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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.

Keynote

Wednesday stream K Session 17.45 - 18.30 Length 25 minutes

Markers for effective intervention: What rate of growth in reading can we expect from optimal intervention conditions?

Joe Torgesen

Florida State University, USA torgesen@darwin.psy.fsu.edu

Abstract

In order to evaluate the effectiveness of existing intervention efforts with dyslexic children, it is helpful to examine growth rates obtained under optimal intervention conditions. There have now been enough intensive preventive and remedial studies conducted to form a beginning estimate of acceptable rates of progress for both younger and older children with developmental dyslexia. While there are significant individual differences in response to intervention, average rates of growth reported in intervention studies are substantially above those usually obtained in school-based interventions. Estimates of reasonable growth rates for phonemic decoding skills, word reading accuracy and fluency, and reading comprehension will be provided. Characteristics of effective interventions vs. less effective interventions will also be discussed.