title: Effects of metalinguistic awareness on reading comprehension and the mediator role of reading fluency from grades 2 to 4.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study examined the contribution of metalinguistic awareness including morphological awareness, phonological awareness and orthographical awareness to reading comprehension, and the role of reading fluency as a mediator of the effects of metalinguistic awareness on reading comprehension from grades 2 to 4.
  
  
  METHODS
  Four hundred and fifteen elementary students in China mainland were administered a test battery that included measures of morphological awareness, phonological awareness, orthographical awareness, reading fluency, reading comprehension and IQ. Hierarchical regression and structural equation models (SEM) were used to analyze the data.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Morphological awareness uniquely explained 9%, 10% and 13% variance of reading comprehension respectively from grade 2 to grade 4, however, phonological awareness and orthographical awareness did not contribute to reading comprehension; Reading fluency partially mediated the effect of morphological awareness on reading comprehension in grades 2-4.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These findings indicated that reading fluency and morphological awareness should be facilitated in the Chinese instruction. Morphological awareness played an important role in Chinese reading and affected reading comprehension in grades 2 to 4; Reading fluency was a significant link between morphological awareness and reading comprehension in grades 2-4.
authors: School of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China; School of Teachers Education, Shanxi Normal University, Linfen, China.
authors: Liping
authors: L
authors: Li
authors: School of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China.
authors: Xinchun
authors: X
authors: Wu
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D001364:Awareness / Q000502:physiology*; D002648:Child; D002657:Child Development / Q000502:physiology*; D002681:China; D032882:Comprehension / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007804:Language Development; D007807:Language Tests; D008297:Male; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D010700:Phonetics; D011932:Reading; D013334:Students; D014956:Writing