Previous studies of visually symptomatic dyslexics have found that their contrast thresholds for pattern discrimination are the same as non-dyslexics. However, when noise is added to the stimuli, contrast thresholds rise markedly in dyslexics compared with non-dyslexics. This result could be due to impaired noise exclusion in dyslexics. Some…

The purpose of this study was to compare three variables in terms of how well they predict orthographic functioning. To this end, the authors examined the relative contributions of rapid automatic naming, exposure to print, and visual processing to a composite measure of orthographic functioning in a heterogeneous group of 8- to 12-year-old…

The purpose of this study was to examine predictors of music sight-reading ability. The authors hypothesized that speed and accuracy of music sight-reading would be predicted by a combination of aural pattern discrimination, spatial-temporal reasoning, and technical proficiency. Participants (N = 70) were wind players in concert bands at a…

Sixty children, prereaders and readers aged 4-6 years, matched color, shape, and letter features in pairs of cartoons. Older children and those able to read performed better, confirming the hypothesis that the development of some visual skills is a by-product of learning to read. (Author/SJL)

This study was designed to investigate the importance of spatial encoding in reading, with particular emphasis on visuo-spatial encoding mechanisms. Thirty one school children participated in the first study in which they were measured on their ability to solve a centrally presented spatial encoding task, as well as their sensitivity to the…

This study examined relationships among lens color, visual grating, visual detection task performance, and peripheral retinal brightness thresholds among four adults and four children with reading disabilities and age-matched controls. Subjects with reading disabilities displayed significantly lower contrast sensitivity when tested with sine-wave…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the visual discrimination abilities of regular class children with varying levels of word recognition skill and of special class children. Word recognition and intelligence scores were obtained on 90 primary-aged children in regular classes and on seven children in a special class. The subjects were…

This study investigated the relation between field independence/field dependence (FI/FD) and reading success. One hundred kindergarten children from a predominantly white, middle-class community were administered a Portable Rod and Frame Test as a measure of cognitive style. The upper and lower 27% were identified and designated Field Dependent…

Sixty-four preschool children were individually trained on a task requiring them to recognize an isolated phoneme in a word context. A learning set design encompassing 192 trials over eight days was employed. The major factors investigated were: the presence of a redundant visual cue; phoneme type (stop vs. continuant); phoneme position (initial…

Two studies are described in which match-to-sample tasks were presented to a total of 50 children (seven to eight years old), both poor readers and good readers. (Author/BD)

Examines and rejects two traditional assumptions about fluent reading: that identification of letters is necessary to identify words; and that identification of words is necessary to comprehend. Proposes that identification and comprehension are two separate tasks and that a reader comprehends because he reads for meaning in the first place. (MB)

Various eye problems and the effects they can have on children's reading abilities are explored in this pamphlet, which is one of a series designed to answer parents' questions about their children's reading development. Topics discussed are the demands on vision made by reading, problems that affect visual acuity (nearsightedness, farsightedness,…