Sight Word Recognition Among Young Children At-Risk: Picture-Supported vs. Word-Only
By Meadan, Hedda; Stoner, Julia B.; Parette, Howard P.; Assistive Technology Outcomes and Benefits, Vol. 5, No. 1, pp. 45-58Publication Date: Fall 2008
Study investigated the impact of Picture Communication Symbols (PCS) on sight word recognition by young children identified as “at risk” for academic and social-behavior difficulties. PCS such as those found in Boardmaker are often used in classrooms to develop classroom instructional materials and teach emergent literacy skills. Participants were 31 students aged 4 to 5 years attending pre-school classrooms for children “at risk.” Ten pre-primer and 10 primer words from the Dolch List, a list of 220 words representing a third-grade reading level, were chosen for the study. Students were divided into a 23-member intervention group and an 8-member control group. During interactive games, a set of stimuli cards consisting of Dolch words with corresponding pictures created from Boardmaker was presented to the intervention group, while cards with Dolch words only were presented to the control group. Assessments made at 4 points during the study indicated that children in the control group learned sight words faster under similar conditions of activities and time. Interactive games proved effective with children; they learned quickly over a relatively short time exposure. In the last assessment, the intervention group performed better than the control group, indicating that pictures assisted young children to identify and learn new words in a relatively short period of time.
Assistive Products Discussed: BOARDMAKER (INTERNATIONAL)
Published by: Special Education Assistive Technology Center, Illinois State University (Website:http://www.seat.ilstu.org/)
Assistive Technology Industry Association (Web Site: http://www.atia.org. )
Link to text: http://www.atia.org/files/public/ATOBV5N1.pdf
