title: The Structure of Oral Language and Reading and Their Relation to Comprehension in Kindergarten through Grade 2.
abstract: This study examined the structure of oral language and reading and their relation to comprehension from a latent variable modeling perspective in Kindergarten, Grade 1, and Grade 2. Participants were students in Kindergarten (n= 218), Grade 1 (n= 372), and Grade 2 (n= 273), attending Title 1 schools. Students were administered phonological awareness, syntax, vocabulary, listening comprehension, and decoding fluency measures in mid-year. Outcome measures included a listening comprehension measure in Kindergarten and a reading comprehension test in Grades1 and 2. In Kindergarten, oral language (consisting of listening comprehension, syntax, and vocabulary) shared variance with phonological awareness in predicting a listening comprehension outcome. However, in Grades 1 and 2, phonological awareness was no longer predictive of reading comprehension when decoding fluency and oral language were included in the model. In Grades 1 and 2, oral language and decoding fluency were significant predictors of reading comprehension.
authors.affiliation: Florida Center for Reading Research, Florida State University.
authors.forename: Barbara R
authors.initials: BR
authors.lastname: Foorman
authors.affiliation: Florida Center for Reading Research, Florida State University.
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Herrera
authors.affiliation: Florida Center for Reading Research, Florida State University.
authors.forename: Yaacov
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Petscher
authors.affiliation: Florida Center for Reading Research, Florida State University.
authors.forename: Alison
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mitchell
authors.affiliation: Florida Center for Reading Research, Florida State University.
authors.forename: Adrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Truckenmiller
keywords: Beginning reading; Literacy; Oral language; Reading comprehension; Structural equation modeling