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There is a PowerPoint file available to accompany this presentation. The BDA Conference 2001 CD-ROM contains 61 PowerPoint files. For details of how to obtain the CD-ROM, please contact the BDA.
Thursday stream 6 Session 09.00 - 11.10 Length 25 minutes
Ken Spencer and M. Xing
(1) Centre for Educational Studies, The Institute for Learning, Hull University, UK. k.a.spencer@educ.hull.ac.uk
Abstract
Orthographic transparency is increasingly being recognised as an important factor in determining the manifestation of dyslexic tendencies in individuals. Recent evidence has shown that normal English-speaking children have reading deficits in the range associated with same age dyslexic German-speaking children, and English orthography has been identified as a contributing factor. Spencer (1999) has proposed a predictive model for English children's spelling deficits, based on orthographic features. Two main factors have been identified: consistency of sound representation and inclusion of redundant letters in English words. Using new data for reading and spelling, a unified model will be discussed which incorporates measures of depth of orthographic transparency in a range of European langauages and relates these to recent positron emission tomography (PET) research.. Implications for the relative frequency and severity of dyslexia in both alphabetic and non-alphabetic languages, such as Chinese, will be considered in the light of such studies. K.A. Spencer (1999) Predicting Word-spelling Difficulty in 7- to 11-year-olds, Journal of Research in Reading, 22(3) 283-292. K.A. Spencer (in press) Is English a dyslexic language?, Dyslexia, 2000.
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