled routes along which a child may ultimately encounter difficulties in reading acquisition. The most explicit routes are characterized by problems in either phonological awareness, naming speed, or letter knowledge-problems that increase in severity with age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Brain imaging results illustrative of the search for neuronal markers of dyslexia are reviewed. Event-related potentials (ERPs) are shown to be effective indices of auditory processes involved in speech perception and thus, apparently also helpful in uncovering the neuronal basis of language problems associated with difficulties in reading. Results from the authors' laboratory show that, even at a very early age, brain responses (ERPs) to speech sounds can differentiate children with and without risk for dyslexia and also show reliable predictive correlations to later language development and reading acquisition. The review also covers dyslexia research in which other brain imaging techniques have been applied. The most recent imaging studies have opened interesting views to functional changes associated the remediation of reading problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Children at risk for familial dyslexia (n = 107) and their controls (n = 93) have been followed from birth to school entry in the Jyvaskyla Longitudinal study of Dyslexia (JLD) on developmental factors linked to reading and dyslexia. At the point of school entry, the majority of the at-risk children displayed decoding ability that fell at least 1 SD below the mean of the control group. Measures of speech processing were the earliest indices to show both group differences in infancy and also significant predictive associations with reading acquisition. A number of measures of language, including phonological and morphological skill collected repeatedly from age three, revealed group differences and predictive correlations. Both the group differences and the predictive associations to later language and reading ability strengthened as a function of increasing age. The predictions, however, tend to be stronger and the spectrum of significant correlations wider in the at-risk group. These results are crucial to early identification and intervention of dyslexia in at-risk children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focuses on the challenges posed by neurocognitive developmental disorders on practitioners of developmental neuropsychology. Technological developments that contributed to the study of neurocognitive developmental disorders; Mystery surrounding heterogeneity.

Comparisons of the developmental pathways of the first 5 years of life for children with (N = 107) and without (N = 93) familial risk for dyslexia observed in the Jyvaskyla Longitudinal study of Dyslexia are reviewed. The earliest differences between groups were found at the ages of a few days and at 6 months in brain event-related potential responses to speech sounds and in head-turn responses (at 6 months), conditioned to reflect categorical perception of speech stimuli. The development of vocalization and motor behavior, based on parental report of the time of reaching significant milestones, or the growth of vocabulary (using the MacArthur Communicative Development Inventories) failed to reveal differences before age 2. Similarly, no group differences were found in cognitive and language development assessed by the Bayley Scales of Infant Development and the Reynell Developmental Language Scales before age 2.5. The earliest language measure that showed lower scores among the at-risk group was maximum sentence length at age 2. Early gross motor development had higher correlation to later language skills among the at-risk group rather than the control children. The most consistent predictor of differential development between groups was the onset of talking. Children who were identified as late talkers at age 2 were still delayed at the age 3.5 in most features of language-related skills-but only if they belonged to the group at familial risk for dyslexia. Several phonological and naming measures known to correlate with reading from preschool age differentiated the groups consistently from age 3.5. Our findings imply that a marked proportion of children at familial risk for dyslexia follow atypical neurodevelopmental paths. The signs listed previously comprise a pool of candidates for early predictors and precursors of dyslexia, which await validation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The mismatch negativity (MMN) and P3 of auditory event-related potentials were studied during subjectively and objectively (physiologically) defined sleepiness under optimal stimulus conditions for MMN elicitation. The MMN and P3 were elicited by either small or large unattenede auditory deviants presented to the left ear. The participant's task was to detect either rare auditory targets presented to the right ear or rare changes in the light flashes. Eleven young adults served as participants in a nighttime experiment. The MMN declined especially at Fz and Cz but not so markedly at the right mastoid as either subjective or objective alertness decreased. The amplitude of P3 also decreased during sleepiness. The attenuation of the MMN was paralleled by a decline in behavioral performance. The results show that the MMN is attenustd by a decrease in alertness even before an actual sleep state is reached. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines the relation of brain slow potentials (SPs) to qualitative and quantitative aspects of shooting performance. Development of typology of SPs; Associations between electrocortical activity and behavioral output; SPs as a tool accessing information concerning optimal balance.

In this study, we examined the relationship between preparatory heart rate patterns and competitive shooting performance. Cardiac activity was recorded from six elite and six non-elite male rifle shooters during the 6 s before the trigger pull. The assessment of shooting performance was based on three variables: shooting score, rifle stability and electromyographic (EMG) activity in the upper body. Each shooter showed a decrease in the pre-trigger heart rate that did not covary with the shooting scores. The magnitude of this change was greater for the non-elite shooters compared to the elite shooters, suggesting that the heart rate patterns reflected skillrelated aspects of preparatory performance. The analyses of rifle-hold performance (rifle stability and EMG) suggested that the observed heart rate changes were associated with a shooter's attempts to achieve a rigid rifle position, but depend on his skill level. Interpretation of preparatory heart rate patterns in competitive rifle shooting should not be based solely on the attentional focusing aspect, but should also take into account the effects of a shooter's psychomotor regulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study was designed to assess the efficiency of a French version of GraphoGame (GG) against an equally engaging math intervention (Fiete Math, FM) in a large school sample of children from socioeconomically disadvantaged neighborhoods in grade 1 (N = 921). The intervention was implemented in two different cohorts who used GG or FM for about four months four times a week for 30 minutes. Gains in reading and mathematics were assessed before and after intervention. Given the nested nature of the data, results were analyzed using hierarchical linear mixed effect models with intervention and initial pretest level as fixed effects and individuals and classes as random effects. We found positive intervention effects of GG on phoneme awareness (effect size, ES = 0.23), orthographic choice (ES = 0.27) and word reading fluency (ES = 0.18). FM had a significant effect on math achievement (ES = 0.28) but not number comparison. Correlations between intervention gains and game variables (overall accuracy, number of levels played) suggest that the effects of GG were specific. Positive effects for focused digital reading and math interventions were found in a large school sample of children from socially disadvantaged neighborhoods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the effect of home environment factors in the acquisition of early reading skills (orthographic awareness and decoding competence). To assess these factors, a sample of seventy-two (72) first grade learners (females = 55%; age range = 7-8 years) and their maternal parents (age range 26-61 years old) from low SES in Zambia's capital city, Lusaka were recruited. Parents, in response to a home literacy questionnaire, reported on their attitudes towards reading, literacy teaching in the home, the home literacy environment, presence of reading materials for adults and children, parental education, occupation, family size and family possessions. Two measures of reading skill were administered at school. Correlations revealed that parental education, occupation and the size of the family were not significantly associated with the reading measures. Family possessions, parental reading attitudes, literacy activities, and reading materials significantly predicted orthographic awareness. In predicting decoding competence, only family possessions, parental reading attitudes and literacy activities were predictive. Regardless of the context, children experience literacy in varied forms and quantities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In 2018, it was found that only a quarter of Grade 3 children in India were reading at grade level. A growing demand for English education has further limited children's literacy achievement. Despite a strong evidence base in favour of using systematic phonics for building English literacy skills, many teachers in India continue to use rote‐methods of literacy instruction. Objectives: We aimed to examine the efficacy of GraphoLearn (GL) English Rime, a computer‐assisted reading intervention, in improving the foundational literacy skills of 1st and 2nd grade students who were attending an English medium school in India. Methods: A total of 136 students across 6 classrooms were randomly allocated to play either GL or a control math game over a 5‐week intervention period. Students were pre‐ and post‐tested on various English literacy skills using tasks built into the GL software as well as through oral and paper‐based tasks. Results and Conclusions: Students who played GL showed significantly greater and faster development on in‐game measures of letter‐sound knowledge, rime unit recognition, and word recognition as compared to students who did not play GL. In addition, GL resulted in greater effects on these measures for students with stronger English literacy skills prior to the start of the intervention. No differences were found between groups on the oral and paper‐based tasks. Implications: GL was able to quickly and effectively teach critical sub‐skills for reading. However, a lack of effects on the out‐of‐game measures opens the door for further discussion on the successful implementation of such interventions. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic:India has an ongoing literacy crisis with many children failing to acquire functional literacy skills.Under‐resourced schools,outdated pedagogical methods, and a demand for English‐medium education are partially to blame.Globally, technology is being increasingly looked at to help improve student learning levels across all subject areas.There are a lack of studies examining the efficacy of various ed‐tech tools to improve literacy in the context of India.What this paper adds:The study aimed to test GraphoLearn English (GL), a mobile game designed to teach and practice early reading skills through phonics with first and second graders.Results showed that children who played GL outperformed those who did not play on critical literacy skills such as letter‐sound knowledge and word recognition.In addition, GL was more effective for those who had higher pre‐existing English literacy skills.However, improvements were only seen on measures assessed in the game and not on measures assessed orally or on paper.Implications for practice and/or policy:GL and other educational technologies can be extremely effective tools which allow for an individualized learning experience.However, it is important that for any educational game, learning moves beyond the game itself.Teachers are critical players in this process and must ensure that tech‐based instruction is integrated with teacher‐led instruction.Policy makers and school administration must ensure that teachers are adequately trained on when, with whom, and how to use such technologies before they are introduced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This longitudinal study examined early cognitive risk and protective factors for Grade 2 reading disability (RD). We first examined the reading outcome of 198 children in four developmental cognitive subgroups that were identified in our previous analysis: dysfluent trajectory, declining trajectory, unexpected trajectory and typical trajectory. We found that RD was unevenly distributed among the subgroups, although children with RD were found in all subgroups. A majority of the children with RD had familial risk for dyslexia. Second, we examined in what respect children with similar early cognitive development but different RD outcome differ from each other in cognitive skills, task-focused behaviour and print exposure. The comparison of the groups with high cognitive risk but different RD outcome showed significant differences in phonological skills, in the amount of shared reading and in task-focused behaviour. Children who ended up with RD despite low early cognitive risk had poorer cognitive skills, more task avoidance and they were reading less than children without RD and low cognitive risk. In summary, lack of task avoidance seemed to act as a protective factor, which underlines the importance of keeping children interested in school work and reading. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This study aimed at determining whether an intervention game developed for strengthening phonological awareness has a remediating effect on reading skills and central auditory processing in 6-year-old preschool children with difficulties in reading-related skills. After a 3-hour training only, these children made a greater progress in reading-related skills than did their matched controls who did mathematical exercises following comparable training format. Furthermore, the results suggest that this brief intervention might be beneficial in modulating the neural basis of phonetic discrimination as an enhanced speech-elicited mismatch negativity (MMN) was seen in the intervention group, indicating improved cortical discrimination accuracy. Moreover, the amplitude increase of the vowel-elicited MMN significantly correlated with the improvement in some of the reading-skill related test scores. The results, albeit obtained with a relatively small sample, are encouraging, suggesting that reading-related skills can be improved even by a very short intervention and that the training effects are reflected in brain activity. However, studies with larger samples and different subgroups of children are needed to confirm the present results and to determine how children with different dyslexia subtypes benefit from the intervention. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Objective: To design a fast algorithm that evaluates the degree of correlation of recordings among single trials (CoRaST) for mismatch negativity (MMN) activity. Methods: The participants were 114 children, aged 8–16years. MMNs were elicited by two deviants in duration that occurred in an uninterrupted sound within a passive oddball paradigm, and each trial lasted 650ms with 130 samples. CoRaST was derived from the frequency-domain MMN model through Fourier transformation. To validate the effectiveness of the proposed method, the wavelet transformation-based inter-trial coherence (ITC) was taken as a reference. Results: Performances of the proposed CoRaST and ITC were similar in evaluating the correlation of MMN activity among single trials. However, the analysis of electroencephalograph (EEG) recordings comprising approximately 330 trials at one channel took approximately 0.12s with CoRaST, whereas ITC required approximately 45s in our workstation. Conclusions: CoRaST has the potential to evaluate the correlation of MMN activity among single trials in a real-time system. Furthermore, the new method can be facilitated to study other event-related potentials (ERPs) of evoked or induced brain activity. Significance: The correlation of ERP activity among single trials can be immediately inspected during the ERP data collection in a real-time system. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Objectives: This study examined the timing of the trigger pull in relation to the cardiac cycle during skilled precision shooting. Methods: Electrocardiogram was recorded from 20 junior level competitive air-rifle shooters in two separate sessions. The testing was conducted at an indoor shooting range using an optoelectronic shooting system. The experimental task was to fire a shot in the standing position at a distance of 10m from the target. Results: The results showed that the junior level shooters fired more often during the phase of 10–15% of the R wave-to-R wave (R–R) interval. With regards to the accuracy of performance, there was not any optimal location for triggering in the cardiac cycle. The length of R–R interval did not affect the relationship between shot placement within the cardiac cycle and shooting performance. Conclusion: The present results suggest that competitive shooters do not time their triggering randomly during the cardiac cycle. In contrast to the earlier empirical findings, however, the data suggest that the timing of the trigger pull in relation to the cardiac cycle is not a determinant of superior shooting performance in competitive shooters. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This study examined the role of motivational or attitudinal factors, such as achievement beliefs and behaviours, in learning to read before receiving formal instruction. A total of 200 Finnish children were examined at ages 5 and 6½. Half of them (n =107) had a familial risk for dyslexia. The results showed that those children who were verbally skilful at age 5 showed a higher level of task-focused behaviour at age 6½. This task-focused behaviour then contributed to spontaneous reading acquisition. The impact of previous verbal skills on spontaneous reading acquisition was mediated in part by achievement behaviour. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The relationship between late-talkers' language development and reading and spelling outcomes was examined in children with and without familial risk for dyslexia. The late-talking subgroups were defined using parent- and test-based assessments of receptive and expressive vocabulary and grammar at 2 and 2.5 years as intake criteria. The language skills of late talkers and the remainders of these two groups were assessed at 3.5, 5, and 5.5 years. Reading/spelling outcomes were compared at the end of the second grade. Late-talking toddlers of the at-risk group who had both poor receptive and expressive skills performed less well than all other groups on language measurements at 5.5 years. In contrast, the control group's late talkers with an expressive delay reached the language level of their age-mates already by 3.5 years, and maintained their age-appropriate position two years later. The most significant differences in the reading skills were found between the at-risk children with receptive and expressive delay and the remainder of the controls. Age-appropriate early language skills did not, however, ensure norm-level fluent reading in the at-risk group. The remainder of the at-risk group performed at a significantly lower level than did the remainder of the controls, both on the oral reading and spelling tasks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the timing of the trigger pull in relation to the cardiac cycle during air rifle shooting. Electrocardiogram) was recorded from 20 male nonelite rifle shooters in two separate testing sessions. The testing was conducted at an indoor shooting range using an optoelectronic shooting system. Each participant fired a shot in the standing position at a distance of 10 m from the target. The results showed that compared to random triggering, the shooters fired more often during the phase of 10-50 % of the R wave-to-R wave (R-R) interval and less often during the phase of 50-90 %. With regard to performance accuracy, the participants exhibited average or above average performance, when the shot occurred in the beginning (0-50%) and in the end (70-99%) of the R-R interval. The less optimal range for the triggering was located within the 50-70% phase of the R-R interval. The length of R-R interval (i.e., heart rate) did not affect the relation of shot placement within the cardiac cycle to the accuracy of shooting performance. The present results extend previous findings by showing that in air rifle shooting the optimum firing time within the cardiac cycle may be located in the systolic phase. It is argued that the systole-diastole dichotomy is not a sufficiently accurate way to investigate the effects of shot placement in the cardiac cycle. Further research is needed to examine the extent to which the relationship between the timing of triggering within the cardiac cycle and shooting performance depends a shooter's skill level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The play and language behavior of mothers with (n = 49) and without (n = 49) specific reading disabilities (RD) was investigated during play with their 14-month-old children. The contribution of maternal behavior to the language development of their children was examined. The children's receptive and expressive language skills were assessed longitudinally at 14, 18, and 30 months, using the MacArthur Communicative Development Inventories and the Reynell Developmental Language Scales. Children with and without familial risk for RD did not differ from each other in any play or language measures at these ages. No group differences were found for mothers' manifestations of nonsymbolic play and language. However, the typically reading (TR) mothers produced significantly more symbolic play and language in play interactions with their child than did the mothers with RD. The correspondence between mother-child symbolic play and maternal play-related language was also higher for the TR group than it was for the RD group. The mothers' symbolic play did not show any relation to their children's language development, but their expressions of symbolic language did show a relationship. The mothers' child-directed symbolic language contributed significantly toward the comprehension skills of 14- and 18-month-olds in the RD group. This association, however, was lower at 30 months, at which point it was reliably present for the first time in the TR group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Computer-based assessment of the use of beginning and end analogies based on clue syllables of five different syllable structures was developed to examine the role of analogy in beginning reading of a orthographically regular language, Finnish. Forty-seven Grade 1 children with a mean age of 7.5 years participated in the study. Unlike English, the most clear-cut result is that for all the syllable structures the use of clue syllables produced no significant differences in reading speed and accuracy of the following same beginning or same end syllables. The findings also show that the benefit to the readers varied according to the size of the syllables. No benefit was found in two letter syllables but some benefit was observed in three and four letter syllables for reading accuracy. Vowels and consonants have no clear effect on the use of analogy, probably in part because in Finnish all letters are sounded irrespective of their placement in a syllable. It is argued that the improvement from pre-test to test is due to phonological and orthographic similarities between the shared condition and clue syllables at the phoneme/letter level. Reading is based on single phoneme/letter analogies instead of the effect found in English where children benefit significantly from analogy based on larger units. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A random sample of 91 preschool children was assessed prior to receiving formal reading instruction. Verbal and nonverbal measures were used as predictors for the time of instruction required to accurately decode pseudowords in the highly orthographically regular Finnish language. After 2 years, participants were divided into four groups depending on the duration of instruction they had required to reach 90 % accuracy in their reading of pseudowords. Participants were classified as precocious decoders (PD), who could read at school entry; early decoders (ED), who learned to read within the first 4 months of Grade 1; ordinary decoders (OD), who learned to read within 9 months; and late decoders (LD), who failed to reach the criterion after 18 months of reading instruction at Grade 2. Phonological awareness played a significant role only in differentiating PD from ED and OD. However, phonological awareness failed to predict the delayed learning process of LD. LD differed from all other groups in visual analogical reasoning in an analysis not containing phonological awareness measures. Letter knowledge and visual analogical reasoning explained above 90% of the PD-LD difference. Preschool composite (objects, colors, and digits) naming speed measures best predicted reading fluency at the end of Grade 2. The supportive role of orthographic knowledge in phonological awareness, the role of visual analogical reasoning, and the inability of phonological measures to discriminate late decoders are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated the relationship between apolipoprotein E (apoE) polymorphism and cardiovascular responses to experimentally induced mental stress. Mental stress was induced in 28 healthy 16-year-old boys with a series of stressors (e.g., mental arithmetic, Stroop Color-Word Interference Test). Heart rate (HR), finger blood volume, and skin conductance level were recorded continuously during the task performance. We found that boys with apoE3/2 or apoE3/3 showed marginally significantly greater HR reactivity and significantly greater task levels of HR and HR variability (HRV) during the mental stress than subjects with apoE4/2, apoE4/3, or apoE4/4. In addition, E4/2, E4/3, and E4/4 subjects manifested a distinct stress-related decrease in HRV relative to baseline values while E3/2 and E3/3 subjects showed a slight increase. The results suggests that apoE polymorphism is associated with cardiovascular responsivity to mental stress in adolescent boys. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We used a randomized controlled trial to investigate if a mobile game, GraphoLearn (GL), could effectively support the learning of first graders (N = 70), who have severe difficulties in reading and spelling. We studied the effects of two versions of the game: GL Reading, which focused on training letter‐sound correspondence and word reading; and GL Spelling, which included additional training in phonological skills and spelling. During the spring of first grade, the children trained with tablet computers which they could carry with them during the six‐week intervention. The average exposure time to training was 5 hr 44 min. The results revealed no differences in the development of reading or spelling skills between GL players and the control group. However, pre‐training self‐efficacy moderated the effect among GL Reading players: children with high self‐efficacy developed more than the control group in word reading fluency, whereas children with low self‐efficacy developed less than the control group in spelling. Lay Description: What is already known: Serious games can support children's reading achievement, but less is known about their effects in mobile learning.GraphoLearn (GL) is a serious game designed to support reading acquisition, but previous studies suggest its effect on word‐level reading is limited.Explicit training of phonological skills and spelling could facilitate transfer to word reading.Self‐efficacy predicts persistence and effort in achievement situations but its role in mobile game‐based learning is not well known. What this paper adds: A randomized controlled trial was used to study if mobile game‐based learning supports children with reading difficulties.A new GL version, training phonological and spelling skills, had no effect on the development of reading and spelling skills.Children with high self‐efficacy benefited from training with the standard GL. Implications for practitioners: When using mobile games as support tools, close attention should be paid to learner characteristics and game design.Children with high self‐efficacy may be better able to regulate their behaviour during independent training with mobile games, leading to better learning outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pinyin is an alphabetic script that denotes pronunciations of Chinese characters. Studies have shown that Pinyin instruction enhances both phonological awareness (e.g., Shu et al., Developmental Science, 2008, 11, 171-181) and character reading (e.g., Lin et al., Psychological Science, 2010, 21, 1117-1122) in Chinese children. In the present study, we provided a 3-week Pinyin intervention with a computer-based Pinyin GraphoGame to disadvantaged migrant children with poor Pinyin skills. A total of 252 first graders who were children of migrant workers in a large Chinese city were assessed to identify poor Pinyin readers. Fifty-six 7-year-old children with poor Pinyin skills were selected and randomly divided into a training group and a control group, with 28 children in each group. The training group played the Pinyin GraphoGame for 3 weeks, while the control group received school instruction only during the same period. Results showed that the children in the training group outperformed their peers in the control group on Pinyin reading accuracy and fluency, onset-rime and phonemic awareness, and character reading. These results suggest that the Pinyin GraphoGame may be a cost-effective method to enhance Pinyin and literacy outcomes for underprivileged children in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Serious games are designed to improve learning instead of providing only entertainment. Serious games analytics can be used for understanding and enhancing the quality of learning with serious games. One challenge in developing the computerized support for learning is that learning of skills varies between players. Appropriate algorithms are needed for analyzing the performance of individual players. This paper presents a novel clustering‐based profiling method for analyzing serious games learners. GraphoLearn, a game for training connections between the speech sounds and letters, serves as the game‐based learning environment. The proposed clustering method was designed to group the learners into profiles based on game log data. The obtained profiles were statistically analyzed. For instance, the results revealed one profile consisting of 136 players who had difficulties with connecting most of the target sounds and letters, whereas learners in the other profiles typically had difficulties with specific sound‐letter pairs. The results suggest that this profiling method can be useful for identifying children with a risk of reading disability and the proposed approach is a promising new method for analyzing serious game log data. Practitioner NotesWhat is already known about this topic Serious games are used to improve learning and to tailor learning environments for people with various difficulties in learning.Learning analytics and serious games analytics are growing research fields, applying and developing data analysis methods to analyze, profile and understand learning using serious games.GraphoLearn is a learning game for training reading skills. The game provides preventive support for learners with varying skill levels including individuals who are struggling with reading.What this paper adds The paper develops and presents a novel approach for serious games analytics to analyze GraphoLearn players.The proposed data analysis approach produces an interpretable set of error profiles, which characterize the learning difficulties in a unique way.The profiling method can be used for longitudinal studies and applied to analyzing logs of other serious games.Implications for practice and/or policy It is possible to reveal and understand profiles of serious game players.The proposed data analysis method can be used to identify players who have a potential risk for reading difficulties or disabilities.Even though the proposed method provides only limited information about players' future skills, it offers a good starting point for other studies in which players' development can be monitored more accurately. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The obituary is for Evgeny Nikolaevich Sokolov who died on May 14, 2008.

This study investigates the effectiveness of a digital game—GraphoLearn (GL)—in supporting second-grade students who have persistent difficulties with acquiring accurate and fluent reading skills. The participants (N = 37) were randomly assigned either to a 6-week intervention including sessions with GL, in addition to school-provided support, or a control group receiving only school-provided support. The intervention took place at the students' homes and schools under the supervision of their parents and teachers. The results showed that the children who received the GL intervention developed significantly faster in word reading than the control group. Moreover, their reading development was significantly faster during the GL intervention compared with that of the follow-up period, which included only typical school-provided support. No transfer effects on reading fluency, reading comprehension, or spelling were found. Furthermore, the children who, according to the observations of their parents and teachers, showed higher cognitive engagement during the intervention had higher gains in word reading and sentence reading fluency than the children who appeared less cognitively engaged. Higher emotional engagement was related to increased playing time but not to larger gains in reading. The study indicates that a short digital game-based intervention training of letter–sound correspondences and word-level reading can give a boost to the reading development of struggling readers. Inspecting the engagement and in-game performance during gameplay provides important information that can be used for further development of the game to respond to the needs of the learners with severe difficulties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the comparative efficacy of a phonics-based reading program and a language experience approach based literacy program to develop reading skills among Zambian early childhood school learners. The learners (n = 1 986; Grade 2 level; females = 50.1%) took either the phonics-based reading program (n = 1 593) or the alternative language experience approach based program (n = 393). They were all assessed for reading skills utilising the Early Grade Reading Assessment test (EGRA) in four languages (Cinyanja, Icibemba, Kiikaonde, and Silozi). Results suggest that learners in phonics-based literacy program were significantly better in letter-sound knowledge in all the four languages. Additionally, they were significantly better in reading skills (non-word reading, oral passage reading, and reading comprehension), yet only in Icibemba and Silozi, as compared to those who took the alternative program. Results reveal that children in the Primary Literacy Program (PLP) had significantly better performance in most reading skills than in the Primary Reading Program (PRP). However, the effect sizes were small or medium. The high floor effect in all reading-related measures is an indication that by following either PRP or the recently implemented PLP, most children do not acquire basic reading skill of the transparently written language they are familiar with. Instruction of the sounds of letters requires special attention where digital training tools (such as GraphoGame) may provide the most effective help to both teachers and children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dyslexia is a neurobiological disorder impairing learning to read. Brain responses of infants at genetic risk for dyslexia are abnormal already at birth, and associations from infant speech perception to preschool cognitive skills and reading in early school years have been documented, but there are no studies showing predicting power until adolescence. Here we show that in at-risk infants, brain activation to pseudowords at left hemisphere predicts 44% of reading speed at 14 years, and even improves the prediction after taking into account neurocognitive preschool measures of letter naming, phonology, and verbal short-term memory. The association between infant brain responses and reading speed is mediated by preschool rapid automatized naming ability. Therefore, we suggest that rapid naming and reading speed could share a similar cognitive process of automatized access to lexicon via phonological representations, and brain activation to speech sounds in infancy probably acts as an index of deficient development of the same process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Associative learning has been identified as one of several non-linguistic processes involved in reading acquisition. However, it has not been established whether it is an independent process that contributes to reading performance on its own or whether it is a process that is embedded in other linguistic skills (e.g., phonological awareness or phonological memory) and, therefore, contributing to reading performance indirectly. Research has shown that performance on tasks assessing associative learning, e.g., paired-associate learning (PAL) tasks, is lower in children with specific reading difficulties compared to typical readers. We explored the differential associations of two distinct verbal–visual PAL tasks (the Bala Bbala Graphogame, BBG, and a Foreign Language Learning Task, FLLT) with reading skills (word reading and pseudo-word decoding), controlling for phonological awareness, rapid naming, and letter and digit span in children at risk for reading disabilities and their typically developing peers. Our study sample consisted of 110 children living in rural Zambia, ranging in age from 7 to 18 years old (48.1% female). Multivariate analyses of covariance were used to explore the group differences in reading performance. Repeated-measures ANCOVA was used to examine children's learning across the PAL tasks. The differential relationships between both PAL tasks and reading performance were explored via structural equation modeling. The main result was that the children at risk for reading difficulties had lower performance on both PAL tasks. The BBG was a significant predictor for both word reading and pseudo-word decoding, whereas the FLLT—only for word reading. Performance on the FLLT partially mediated the association between phonological awareness and word reading. These results illustrate the partial independence of associative learning from other reading-related skills; the specifics of this relationship vary based on the type of PAL task administered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study focuses on the stability of dyslexia status from Grade 2 to Grade 8 in four groups: (a) no dyslexia in either grade (no-dyslexia, n = 127); (b) no dyslexia in Grade 2 but dyslexia in Grade 8 (late-emerging, n = 18); (c) dyslexia in Grade 2 but not in Grade 8 (resolving, n = 15); and (d) dyslexia in both grades (persistent-dyslexia, n = 22). We examined group differences from age 3.5 to age 14 in (a) reading, vocabulary, phonology, letter knowledge, rapid naming, IQ, verbal memory; (b) familial and environmental risk and supportive factors; and (c) parental skills in reading, phonology, rapid naming, verbal memory, and vocabulary. Our findings showed group differences both in reading and cognitive skills of children as well as their parents. Parental education, book-reading frequency, and children's IQ, however, did not differentiate the groups. The children in the persistent-dyslexia group exhibited widespread language and cognitive deficits across development. Those in the resolving group had problems in language and cognitive skills only prior to school entry. In the late-emerging group, children showed clearly compromised rapid naming. Additionally, their parents had the most severe difficulties in rapid naming, a finding that suggests strong genetic liability. The findings show instability in the diagnosis of dyslexia. The members of the late-emerging group did not have a distinct early cognitive profile, so late-emerging dyslexia appears difficult to predict. Indeed, these children are at risk of not being identified and not receiving required support. This study suggests the need for continued monitoring of children's progress in literacy after the early school years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study followed the development of reading speed, reading accuracy, and spelling in transparent Finnish orthography in children through Grades 2, 3, and 8. We compared 2 groups of children with familial risk for dyslexia--1 group with dyslexia (Dys_FR, n = 35) and 1 group without (NoDys_FR, n = 66) in Grade 2--with a group of children without familial risk for dyslexia (controls, n = 72). The Dys_FR group showed persistent deficiency, especially in reading speed, and, to a minor extent, in reading and spelling accuracy. The Dys_FR children, contrary to the other 2 groups, relied heavily on letter-by-letter decoding in Grades 2 and 3. In children not fulfilling the criteria for dyslexia in Grade 2, the familial risk did not substantially affect the subsequent development of literacy skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Specific reading disability, dyslexia, is a prevalent and heritable disorder impairing reading acquisition characterized by a phonological deficit. However, the underlying mechanism of how the impaired phonological processing mediates resulting dyslexia or reading disabilities remains still unclear. Using ERPs we studied speech sound processing of 30 dyslexic children with familial risk for dyslexia, 51 typically reading children with familial risk for dyslexia, and 58 typically reading control children. We found enhanced brain responses to shortening of a phonemic length in pseudo-words (/at:a/ vs. /ata/) in dyslexic children with familial risk as compared to other groups. The enhanced brain responses were associated with better performance in behavioral phonemic length discrimination task, as well as with better reading and writing accuracy. Source analyses revealed that the brain responses of sub-group of dyslexic children with largest responses originated from a more posterior area of the right temporal cortex as compared to the responses of the other participants. This is the first electrophysiological evidence for a possible compensatory speech perception mechanism in dyslexia. The best readers within the dyslexic group have probably developed alternative strategies which employ compensatory mechanisms substituting their possible earlier deficit in phonological processing and might therefore be able to perform better in phonemic length discrimination and reading and writing accuracy tasks. However, we speculate that for reading fluency compensatory mechanisms are not that easily built and dyslexic children remain slow readers during their adult life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Computer-assisted training of Finnish phonemic length was conducted with 7-year-old Russian-speaking second-language learners of Finnish. Phonemic length plays a different role in these two languages. The training included game activities with two- and three-syllable word and pseudo-word minimal pairs with prototypical vowel durations. The lowest accuracy scores were recorded for two-syllable words. Accuracy scores were higher for the minimal pairs with larger rather than smaller differences in duration. Accuracy scores were lower for long duration than for short duration. The ability to identify quantity degree was generalized to stimuli used in the identification test in two of the children. Ideas for improving the game are introduced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This intervention study was conducted to document conditions under which a computer based literacy game (GraphoGame™) could enhance literacy skills of first grade students in an African city. The participants were first grade students from Government schools (N = 573). These students were randomly sampled into control (N = 314) and various intervention groups (N = 259). GraphoGame™ was administered on cellphones to students at their schools under supervision. Each student in the study was assessed using a battery of locally developed cognitive tests that measured emergent literacy skills (Orthography test), decoding competence (Spelling test), vocabulary (Picture Vocabulary Test-PVT) and arithmetic (Zambia Achievement Test-ZAT). There was a positive effect of the game for the Spelling test-which closely targeted the skill GraphoGame™ is designed to promote. The most effective intervention combined exposure of both the teachers and the students to the game. Initial letter knowledge was a good predictor of final letter knowledge on GraphoGame™. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the effects of two game features (the level of challenge and the reward system) on first and second graders' engagement during digital game-based learning of reading. We were particularly interested in determining how well these features managed to maintain children's engagement over the 8-week training period. The children (N = 138) used GraphoGame, a web-based game training letter–sound connections, at home under the supervision of parents. Data regarding the children's gaming and engagement were stored on the GraphoGame online server. A 2 × 2 factorial design was used to investigate the effects of the level of challenge (high challenge vs. high success) and the presence of the reward system (present vs. absent). Children's engagement was measured by session frequency and duration and through an in-game self-report survey that was presented at the end of the each session. According to the results, the children enjoyed GraphoGame but used it less frequently than expected. The reward system seemed to encourage the children to play longer sessions at the beginning of the training period, but this effect vanished after a few sessions. The level of challenge had no significant effect on children's engagement. The results suggest a need to investigate further the effectiveness of various game features in maintaining learner's engagement until the goals set for learning are achieved. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper addresses the question whether the cognitive underpinnings of reading and spelling are universal or language/orthography-specific. We analyzed concurrent predictions of phonological processing (awareness and memory) and rapid automatized naming (RAN) for literacy development in a large European sample of 1062 typically developing elementary school children beyond Grade 2 acquiring five different alphabetic orthographies with varying degrees of grapheme–phoneme consistency (English, French, German, Hungarian, Finnish). Findings indicate that (1) phonological processing and RAN both account for significant amounts of unique variance in literacy attainment in all five orthographies. Associations of predictors with reading speed, reading accuracy, and spelling are differential: in general, RAN is the best predictor of reading speed while phonological processing accounts for higher amounts of unique variance in reading accuracy and spelling; (2) the predictive patterns are largely comparable across orthographies, but they tend to be stronger in English than in all other orthographies. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Sensitivity to print is characterized by a left occipito-temporal negativity to words in the event-related potential N1. This sensitivity is modulated by reading skills and may thus represent a neural marker of reading competence. Here we studied the development of the N1 in regular and poor readers from preschool age to school age to test whether the amplitude of the N1 predicts children's reading outcomes. Our results suggest a predictive value of the print-sensitive negativity over the right hemisphere. Whether this N1 may serve as a biomarker to improve prognosis in preliterate children should be clarified in future studies. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Identifying children at risk for reading problems or dyslexia at kindergarten age could improve support for beginning readers. Brain event-related potentials (ERPs) were measured for temporally complex pseudowords and corresponding non-speech stimuli from 6.5-year-old children who participated in behavioral literacy tests again at 9 years in the second grade. Children who had reading problems at school age had larger N250 responses to speech and non-speech stimuli particularly at the left hemisphere. The brain responses also correlated with reading skills. The results suggest that atypical auditory and speech processing are a neural-level risk factor for future reading problems. [Supplementary material is available for this article. Go to the publisher's online edition ofDevelopmental Neuropsychologyfor the following free supplemental resources: Sound files used in the experiments. Three speech sounds and corresponding non-speech sounds with short, intermediate, and long gaps] [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The aim of this longitudinal study was to build a model of the predictive values (poor phonological awareness, low letter knowledge, and slow naming speed) of spelling in 3 contrasting reading groups: a regular and a computer-assisted remedial intervention and mainstream instruction. The participants were 7-year-old Finnish school beginners (N = 166). The interventions took place in 4 weekly sessions of 45 min each over a period of 28 weeks in groups of 5 during Grade 1. We compared postintervention spelling development across the groups. The children who received systematic phonics-based training via the computer-assisted intervention reached the postinstruction level of the mainstream group by Grade 3. Computer-assisted treatment produced the best results, and mainstream instruction achieved better results than the regular remedial reading intervention. Low phonological awareness seemed to play a central role in spelling development in spite of a combination of deficits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The authors investigated the importance of phonemic length discrimination ability on reading and spelling skills among children with reading disabilities and familial risk for dyslexia and among children with typical reading skills, as well as the role of prereading skills in reading and spelling development in children with reading disabilities. Method: Finnish children with reading disabilities and discrimination problems (RDDP, n = 13), children with reading disabilities and typical discrimination abilities (RDTD, n = 27), and children with typical reading skills (TR, n = 140) were assessed between the ages of 1 and 6.5 years for language, phonological awareness, IQ, verbal memory, and rapid automatized naming. IQ, discrimination ability, and reading and spelling skills were assessed in the second grade. Statistical differences were examined at the group level. Results: The RDDP group was poorer in spelling accuracy compared with the other groups. The RDDP group's prereading skills were poorer than those of the RDTD group. In regression analyses, the RDDP group's poor spelling skills were partially explained by their discrimination ability. Conclusion: Prereading skills are connected to poor reading skills, but phonemic length discrimination ability plays a critical role in spelling accuracy problems among children with reading disabilities and with familial risk for dyslexia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The authors investigated the importance of phonemic length discrimination ability on reading and spelling skills among children with reading disabilities and familial risk for dyslexia and among children with typical reading skills, as well as the role of prereading skills in reading and spelling development in children with reading disabilities. Method: Finnish children with reading disabilities and discrimination problems (RDDP, n = 13), children with reading disabilities and typical discrimination abilities (RDTD, n = 27), and children with typical reading skills (TR, n = 140) were assessed between the ages of 1 and 6.5 years for language, phonological awareness, IQ, verbal memory, and rapid automatized naming. IQ, discrimination ability, and reading and spelling skills were assessed in the second grade. Statistical differences were examined at the group level. Results: The RDDP group was poorer in spelling accuracy compared with the other groups. The RDDP group's prereading skills were poorer than those of the RDTD group. In regression analyses, the RDDP group's poor spelling skills were partially explained by their discrimination ability. Conclusion: Prereading skills are connected to poor reading skills, but phonemic length discrimination ability plays a critical role in spelling accuracy problems among children with reading disabilities and with familial risk for dyslexia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The relationship between phoneme awareness, rapid automatized naming (RAN), verbal short-term/working memory (ST/WM) and diagnostic category is investigated in control and dyslexic children, and the extent to which this depends on orthographic complexity. Methods: General cognitive, phonological and literacy skills were tested in 1,138 control and 1,114 dyslexic children speaking six different languages spanning a large range of orthographic complexity (Finnish, Hungarian, German, Dutch, French, English). Results: Phoneme deletion and RAN were strong concurrent predictors of developmental dyslexia, while verbal ST/WM and general verbal abilities played a comparatively minor role. In logistic regression models, more participants were classified correctly when orthography was more complex. The impact of phoneme deletion and RAN-digits was stronger in complex than in less complex orthographies. Conclusions: Findings are largely consistent with the literature on predictors of dyslexia and literacy skills, while uniquely demonstrating how orthographic complexity exacerbates some symptoms of dyslexia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This study addresses how to validate the rationale of group component analysis (CA) for blind source separation through estimating the number of sources in each individual EEG dataset via model order selection. Control children, typically reading children with risk for reading disability (RD), and children with RD participated in the experiment. Passive oddball paradigm was used for eliciting mismatch negativity during EEG data collection. Data were cleaned by two digital filters with pass bands of 1–30Hz and 1–15Hz and a wavelet filter with the pass band narrower than 1–12Hz. Three model order selection methods were used to estimate the number of sources in each filtered EEG dataset. Under the filter with the pass band of 1–30Hz, the numbers of sources were very similar among different individual EEG datasets and the group ICA would be suggested; regarding the other two filters with much narrower pass bands, the numbers of sources were relatively diverse, and then, applying group ICA would not be appropriate. Hence, before group ICA is performed, its rationale can be logically validated by the estimated number of sources in EEG data through model order selection. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

We report an empirical comparison of the effectiveness of two theoretically motivated computer-assisted reading interventions ( CARI) based on the Finnish GraphoGame CARI: English GraphoGame Rime ( GG Rime) and English GraphoGame Phoneme ( GG Phoneme). Participants were 6-7-year-old students who had been identified by their teachers as being relatively poor at reading. The students were divided into three groups. Two of the groups played one of the games as a supplement to normal classroom literacy instruction for five sessions per week for a period of 12 weeks. The third group formed an untreated control. Both games led to gains in reading, spelling, and phonological skills in comparison with the untreated control group. The two interventions also had some differential effects. The intervention gains were maintained at a four-month follow-up. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]