Speech Recognition-Based and Automaticity Programs to Help Students With Severe Reading and Spelling Problems
By Higgins, Eleanor L.; Raskind, Marshall H.; Annals of Dyslexia, Vol. 54, No. 2, pp. 365-392Publication Date: 2004
Study conducted to assess the viability of two programs created by the Frostig Center Research Department to improve reading and spelling skills among students with learning disabilities: (1) a computer speech recognition-based program (SRBP), and (2) a computer- and text-based automaticity program (AP). The SRBP program was created with three critical aspects in mind: (1) bimodal representation of text, (2) choice lists of similar “sounding” and “looking” words, and (3) interest-driving, self-paced activities. The application was created with the purpose of minimizing common problems experienced in speech recognition use, such as inaccuracy and noise interference in classrooms. The AP was created to provide instruction in phonological awareness, automaticity (the rapid, automatic naming of single words), and fluency. Twenty-eight students with learning disabilities ages eight to eighteen participated in the study. The students used each program for 17 weeks, while their performance was compared with that of 16 students in a non-intervention control group. Both the SRBP and AP group demonstrated significant improvements in word recognition and reading comprehension, while neither program yielded significant improvement in spelling performance. The SRBP application was also found to help reduce phonological omissions and improve non-word reading efficiency tasks, while the AP group showed significant differences in all process and reading efficiency measures.
Published by: International Dyslexia Association (Website:http://www.interdys.org/index.jsp)
This publication is included in the library of the National Rehabilitation Information Center (NARIC), accession number R08537
