Predictive effect of rapid alternating stimuli naming for learning to read: longitudinal study

Abstract

Reading and writing are important skills for academic achievement of school-age children, but they are complex skills that require cognitive development of other important skills. Among them are executive functions and alternating stimuli naming. Executive functions are a set of cognitive abilities such as inhibitory control, attention, working memory, cognitive flexibility, among others, that aim to aid in the processing and execution of higher activities, requiring intentional behavior. Alternating stimuli naming is the ability to name, as quickly as possible, visually presented alternated stimuli integrating them with their verbal and phonological representations. Both alternating stimuli naming and executive functions are important for reading and writing because they integrate visual and linguistic information and automatic retrieval of linguistic information from memory while children learn to read. In this way, this project aim is to analyze the predictive effect of executive functions and alternating stimuli naming in relation to reading and writing in Brazilian Portuguese. In this study, 80 children from private schools that are already being accompanied will participate. The children already have assessments made in 2016 (enrolled in the 1st year of Elementary School I) and 2017 (2nd year). Thus, in 2018 and 2019 these children will be, respectively, in the 3rd and 4th year of Elementary Education I and will be evaluated again. Instruments that assess automatic naming, alternating stimuli naming, executive functions (inhibitory control, working memory and cognitive flexibility), intelligence, phonological awareness, reading and writing will be used. Descriptive analyzes, analysis of comparisons, multivariate ANOVA, between the groups in relation to gender and group will be performed. Correlation analysis will be performed to verify the correlations between the variables and better target the regression analyzes to be conducted later. Finally, a factorial analysis and structural equation model will be performed to understand the longitudinal data. From this, results are expected to see how these skills develop with the progression of school grades and literacy.