0000000000174189
AUTHOR
George K. Georgiou
showing 15 related works from this author
Examining the Double-Deficit Hypothesis in an Orthographically Consistent Language
2012
We examined the double-deficit hypothesis in Finnish. One hundred five Finnish children with high familial risk for dyslexia and 90 children with low family risk were followed from the age of 3½ years until Grade 3. Children's phonological awareness, rapid naming speed, text reading, and spelling were assessed. A deficit in rapid automatized naming (RAN) predicted slow reading speed across time and spelling difficulties after Grade 1. A deficit in phonological awareness predicted difficulties in spelling, but only in the familial risk sample. The effect of familial risk was significant in the development of phonological awareness, RAN, reading, and spelling. Our findings suggest that the ba…
A meta-analysis of the relation between RAN and mathematics.
2017
Several studies have shown that rapid automatized naming (RAN) is a significant predictor of mathematics, but the nature of their relationship remains elusive. Thus, the purpose of this meta-analysis was to estimate the size of their relationship and determine the conditions under which they correlate. We used a random-effects model analysis of data from 38 studies (33 unique samples, 151 correlations, 7,135 participants) to examine the size of the RAN–mathematics relationship and the role of different moderators (i.e., math measure and variable, type of RAN task, math age, study design, and sample characteristics). The results showed a significant correlation between RAN and mathematics (r…
The precursors of double dissociation between reading and spelling in a transparent orthography.
2016
Research and clinical practitioners have mixed views whether reading and spelling difficulties should be combined or seen as separate. This study examined the following: (a) if double dissociation between reading and spelling can be identified in a transparent orthography (Finnish) and (b) the cognitive and noncognitive precursors of this phenomenon. Finnish-speaking children (n = 1963) were assessed on reading fluency and spelling in grades 1, 2, 3, and 4. Dissociation groups in reading and spelling were formed based on stable difficulties in grades 1–4. The groups were compared in kindergarten phonological awareness, rapid automatized naming, letter knowledge, home literacy environment, a…
Reading and Spelling Development Across Languages Varying in Orthographic Consistency: Do Their Paths Cross?
2020
We examined the cross‐lagged relations between reading and spelling in five alphabetic orthographies varying in consistency (English, French, Dutch, German, and Greek). Nine hundred and forty‐one children were followed from Grade 1 to Grade 2 and were tested on word and pseudoword reading fluency and on spelling to dictation. Results indicated that the relations across languages were unidirectional: Earlier reading predicted subsequent spelling. However, we also found significant differences between languages in the strength of the effects of earlier reading on subsequent spelling. These findings suggest that, once children master decoding, the observed differences between languages are not…
The Contribution of RAN Pause Time and Articulation Time to Reading Across Languages: Evidence From a More Representative Sample of Children
2014
We examined the relationship between rapid automatized naming (RAN) components – articulation time and pause time – and reading fluency across languages varying in orthographic consistency. Three hundred forty-seven Grade 4 children (82 Chinesespeaking Taiwanese children, 90 English-speaking Canadian children, 90 Greek-speaking Cypriot children, and 85 Finnish-speaking children) were assessed on RAN (Colors and Digits) and reading fluency (word reading efficiency and text reading speed). The results showed that articulation time accounted for more unique variance in reading in the alphabetic orthographies than in Chinese, and pause time for more unique variance in reading in Chinese than in…
Examining the Simple View of Reading in a Transparent Orthography: A Longitudinal Study From Kindergarten to Grade 3
2016
This study examined the dynamic relationships among the components of the Simple View of Reading (SVR) in a transparent orthography (Finnish) and the predictive value of cognitive skills (phonological awareness, letter knowledge, rapid naming, and vocabulary) on the SVR components. Altogether, 1,815 Finnish children were followed from kindergarten to Grade 3. Their cognitive skills were assessed in kindergarten, listening comprehension and reading fluency in Grades 1 and 2, and reading comprehension in Grades 1–3. Reading fluency and listening comprehension accounted for 37% of the variance in reading comprehension in Grade 2 and 28% in Grade 3. The direct effect of reading fluency on readi…
Task-focused behaviour and literacy development: a reciprocal relationship
2009
University of Jyva¨skyla¨The purpose of this study was twofold: (a) to examine the effect of task-focusedbehaviour on reading fluency, spelling and comprehension; and (b) to examine therole of the different literacy skills in subsequent task-focused behaviour. Twohundred and seven Finnish-speaking children were followed from preschool untiltheir fourth year at school and were tested for reading fluency, spelling and readingcomprehension. The teachers also rated the children’s task-focused behaviour. Theresults showed that task-focused behaviour was a significant predictor of laterreading comprehension and spelling skills. However, all three literacy skillspredicted subsequent task-focused beha…
Does task-focused versus task-avoidance behavior matter for literacy development in an orthographically consistent language?
2010
Abstract We examined the importance of children’s classroom activity, defined as task-focused versus task-avoidance behavior, on different literacy outcomes in an orthographically consistent language. Greek children ( n = 95) were tested in kindergarten, grade 1, and grade 2 on measures of general cognitive ability, phonological awareness, RAN, and short-term memory. The teachers of the children also assessed their task-focused behavior. Nonword decoding, reading fluency, spelling, and reading comprehension measures were administered in grades 2 and 3. The results indicated that task-focused behavior accounted for unique variance in spelling and reading comprehension, even after controllin…
Cross-lagged relationships between home learning environment and academic achievement in Chinese
2015
Abstract We examined (a) the cross-lagged relationships between the home learning environment and academic achievement in Chinese, and (b) whether parents’ socioeconomic status (SES) and child's gender moderate the relations. One hundred seventy-seven Chinese children were followed from Grade 1 to Grade 2 and were assessed on reading and mathematics. Their parents also responded to a questionnaire assessing the frequency of engaging in different home literacy and numeracy activities. Results showed that reading ability in Grade 1 negatively predicted informal home literacy activities in Grade 2. In turn, mathematics ability in Grade 1 negatively predicted formal home numeracy activities in …
Examining the developmental dynamics between achievement strategies and different literacy skills
2013
We examined the developmental dynamics between task-avoidant behavior and different literacy outcomes, and possible precursors of task-avoidant behavior. Seventy Greek children were followed from Grade 4 until Grade 6 and were assessed every year on reading fluency, spelling, and reading comprehension. The teachers assessed the children’s achievement strategies at all testing times. In addition, in Grade 4, the children responded to a task value questionnaire and the parents reported their beliefs and expectations about their children’s academic performance. The results revealed that task avoidance was reciprocally related only to reading comprehension. In addition, only parental beliefs p…
Fixation-related potentials in naming speed: A combined EEG and eye-tracking study on children with dyslexia.
2021
Abstract Objective We combined electroencephalography (EEG) and eye-tracking recordings to examine the underlying factors elicited during the serial Rapid-Automatized Naming (RAN) task that may differentiate between children with dyslexia (DYS) and chronological age controls (CAC). Methods Thirty children with DYS and 30 CAC (Mage = 9.79 years; age range 7.6 through 12.1 years) performed a set of serial RAN tasks. We extracted fixation-related potentials (FRPs) under phonologically similar (rime-confound) or visually similar (resembling lowercase letters) and dissimilar (non-confounding and discrete uppercase letters, respectively) control tasks. Results Results revealed significant differe…
Modeling the relationship between rapid automatized naming and literacy skills across languages varying in orthographic consistency
2015
The purpose of this study was twofold: (a) to contrast the prominent theoretical explanations of the rapid automatized naming (RAN)-reading relationship across languages varying in orthographic consistency (Chinese, English, and Finnish) and (b) to examine whether the same accounts can explain the RAN-spelling relationship. In total, 304 Grade 4 children (102 Chinese-speaking Taiwanese children, 117 English-speaking Canadian children, and 85 Finnish-speaking children) were assessed on measures of RAN, speed of processing, phonological processing, orthographic processing, reading fluency, and spelling. The results of path analysis indicated that RAN had a strong direct effect on reading flue…
The role of achievement strategies on literacy acquisition across languages
2011
Abstract We examined the importance of children’s achievement strategies in different literacy outcomes in three languages varying in orthographic consistency: Chinese, English, and Greek. Eighty Chinese-speaking Taiwanese children, 51 English-speaking Canadian children and 70 Greek children were assessed on measures of phonological awareness, rapid automatized naming, reading fluency, and spelling. The children’s use of a task-focused versus task-avoidant achievement strategy in the classroom context was rated by their teachers. The results indicated that the teacher-rated task-focused behavior was a significant predictor of spelling and to a lesser extent of reading fluency and that its e…
Cross-lagged relations between task-avoidant behavior and literacy skills in Chinese
2013
Abstract We examined the cross-lagged relations between children's task-avoidant behavior and their performance in reading and spelling in Chinese. Eighty Grade 2 and 103 Grade 4 Mandarin-speaking Taiwanese children were assessed on measures of nonverbal IQ, task value, reading accuracy, fluency, and spelling. A year later, the children were reassessed on the literacy tasks. The teachers also assessed the children's task-avoidant behavior at both testing times. The results indicated that task-avoidant behavior was a significant predictor of spelling and to a lesser extent of reading accuracy, even after controlling for the effects of the previous level of literacy skill, nonverbal IQ, and t…
Cross-lagged relations between teacher and parent ratings of children's task avoidance and different literacy skills.
2017
Background Task avoidance is a significant predictor of literacy skills. However, it remains unclear whether the relation between the two is reciprocal and whether it is affected by the type of literacy outcome, who is rating children's task avoidance, and the children's gender. Aim The purpose of this longitudinal study was to examine the cross-lagged relations between teacher and parent ratings of children's task avoidance and different literacy skills. Sample One hundred and seventy-two Greek children (91 girls, 81 boys) were followed from Grade 1 to Grade 3. Methods Children were assessed on reading accuracy, reading fluency, and spelling to dictation. Parents and teachers rated the chi…