The lexical quality hypothesis proposes that the quality of phonological, orthographic, and semantic representations impacts reading comprehension. In Study 1, we evaluated the contributions of lexical quality to reading comprehension in 97 deaf and 98 hearing adults matched for reading ability. While phonological awareness was a strong predictor for hearing readers, for deaf readers, orthographic precision and semantic knowledge, not phonology, predicted reading comprehension (assessed by two different tests). For deaf readers, the architecture of the reading system adapts by shifting reliance from (coarse-grained) phonological representations to high-quality orthographic and semantic representations. In Study 2, we examined the contribution of American Sign Language (ASL) variables to reading comprehension in 83 deaf adults. Fingerspelling (FS) and ASL comprehension skills predicted reading comprehension. We suggest that FS might reinforce orthographic-to-semantic mappings and that sign language comprehension may serve as a linguistic basis for the development of skilled reading in deaf signers.
A common goal of Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITS) is to provide learning environments that adapt to the varying abilities and characteristics of users. This type of adaptivity is possible only if the ITS has information that characterizes the learning behaviors of its users and can adjust its pedagogy accordingly. This study investigated an intelligent tutoring system with computer agents (
- PAR ID:
- 10286838
- Publisher / Repository:
- Springer Science + Business Media
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- International Journal of Artificial Intelligence in Education
- Volume:
- 32
- Issue:
- 2
- ISSN:
- 1560-4292
- Format(s):
- Medium: X Size: p. 297-322
- Size(s):
- p. 297-322
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
More Like this
-
more » « less
Abstract -
Literacy assessment is essential for effective literacy instruction and training. However, traditional paper-based literacy assessments are typically decontextualized and may cause stress and anxiety for test takers. In contrast, serious games and game environments allow for the assessment of literacy in more authentic and engaging ways, which has some potential to increase the assessment’s validity and reliability. The primary objective of this study is to examine the feasibility of a novel approach for stealthily assessing literacy skills using games in an intelligent tutoring system (ITS) designed for reading comprehension strategy training. We investigated the degree to which learners’ game performance and enjoyment predicted their scores on standardized reading tests. Amazon Mechanical Turk participants (n = 211) played three games in iSTART and self-reported their level of game enjoyment after each game. Participants also completed the Gates–MacGinitie Reading Test (GMRT), which includes vocabulary knowledge and reading comprehension measures. The results indicated that participants’ performance in each game as well as the combined performance across all three games predicted their literacy skills. However, the relations between game enjoyment and literacy skills varied across games. These findings suggest the potential of leveraging serious games to assess students’ literacy skills and improve the adaptivity of game-based learning environments.more » « less
-
more » « less
Little is known about how information to the left of fixation impacts reading and how it may help to integrate what has been read into the context of the sentence. To better understand the role of this leftward information and how it may be beneficial during reading, we compared the sizes of the leftward span for reading-matched deaf signers ( n = 32) and hearing adults ( n = 40) using a gaze-contingent moving window paradigm with windows of 1, 4, 7, 10, and 13 characters to the left, as well as a no-window condition. All deaf participants were prelingually and profoundly deaf, used American Sign Language (ASL) as a primary means of communication, and were exposed to ASL before age eight. Analysis of reading rates indicated that deaf readers had a leftward span of 10 characters, compared to four characters for hearing readers, and the size of the span was positively related to reading comprehension ability for deaf but not hearing readers. These findings suggest that deaf readers may engage in continued word processing of information obtained to the left of fixation, making reading more efficient, and showing a qualitatively different reading process than hearing readers.
-
In this study, the authors used the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998–99 to examine the instructional time allocation and instructional practices in eighth-grade English language arts classes for struggling readers, as measured by track level. The authors also analyze the titles and text complexity of the last three books assigned to students. The authors found that track level continues to be a significant predictor of what happens instructionally in the classroom. Struggling readers placed in low-track classes spent a larger portion of class time on skills and strategy instruction, completing worksheets, watching videos, and reading aloud than students in grade-level classes. Students in high-track classes spent more time on literature analysis, comprehension instruction, and group projects and were more frequently assigned homework than students in grade-level classes. Although there was considerable overlap in the text complexity and the text titles of books assigned at each track level, students in low-track classes read less challenging texts than students in grade-level or above-grade-level classes. Regression models controlling for a variety of student, teacher, and school variables, including student achievement, show that these adjustments in class time allocation, instructional practices, and text complexity go above and beyond what would be expected based on student achievement alone.more » « less
-
This experience report describes the use of frequent, timed coding tests in a project-intensive software engineering course in which students first learn full-stack web development using Ruby on Rails and then apply their skills in a team project. The goal of the skills tests was twofold: (1) to help motivate students to engage in distributed practice and, thus, gain adequate coding skills to be an effective team member during the team project and (2) to accurately assess whether students had acquired the requisite skills and, thereby, catch deficiencies early, while there was still time to address them. Regarding the first goal, although several students indicated that the tests motivated them to engage in substantial practice coding, it was ultimately inconclusive as to the extent of the tests' impact on students' distributed practice behavior and on their preparation for the project. Regarding the second goal, the skills testing approach was indeed considerably more effective than graded homework assignments for assessing coding skill and detecting struggling students early. Lessons learned from our experiences included that students had significant concerns about the strict time limit on the tests, that the tests caused a spike in mid-semester withdrawals from the course that disproportionately impacted students from underrepresented groups, and that detecting struggling students was one thing, but effectively helping them catch up was a whole other challenge.more » « less
