HT820 Rachel Currie-Rubin April 14, 2014

How many of you… Are former teachers or administrators? Are interested in going into teaching or administration? Are interested in becoming researchers? Are unsure of your plans after HGSE? Have taught or researched reading?

 Traditional Reading Assessment  Reading Assessment using an MBE framework  Discussion- case a. What are implications of using this framework for instruction? b. What are implications of using this framework for research?

 What are traditional reading assessments, and what do they tell us?  How might reading assessments look different if they are informed by an MBE framework?  What are the implications for instruction or research when we use an MBE framework for assessing reading?

C-A-T Cats are my favorite animal. Cats are similar in anatomy to the other felids with strong flexible bodies, quick reflexes, sharp retractable claws, and teeth adapted to killing small prey. Cats senses fit a crepuscular and predatory ecological niche. Cats can hear sounds too faint or too high in frequency for human ears, such as those made by mice and other small animals. They can see in near darkness. They can see in near darkness. Like most other mammals, cats have poorer color vision and a better sense of smell than humans.

Phonological Processing Phonologica l Awareness Phonologica l Memory Rapid Naming Decoding Fluency Comprehension

Cognitive assessments looking at verbal skills, visual spatial skills, working memory skills, processing speed are also conducted. Cognitive assessments looking at verbal skills, visual spatial skills, working memory skills, processing speed are also conducted. Assessors often try to connect these skills to understand underlying challenges students face. Assessors often try to connect these skills to understand underlying challenges students face.

Alice B. has strong verbal skills, strong visual spatial skills, and strong working memory skills BUT she has relatively slow processing speed. Strong verbal skills  often strong comprehension skills Combination of strong verbal skills and visual spatial skills  often strong decoding and sight word reading Strong working memory  often strong comprehension skills, ability to decode longer words Slow processing  often slow rapid naming, slow reading speed (fluency)

Visual(?) Auditory/visual (?) Articulator y What about memory, processing speed, comprehension? Do all “dyslexic brains” think alike?

-Any one area “responsible” for a component of reading may be responsible for reading difficulty OR -Connections among areas could be responsible for reading difficulties. There may be patterns among people with reading difficulties BUT reading difficulties can arise from different route causes.

Academic abilities such as reading are complex and multifaceted. Academic abilities such as reading are complex and multifaceted. Multiple reading subskills /cognitive skills are critical for reading Multiple reading subskills /cognitive skills are critical for reading Reading can break down because of deficits in any one area or because of weaknesses in multiple areas. Reading can break down because of deficits in any one area or because of weaknesses in multiple areas. The relationship between cognitive skills and academic abilities changes as children develop. The relationship between cognitive skills and academic abilities changes as children develop.

The ability to do mental work with information in short-term memory. The ability to do mental work with information in short-term memory.

Prefrontal Executive Spatial STM (sequence) Verbal STM (phonology) Visual STM (symbol identification)

What is going on with…  Prefrontal executive functions  Spatial and verbal short-term memory 3) Functional connection between executive and short-term memory in different areas

Visuo- spatial Verbal Prefrontal

Assessment can’t just look at Phonological processing DecodingFluencyComprehension

Visual skills Verbal Skills Processing Speed Working Memory

Visuo- spatial Verbal Prefrontal

1 ) P REFRONTAL EXECUTIVE FUNCTIONS C OGNITIVE F LEXIBILITY, E XECUTIVE F UNCTION, N ON -V ERBAL R EASONING, W ORKING M EMORY. C OGNITIVE F LEXIBILITY, E XECUTIVE F UNCTION, N ON -V ERBAL R EASONING, W ORKING M EMORY. 2) S HORT - TERM MEMORY V ERBAL SHORT - TERM MEMORY, V ISUO - SPATIAL SHORT TERM MEMORY V ERBAL SHORT - TERM MEMORY, V ISUO - SPATIAL SHORT TERM MEMORY 3) C ONNECTION BETWEEN EXECUTIVE AND SHORT - TERM MEMORY P ROCESSING S PEED, W ORKING M EMORY. P ROCESSING S PEED, W ORKING M EMORY.

If we know “where” the difficulty in reading arises, what are the implications for instruction? If we know “where” the difficulty in reading arises, what are the implications for instruction? If we know “where” the difficulty in reading arises, what are the implications for research? If we know “where” the difficulty in reading arises, what are the implications for research?

 Can you work on these subskills (i.e., verbal working memory) or must you work on the “larger” skill (i.e., the reading skill)?  If we find that students have difficulty in some but not all areas implicated in reading, what does that mean about a single diagnostic label? Do labels make sense? Why or why not?  How are these same subskills (verbal working memory, visuo-spatial working memory etc.) implicated in other subject areas? If we find that students with reading difficulties struggle with these underlying cognitive skills, can we say that a child has a “reading disability” or a “nonverbal learning disability”? How could thinking from a cognitive framework change our understanding of disability?

 What are traditional reading assessments, and what do they tell us?  How might reading assessments look different if they are informed by an MBE framework?  What are the implications for instruction or research when we use an MBE framework for assessing reading?