Project 4- Population level language and literacy screening: An early warning system for word and language related reading disabilities (T4)

The ability to understand the development trajectory of reading disabilities is essential for early preventive models of remediation. Word level reading disabilities (i.e., dyslexia) associated with oral language difficulties are important educational and public health concerns. Previous foundational work has demonstrated the importance of collecting early screening data on both language and literacy skills to make robust predictions of the likelihood that a student will experience difficulty with reading and language risk. Empirical data suggest that combining multiple variables including known early predictors of reading achievement may improve predictive power and have better longitudinal stability. Further, it is possible that the inclusion of contextual community factors may enhance our understanding of early reading difficulty. Specific aim 1 explores different conceptualizations of risk, including early literacy and language predictors, to examine early risk indicators of word level reading disabilities, and ultimately diagnosis of a specific learning disability (SLD). Specific aim 2 incorporates community level contextual factors to the predictors of risk status in addition to the early literacy and language variables. Specific aim 3 will utilize a mixed methods approach to determine describe and quantify educator uptake of the screener data to make child-level instructional decisions. This project has access to population level data and therefore will study, analyze, and report disaggregated results as we work to achieve the three specific aims.