Phonemic awareness of English second language learners.
Maria Le Roux, Salome Geertsema, Heila Jordaan and 1 others
PMID 28155282WHAT IT FOUND
Setswana-speaking Grade 3 learners given a combined vowel, segmentation and literacy programme improved word discrimination and segmentation, but the no-training control group also improved, and blending did not change.
Key findings
01The EL2 intervention group improved word discrimination from 5.67 to 9.2, and the control group improved from 6.2 to 8.53.
02All three groups improved phonological segmentation, and the EL2 intervention group no longer differed significantly from the EL1 group after intervention.
03Phonological blending did not improve significantly in any group, including the EL2 intervention group.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study included only 12 EL1, 15 EL2 intervention and 15 EL2 control learners. The control group improved on several measures, so gains cannot be separated from normal school progress or repeated testing. The intervention combined several methods, so the contribution of any single component cannot be separated. The tests were standardised but not necessarily for the South African English-second-language population. The participants came from middle-class former model-C schools, limiting generalisation to other settings. The paper does not report whether assessors or participants were blinded.
Declared interests
The paper does not report funding or conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that vowel training alone caused the improvements. The control group also improved, the intervention and control groups did not differ significantly on reading or spelling, and the programme combined articulation, cycles, segmentation, blending, reading, spelling and feedback methods.