Early identification of children with reading and learning problems seems imperative. By using early identification predictors, a high risk group of children with possible reading problems could be located. This would facilitate placement and appropriate educational strategies for this group of children. By proper placement and planning, educators then would be able to set up remedial and/or preventive programs for these children before the pattern of unsuccessful attempts and improper training becomes irreversible. This study was designed to determine if verbal sequencing ability was a valid predictor of reading ability for a group of 31 preschool children. Secondarily, the investigation attempted to determine whether such verbal sequencing ability was predictive of general academic ability for this group of children. Reliability of the Blakeley Verbal Sequencing Ability Tests was determined. Thirty one children who were originally tested for verbal sequencing ability in 1965 when they were five years old were located in the Portland Public Schools. The children. now 13 years old, were administered the Blakeley Verbal Sequencing Ability Tests and the Gilmore Oral Reading Test. Records of school achievement were obtained from each child's cumulative school file. A least squares linear regression equation was used to analyze the data obtained. When the predictive value of the original verbal sequencing score was studied in relation to reading accuracy, reading comprehension, and general academic achievement, results for the total group of 31 children were not promising. Verbal sequencing ability in preschool children, in general was not significantly predictive of reading accuracy, reading comprehension, and school achievement eight years later. Examination of the results obtained on the Blakeley Verbal Sequencing Ability by Blakeley and this investigator suggested that inter-examiner reliability is extremely high. The most significant finding of this study was found through a comparison of the results of the male and female groups. The original sequencing score was a much better predictor of reading ability and school achievement for 'the males. The correlations were higher in all three area: comparing original sequencing ability with reading accuracy, reading comprehension, and school achievement. This trend may indicate that the sequencing test was not discriminative enough for five year old females, due to the advanced rate of physical and neurological development at that age. More significantly, the children used in this follow-up study may not have been representative of the original group tested, due to problems in locating the original subjects.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:pdx.edu/oai:pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu:open_access_etds-2595 |
| Date | 01 January 1973 |
| Creators | Quin, Paul Elmer |
| Publisher | PDXScholar |
| Source Sets | Portland State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | Dissertations and Theses |
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