Orthographic Learning in Adults with Reading Difficulties

• Author / Creator

  Hung, Rickie W K

• This study examined the nature and cognitive predictors of orthographic learning in 20 adults with dyslexia and 27 controls. Orthographic learning was assessed with an orthographic choice task and with eye movements in reading a passage embedded with novel words. Participants also completed tasks measuring phonological awareness and rapid automatized naming (RAN). The results indicated that adults with dyslexia learned new words at a rate comparable to or even faster than that of typical readers, but were slower in recalling orthographic representations. Phonological awareness predicted orthographic learning, while RAN was not a significant predictor. These results confirm some previous findings on the predictors of orthographic learning, but also challenge claims that individuals with dyslexia exhibit impairment in orthographic learning.

• Subjects / Keywords

  • Eye movement
  • Orthographic learning
  • Phonological awareness
  • Dyslexia
  • Rapid naming

• Graduation date

  Spring 2012

• Type of Item

  Thesis

• Degree

  Master of Education

• DOI

  https://doi.org/10.7939/R3TM1W

• License

  This thesis is made available by the University of Alberta Libraries with permission of the copyright owner solely for non-commercial purposes. This thesis, or any portion thereof, may not otherwise be copied or reproduced without the written consent of the copyright owner, except to the extent permitted by Canadian copyright law.