Cognitive factors that affects reading and writting

Cognitive Factors that affects Reading and

Writing Prepared by Dianna Waite-Wilson and

Nickesha Plummer

ReadingCognitive factors tthat affects reading

comprehen-sion

Definition of Reading ComprehensionReading comprehension refers to the ability of

a reader to construct meaning from text.Expected levels of of reading comprehension

vary throughout a reader’s lifespan.When children first learn to read, the

emphasis is on understanding the meaning of words and how they form sentences to communicate simple ideas.

Factors that affects reading Reading Facts Roughly 85% of children diagnosed with

learning difficulties have a primary problem with reading and related language skills.

Reading difficulties are neurodevelopmental in nature.

Neurodevelopmental problems don't go away, but they do not mean that a student (or an adult) cannot learn or progress in school and life.

•Most children with reading difficulties can be taught reading and strategies for success in school.

•When children's reading problems are identified early, they are more likely to learn strategies that will raise their reading to grade level.  

Decoding Difficulties

Decoding refers to the reader’s ability to make sense of letter-sound relationship, in order to quickly recognize familiar words.

Readers who experience difficulty with decoding and recognizing words read at a much slower pace and find it more difficult to comprehend the meaning of reading passages than their peers without decoding difficulties.

signs of decoding difficultiestrouble sounding out words and recognizing

words out of contextconfusion between letters and the sounds

they representslow oral reading rate (reading word-by-word) reading without expressionignoring punctuation while reading

Comprehension DifficultiesComprehension relies on mastery of decoding;

children who struggle to decode find it difficult to understand and remember what has been read. Because their efforts to grasp individual words are so exhausting, they have no resources left for understanding.

Signs of comprehension difficulty: confusion about the meaning of words and

sentencesinability to connect ideas in a passageomission of detailsdifficulty distinguishing significant information

from minor detailslack of concentration during reading

Retention Difficulties

Retention requires both decoding and comprehending what is written. This task relies on high level cognitive skills, including memory and the ability to group and retrieve related ideas.

Signs of retention difficultytrouble remembering or summarizing what is

readdifficulty connecting what is read to prior

knowledgedifficulty applying content of a text to

personal experiences

Writing

Cognitive factors that affects writing

Writing difficulitiesLike all learning problems, difficulties in writing

can be devastating to a child's education and self-esteem. As children progress through school, they are increasingly expected demands what they know about many different subjects through writing. If a child fails to develop certain basic skills, he will be unable to write with the speed and fluency required to excel as these demands increase.

Writing continute;sWriting problems rarely occur in isolation, and

improvements in writing go hand in hand with the development of other non-writing-specific skills. Thus, a problem with the development in one of thes

Attention Problem

Children who struggle with attention may be inattentive and impulsive. An attention problem may manifest itself as:

difficulty getting started on writing assignments

easy distractibility during writing tasksmental fatigue or tiredness while writing

Continuesinconsistent legibility in writinguneven writing tempomany careless errorspoorly planned papers and reports

Spatial Ordering Problem

Children who struggle with spatial ordering have decreased awareness regarding the spatial arrangement of letters, words, or sentences on a page. A spatial ordering problem may manifest itself in a child's writing as:

poor use of lines on the paperorganizational problemsuneven spacing between letters

Sequential Ordering Problem

Children who struggle with sequential ordering have difficulty putting or maintaining letters, processes, or ideas in order. A sequential ordering problem may manifest itself in a child's writing as:

poor letter formationtransposed letters and spelling omissionspoor narrative sequencinglack of transitions

Memory Problem

Because so many writing processes need to be automatic, active working memory is critical. Children may have difficulty recalling spelling, grammar, and punctuation rules, accessing prior knowledge while writing, or organizing ideas. A memory problem may manifest itself in a child's writing as:

poor vocabulary

Cont;many misspelled words

frequent capitalization, punctuation, and grammar errors

Language Problem

Good writing relies on a child's language abilities improving steadily over time. A language problem may manifest itself in a child's writing as:

poor vocabularyawkward phrasing and unconventional grammarinappropriate use of colloquial languagedifficulty with sentence structure and word ordertrouble reading back what is writtendifficulty with word sounds, spelling, and meanings

Higher-Order Cognition Problem

Children who have difficulty with higher-order cognition are often unable to use writing to present a sound argument or convey sophisticated or abstract ideas. A higher-order cognition problem might manifest itself in a child's:

trouble generating ideas or elaborating on them

Cont;difficulty developing and organizing ideas

lack of opinion or sense of audience

difficulty with writing tasks that require creativity and/or critical thinking