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Issues in the assessment of reading disabilities in L2 children—beliefs and research evidence †
Author(s) -
Geva Esther
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
dyslexia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.694
H-Index - 51
eISSN - 1099-0909
pISSN - 1076-9242
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1099-0909(200001/03)6:1<13::aid-dys155>3.0.co;2-6
Subject(s) - dyslexia , reading (process) , psychology , reading comprehension , reading disability , developmental psychology , phonological awareness , comprehension , cognitive psychology , linguistics , philosophy
In bilingual and multilingual settings one is constantly challenged by the difficulty of teasing apart phenomena associated with normal second language (L2) reading acquisition from authentic warning signs of reading failure. The bulk of this paper focuses on a critical discussion of a cluster of beliefs that pertain to the issues concerning the diagnosis of reading disability in multilingual and bilingual settings among school children. Findings from available research on reading acquisition among bilingual children and research focusing specifically on the assessment of English‐as‐a‐second language (ESL) children who might be at risk for reading disability are used to evaluate the validity of these beliefs. While some beliefs are supported by research, others are not. In particular, the research suggests that reliable diagnosis of dyslexia among ESL children can be achieved by examining within‐language differences on various indices of basic reading skills such as phonological processing, and by noting a significant gap between oral and reading comprehension. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.