Benchmarking oral reading fluency in the early grades in Nguni languages

To prevent children from falling behind in the developmental sequence of reading, a shared vision of what reading success looks like is required. This paper provides the first benchmarks for early grade oral reading fluency that are necessary (albeit not sufficient) to read for meaning in three Nguni languages – isiZulu, isiXhosa and Siswati - belonging to the Southern Bantu family of African languages. In contrast with previous benchmarking methodologies, our approach is informed by a non-parametric analysis of longitudinal early grade reading assessment (EGRA) data, guided by reading development theory. The EGRA-type data used for this analysis is the largest compilation of data on early grade fluency in these languages, with comparative assessments for nearly 14,200 children. Analysing empirical regularities and reading trajectories, we identify a lower fluency threshold of 20 correct words per minute (cwpm) and an upper fluency benchmark of 35 cwpm for the early grades. These benchmarks contribute to guiding curriculum policy, provide specificity to improve tracking of literacy progress and address gaps in the literature on reading in African languages.     

Math Fluency: Accuracy Versus Speed in Preoperational and Concrete Operational First and Second Grade Children

Cognitive abilities as well as math fluency play an important role in mathematical skills. Understanding the relationship between cognitive abilities and mathematical skills is imperative to teaching effective arithmetic skills. The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between cognitive ability and math fluency with 38 first and second grade elementary aged children. Results demonstrate that preoperational children lacked the speed of concrete operational children but achieved comparable levels of accuracy when completing arithmetic problems.     

“语言输入说”对提高我国英语教师口语的意义

我国英语教学的基本国情是：中国人在中国学英语和中国人教英语,缺乏英语语言的真实情景,英语学习仍以课堂教学为主。根据语言学家克拉申的“语言输入说”的理论,一方面,教师在课堂上的英语口语输入对学生至关重要;另一方面,我国的英语教师本身也必须同时是英语学习者,需要大量的英语语言输入,提高自己口语的准确性和流利性,保证在课堂上给学生提供优质的语言输入。     

任务构想对口语表达流利性、准确性及复杂性的影响

任务构想可以弥补信息加工的不足,提高学习者的语言输出质量。相关理论及前人研究显示,任务前构想对语言复杂性和流利性有积极影响,在线构想对语言的准确性有积极影响。这一结论对于英语教学尤其是口语教学有一定的启发意义。     

大学生创造性思维现状研究

运用心理测验方法,从创造性思维,思维流畅性、变通性和独特性,言语和图形三个维度,对212名大学生创造性思维的发展现状及其原因进行研究。了解大学生创造性思维发展状况及其影响因素,是进一步改进育人工作的一个基础平台,有其现实意义。     

影响英语口语流利性因素分析及教学建议

随着我国对外开放的不断扩大,人们"面对面"的国际交流机会不断增加。言语交际能力的培养在外语教学中受到前所未有的重视。其中,口语的流利性成为培养学生言语交际能力的基本要求之一。通过对比国内外英语口语流利性的不同研究,探讨影响学习者口语流利性的因素,并力图在此基础上为英语口语流利性的培养提供教学建议。     

Prosody in the reading of children with specific language impairment / La prosodia en la lectura de niños con trastorno específico del lenguaje

Expressive reading is considered one of the subprocesses involved in reading fluency, and good readers show greater changes in tone and fewer unnecessary pauses than bad ones. Given the high frequency of reading difficulties in specific language impairment (SLI), there may be certain differences in the use of prosody among children with SLI. The purpose of this study was to research whether prosody in the reading of children with Spanish SLI differs from that in the reading of typical readers. To do so, 44 children (SLI and control) read aloud a text which contained declarative, interrogative and exclamatory sentences. Different prosodic parameters referring to length, tone and intensity were measured. The results showed that the children with SLI read slower, commit more errors and make more inappropriate pauses. Furthermore, fewer pitch variations were found in the interrogative sentence and in the final features of the sentence. These results confirm the relationship between decoding and prosody; therefore, interventions with these children should bear in mind the practice of expressive reading while learning reading fluency.     

Oral reading fluency as a screening tool with English learners: A systematic review

Students learning to read in more than one language are a growing population in schools. Early screening and identification of reading difficulties may lead to better outcomes for all students. Oral reading fluency (ORF) is one tool shown to be both a reliable measure of reading and an accurate method to identify students at risk for poor reading outcomes. This study synthesized available validity evidence for ORF with biliterates. All included studies (n = 31) were conducted with English language learners in grades K–8. Results suggested that although ORF is correlated with reading outcomes, the accuracy of ORF to identify English learners at risk of poor reading outcomes does not meet criteria. The strength of validity evidence differed by language proficiency of participants. Finally, the quality of the reviewed studies was low in critical areas.