Comparison of Spelling Abilities in Reading Disabled and Nondisabled Children

Authors

  • Lynn K. Hoff

Abstract

This research was designedto investigate the abilities ofnondisabledandreading disabled children, who were achieving at similar levels in reading, to acquire and apply knowledge of orthographic patterns for spelling. Sixty-four children reading at fourth and sixth grade levels were studied. Tasks designed to assess levels ofrule learning for spelling were administered. The results reflect differential abilities among groups to acquire, apply, and generalize predictable elements of the orthography. Nondisabled subjects demonstrated greater ability at all levels of rule learning than reading disabledsubjects achieving at similar levels. It was concluded that nondisabled children develop awareness of the conditional occurrence of graphemic elements and acquire and apply spelling patterns more efficiently than reading disabled children.

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Section

Articles