Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-42gr6 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-23T19:34:28.063Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Impact of early home language exposure on phonological and orthographic skills and their contributions to English literacy abilities in English monolingual and Chinese–English bilingual adults

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 May 2016

STEPHANIE H. M. YEONG ,
JANET FLETCHER  and
DONNA M. BAYLISS
STEPHANIE H. M. YEONG*
Affiliation:
University of Western Australia
JANET FLETCHER
Affiliation:
University of Western Australia
DONNA M. BAYLISS
Affiliation:
University of Western Australia
*
ADDRESS FOR CORRESPONENCE Stephanie H. M. Yeong, Child Study Centre (M008), School of Psychology, University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley WA 6009, Australia. E-mail: katz2282@gmail.com
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Relatively little is known about the importance of phonological and orthographic processing skills for reading and spelling in monolingual and bilingual adults. We compared these underlying skills, using a series of phonological and orthographic tasks, in English monolingual (n = 28), English first language and Chinese second language bilingual (n = 21), and Chinese first language and English second language bilingual adults (n = 22) who were equally proficient in reading and spelling English, and examined the contributions of these skills to English word reading and spelling for each group. The results showed group differences in phonological processing, with English monolingual adults having better phonological skills than both groups of bilingual adults. No significant group differences were found for orthographic processing. Regression analyses showed phonological skills were a unique predictor of English word reading for both bilingual groups, but not for the English monolingual group. Orthographic skills were a significant predictor of English word spelling, but only for the English monolingual adults. This suggests there may be a long-lasting influence of being exposed to two contrasting languages on skills underlying literacy in bilingual individuals.

Type
Articles
Information
Applied Psycholinguistics , Volume 38 , Issue 1 , January 2017 , pp. 181 - 210
Check for updates
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2016 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Aguinis, H. (2004). Regression analysis for categorical moderators. New York: Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Aiken, L. S., & West, S. G. (1991). Multiple regression: Testing and interpreting interactions. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.Google Scholar
Bialystok, E., & Craik, F. I. M. (2010). Cognitive and linguistic processing in the bilingual mind. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 19, 19–23.Google Scholar
Bialystok, E., Luk, G., Peets, K. F., & Yang, S. (2010). Receptive vocabulary differences in monolingual and bilingual children. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 13, 525–531.Google Scholar
Bialystok, E., McBride-Chang, C., & Luk, G. (2005). Bilingualism, language proficiency, and learning to read in two writing systems. Journal of Educational Psychology, 97, 580–590.Google Scholar
Bosman, A. M. T., & Van Orden, G. C. (1997). Why spelling is more difficult than reading. In Perfetti, C. A., Rieben, L., & Fayol, M. (Eds.), Learning to spell: Research, theory, and practice across languages (pp. 173–194). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Bradley, L., & Bryant, P. E. (1983). Categorising sounds and learning to read: A causal connection. Nature, 301, 419–421.Google Scholar
Caravolas, M., & Bruck, M. (1993). The effect of oral and written language input on children's phonological awareness: A cross-linguistic study. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 55, 1–30.Google Scholar
Caravolas, M., Hulme, C., & Snowling, M. J. (2001). The foundations of spelling ability: Evidence from a 3-year longitudinal study. Journal of Memory and Language, 45, 751–774.Google Scholar
Carlisle, J. F. (2003). Morphology matters in learning to read: A commentary. Reading Psychology, 24, 291–322.Google Scholar
Chen, X., Xu, F., Nguyen, T.-K., Hong, G., & Wang, Y. (2010). Effects of cross-language transfer on first-language phonological awareness and literacy skills in Chinese children receiving English instruction. Journal of Educational Psychology, 102, 712–728.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cheung, H., Chen, H.-C., Lai, C. Y., Wong, O. C., & Hills, M. (2001). The development of phonological awareness: Effects of spoken language experience and orthography. Cognition, 81, 227–241.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Chiappe, P., Glaeser, B., & Ferko, D. (2007). Speech perception, vocabulary, and the development of reading skills in English among Korean- and English-speaking children. Journal of Educational Psychology, 99, 154–166.Google Scholar
Chiappe, P., Siegel, L. S., & Wade-Woolley, L. (2002). Linguistic diversity and the development of reading skills: A longitudinal study. Scientific Studies of Reading, 6, 369–400.Google Scholar
Conrad, N. J., Harris, N., & Williams, J. (2013). Individual differences in children's literacy development: The contribution of orthographic knowledge. Reading and Writing, 26, 1223–1239.Google Scholar
Cunningham, A. E., Perry, K. E., & Stanovich, K. E. (2001). Converging evidence for the concept of orthographic processing. Reading and Writing, 14, 549–568.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
de Jong, P. F., & van der Leij, A. (2003). Developmental changes in the manifestation of a phonological deficit in dyslexic children learning to read a regular orthography. Journal of Educational Psychology, 95, 22–40.Google Scholar
Dunn, L. M., & Dunn, D. M. (2007). Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (4th ed.). Minneapolis, MN: NCS Pearson.Google Scholar
Durgunoglu, A. Y., & Oney, B. (1999). A cross-linguistic comparison of phonological awareness and word recognition. Reading and Writing, 11, 281–299.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ehri, L. C. (1995). Phases of development in learning to read words by sight. Journal of Research in Reading, 18, 116–125.Google Scholar
Ehri, L. C. (1997). Learning to read and learning to spell are one and the same, almost. In Perfetti, C. A., Rieben, L., & Fayol, M. (Eds.), Learning to spell: Research, theory, and practice across languages (pp. 237–269). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Ehri, L. C. (2005). Learning to read words: Theory, findings, and issues. Scientific Studies of Reading, 9, 167–188.Google Scholar
Figueredo, L. (2006). Using the known to chart the unknown: A review of first-language influence on the development of English-as-a-second language spelling skill. Reading and Writing, 19, 873–905.Google Scholar
Galambos, S., & Goldin-Meadow, S. (1990). The effects of learning two languages on levels of metalinguistic awareness. Cognition, 34, 1–56.Google Scholar
Geva, E., & Zadeh, Z. Y. (2006). Reading efficiency in native English-speaking and English-as-a-second-language children: The role of oral proficiency and underlying cognitive-linguistic processes. Scientific Studies of Reading, 10, 31–58.Google Scholar
Gillon, G. T. (2004). Phonological awareness: From research to practice. New York: Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Goswami, U. (2000). Phonological representations, reading development and dyslexia: Towards a cross-linguistic theoretical framework. Dyslexia, 6, 133–151.Google Scholar
Gottardo, A., Yan, B., Siegel, L. S., & Wade-Woolley, L. (2001). Factors related to English reading performance in children with Chinese as a first language: More evidence of cross-language transfer of phonological processing. Journal of Educational Psychology, 93, 530–542.Google Scholar
Hagiliassis, N., Pratt, C., & Johnston, M. (2006). Orthographic and phonological processes in reading. Reading and Writing, 19, 235–263.Google Scholar
Hatcher, P. J., Hulme, C., & Snowling, M. J. (2004). Explicit phoneme training combined with phonic reading instruction helps young children at risk of reading failure. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 45, 338–358.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Haynes, M., & Carr, T. H. (1990). Writing system background and second language reading: A component skills analysis of English reading by native speaking-readers of Chinese. In Carr, T. H. & Levy, B. A. (Eds.), Reading and its development: Component skills approaches (pp. 375–421). San Diego, CA: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Holm, A., & Dodd, B. (1996). The effect of first written language on the acquisition of English literacy. Cognition, 59, 119–147.Google Scholar
Hua, Z. (2002). Phonological development in specific contexts: Studies of Chinese-speaking children. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jackson, N., Lu, W.-H., & Ju, D. (1994). Reading Chinese and reading English: Similarities, differences, and second-language reading. In Berninger, V. (Ed.), The varieties of orthographic knowledge: Vol. 1. Theoretical and developmental issues (pp. 73–109). Dordrecht: Kluwer Academic.Google Scholar
Jongejan, W., Verhoeven, L., & Siegel, L. S. (2007). Predictors of reading and spelling abilities in first- and second-language learners. Journal of Educational Psychology, 99, 835–851.Google Scholar
Kaufman, A. S., & Kaufman, N. L. (2004). Kaufman Brief Intelligence Test (2nd ed.). Bloomington, MN: Pearson.Google Scholar
Leong, C. K., Tan, L. H., Cheng, P. W., & Hau, K. T. (2005). Learning to read and spell English words by Chinese students. Scientific Studies of Reading, 9, 63–84.Google Scholar
Lesaux, N. K., Rupp, A. A., & Siegel, L. S. (2007). Growth in reading skills of children from diverse linguistic backgrounds: Findings from a 5-year longitudinal study. Journal of Educational Psychology, 99, 821–834.Google Scholar
Li, D. (1993). A study of Chinese characters. Beijing: Peking University Press.Google Scholar
Li, P., Sepanski, S., & Zhao, X. (2006). Language history questionnaire: A web-based interface for bilingual research. Behavior Research Methods, 38, 202–210.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lundberg, I., Frost, J., & Petersen, O.-P. (1988). Effects of an extensive program for stimulating phonological awareness in preschool children. Reading Research Quarterly, 23, 263–284.Google Scholar
Manis, F. R., Custodio, R., & Szeszulski, P. A. (1993). Development of phonological and orthographic skill: A 2-year longitudinal study of dyslexic children. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 56, 64–86.Google Scholar
Manis, F. R., Seidenberg, M. S., Doi, L. M., McBride-Chang, C., & Petersen, A. (1996). On the bases of two subtypes of developmental dyslexia. Cognition, 58, 157–195.Google Scholar
McBride-Chang, C., Bialystok, E., Chong, K. K. Y., & Li, Y. (2004). Levels of phonological awareness in three cultures. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 89, 93–111.Google Scholar
McBride-Chang, C., & Chen, H.-C. (2003). Reading development in Chinese children. Westport, CT: Praeger.Google Scholar
McBride-Chang, C., & Kail, R. V. (2002). Cross-cultural similarities in the predictors of reading acquisition. Child Development, 73, 1392–1407.Google Scholar
Muter, V., & Snowling, M. (1998). Concurrent and longitudinal predictors of reading: The role of metalinguistic and short-term memory skills. Reading Research Quarterly, 33, 320–337.Google Scholar
Nagy, W., Berninger, V. W., & Abbott, R. D. (2006). Contributions of morphology beyond phonology to literacy outcomes of upper elementary and middle-school students. Journal of Educational Psychology, 98, 134–147.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nelson, J., Liu, Y., Fiez, J., & Perfetti, C. A. (2005). Learning to read Chinese as a second language recruits Chinese-specific visual word form areas. Paper presented at the 12th annual meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Reading, Toronto.Google Scholar
Nguyen-Hoan, M., & Taft, M. (2010). The impact of a subordinate L1 on L2 auditory processing in adult bilinguals. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 13, 217–230.Google Scholar
Olson, R., Forsberg, H., Wise, B., & Rack, J. (1994). Measurement of word recognition, orthographic and phonological skills. In Reid, G. R. (Ed.), Frames of reference for the assessment of learning disabilities: New views on measurement issues (pp. 243–268). Sydney, Australia: Brooks.Google Scholar
Ouellette, G. P., & Senechal, M. (2008). A window into early literacy: Exploring the cognitive and linguistic underpinnings of invented spelling. Scientific Studies of Reading, 12, 195–219.Google Scholar
Perfetti, C. A., & Dunlap, S. (2008). Learning to read: General principles and writing system variations. In Koda, K. & Zehler, A. (Eds.), Learning to read across languages(pp. 13–38). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Poulin-Dubois, D., Blaye, A., Coutya, J., & Bialystok, E. (2011). The effects of bilingualism on toddlers’ executive functioning. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 108, 567–579.Google Scholar
Rack, J., Hulme, C., Snowling, M., & Wightman, J. (1994). The role of phonology in young children learning to read words: The direct-mapping hypothesis. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 57, 42–71.Google Scholar
Rayner, K., Foorman, B. R., Perfetti, C. A., Pesetsky, D., & Seidenberg, M. (2001). How psychological science informs the teaching of reading. Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 2, 31–74.Google Scholar
Rickard Liow, S. J., & Poon, K.-L. K. (1998). Phonological awareness in multilingual Chinese speaking children. Applied Psycholinguistics, 19, 339–362.Google Scholar
Roman, A. A., Kirby, J. R., Parrila, R. K., Wade-Woolley, L., & Deacon, S. H. (2009). Toward a comprehensive view of the skills involved in word reading in Grades 4, 6 and 8. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 102, 96–113.Google Scholar
San Francisco, A. R., Mo, E., Carlo, M., August, D., & Snow, C. (2006). The influences of language of literacy instruction and vocabulary on spelling of Spanish English bilinguals. Reading and Writing, 19, 627–642.Google Scholar
Seymour, P. H. K., Aro, M., & Erskine, J. M. (2003). Foundation literacy acquisition in European orthographies. British Journal of Psychology, 94, 143–174.Google Scholar
Share, D. L. (2008). On the Anglocentricities of current reading research and practice: The perils of overreliance on an “outlier” orthography. Psychological Bulletin, 134, 584–615.Google Scholar
Siegel, L. S., Share, D., & Geva, E. (1995). Evidence for superior orthographic skills in dyslexics. Psychological Science, 6, 250–254.Google Scholar
Siok, W. T., & Fletcher, P. (2001). The role of phonological awareness and visual orthographic skills in Chinese reading acquisition. Developmental Psychology, 37, 886–899.Google Scholar
Sloboda, J. (1980). Visual imagery and individual differences in spelling. In Frith, U. (Ed.), Cognitive processes in spelling (pp. 231–248). London: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Snowling, M. (2001). Foundations of reading acquisition and dyslexia: Implications for early intervention. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 70, 275–276.Google Scholar
Stanovich, K. E., & West, R. F. (1989). Exposure to print and orthographic processing. Reading Research Quarterly, 24, 402–433.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Swanson, H. L., Trainin, G., Necoechea, D. M., & Hammill, D. D. (2003). Rapid naming, phonological awareness, and reading: A meta-analysis of the correlational evidence. Review of Educational Research, 73, 407–440.Google Scholar
Tong, X., McBride-Chang, C., Shu, H., & Wong, A. M.-Y. (2009). Morphological awareness, orthographic knowledge, and spelling errors: Keys to understanding early Chinese literacy acquisition. Scientific Studies of Reading, 13, 426–452.Google Scholar
Vellutino, F. R., Fletcher, J. M., Snowling, M. J., & Scanlon, D. M. (2004). Specific reading disability (dyslexia): What have we learned in the past four decades? Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 45, 2–40.Google Scholar
Vellutino, F. R., Tunmer, W. E., Jaccard, J. J., & Chen, R. (2007). Components of reading ability: Multivariate evidence for a convergent skills model of reading development. Scientific Studies of Reading, 11, 3–32.Google Scholar
Wagner, R. K., & Torgesen, J. K. (1987). The nature of phonological processing and its causal role in the acquisition of reading skills. Psychological Bulletin, 101, 192–212.Google Scholar
Wagner, R. K., Torgesen, J. K., & Rashotte, C. A. (1999). Comprehensive Test of Phonological Processing. Austin, TX: Pro-Ed. Google Scholar
Wagner, R. K., Torgesen, J. K., Rashotte, C. A., Hecht, S. A., Barker, T. A., Burgess, S. R., et al. (1997). Changing relations between phonological processing abilities and word-level reading as children develop from beginning to skilled readers: A 5-year longitudinal study. Developmental Psychology, 33, 468–479.Google Scholar
Wang, M., & Geva, E. (2003a). Spelling acquisition of novel English phonemes in Chinese children. Reading and Writing, 16, 325–348.Google Scholar
Wang, M., & Geva, E. (2003b). Spelling performance of Chinese children using English as a second language: Lexical and visual–orthographic processes. Applied Psycholinguistics, 24, 1–25.Google Scholar
Wang, M., Koda, K., & Perfetti, C. A. (2003). Alphabetic and nonalphabetic L1 effects in English word identification: A comparison of Korean and Chinese English L2 learners. Cognition, 87, 129–149.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wang, M., Perfetti, C., & Liu, Y. (2005). Chinese–English biliteracy acquisition: Cross-language and writing system transfer. Cognition, 97, 67–88.Google Scholar
Wechsler, D. (2007). Wechsler Individual Achievement Test: Australian adaptation (2nd ed.). Marrickville, Australia: Harcourt.Google Scholar
Yeong, S. H.-M., Fletcher, J., & Bayliss, D. M. (2014). Importance of phonological and orthographic skills for English reading and spelling: A comparison of English monolingual and Mandarin-English bilingual children. Journal of Educational Psychology, 106, 1107–1121.Google Scholar
Yeong, S. H.-M., & Rickard Liow, S. J. (2011). Cognitive-linguistic foundations of early spelling development in bilinguals. Journal of Educational Psychology, 103, 470–488.Google Scholar
Yeong, S. H.-M., & Rickard Liow, S. J. (2012). Development of phonological awareness in English-Mandarin bilinguals: A comparison of English-L1 and Mandarin-L1 kindergarten children. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 112, 111–126.Google Scholar
Yeung, P.-S., Ho, C. S.-H., Chik, P. P.-M., Lo, L.-Y., Luan, H., Chan, D. W.-O., et al. (2011). Reading and spelling Chinese among beginning readers: What skills make a difference? Scientific Studies of Reading, 15, 285–313.Google Scholar
Yin, L., Anderson, R. C., & Zhu, J. (2007). Stages in Chinese children's reading of English words. Journal of Educational Psychology, 99, 852–866.Google Scholar
Ziegler, J. C., & Goswami, U. (2005). Reading acquisition, developmental dyslexia, and skilled reading across languages: A psycholinguistic grain size theory. Psychological Bulletin, 131, 3–29.Google Scholar