Fluência leitora e habilidades cognitivo-linguísticas em adolescentes do Ensino Fundamental II

Abstract

Introduction: Reading plays a crucial role in individual development and societal participation. Its learning process involves skills such as decoding written symbols, manipulating syllables and sounds, and understanding the content read. As these abilities develop and exposure to written language increases, the reader enhances their reading fluency. This fluency is characterized by the ability to read texts accurately, at an appropriate speed, and expressively, serving as a key indicator of reading competence. The development of reading fluency is directly linked to mastering cognitive-linguistic skills, such as phonology, phonological processing, attention, planning, and organization. The integration of these skills, particularly phonological processing, is essential for learning and improving reading and writing abilities. Fluency in reading and writing are vital components of student development, encompassing not only the technical capacity to read or write correctly but also comprehension, rhythm, intonation during reading, and the clear and cohesive expression of ideas in writing. These processes are interconnected, sharing similar cognitive mechanisms, making it essential to understand their relationship and impact on school performance. Intellectual capacity also plays a significant role in academic development. Studies show that childhood intelligence can indicate various dimensions of health and success throughout life. Intelligence tests administered to children assess essential skills for school success, quantifying intellectual abilities and providing information such as the intelligence quotient (IQ). The results of these tests offer important data on general cognitive functioning and can serve as a basis for evaluating specific skills, such as memory and language, which are essential for learning reading and writing. Understanding the connection between these skills and their influence on reading fluency can significantly contribute to understanding students’ academic performance. Objective: To analyze the behavior and association between reading fluency and cognitive-linguistic skills in the final years of elementary school. Methodology: The study is part of the validation process for the assessment protocol “Phonological Awareness Test for Adolescents and Adults - CONFIAD.” Two studies were conducted to analyze and correlate reading fluency with cognitive-linguistic skills. Study 1: This study analyzed patterns of reading fluency and spelling by school year and type of education system (private and public) and the correlation between the two skills in students from the final years of elementary school (grades 6-9). A total of 160 students participated, with 83 from a private institution and 77 from a public institution, both located in a city in southeastern Brazil. The instruments used were texts from the material Assessment of Reading Comprehension of Expository Texts (Saraiva, Moojen, & Munarski, 2020), with texts appropriate for each grade, and the writing subtest from the School Performance Test - TDE - 2nd Edition (Stein, Giacomini, & Fonseca, 2017). Parameters analyzed included reading speed, accuracy, number of reading errors, and number of correct answers and errors in dictation-based writing tasks. Data were recorded in Excel spreadsheets and subjected to descriptive statistical analysis, using measures of central tendency and variability. Distribution was evaluated using the Shapiro-Wilk test. Comparison analyses by school year and institution were conducted using Student’s t-test and the Mann-Whitney test, with a significance level of 0.05. Correlation analysis between variables was performed using Spearman’s correlation test, considering correlations for p-values < 0.05. Qualitative analysis of Spearman’s correlation results was also conducted using Spearman’s Rho (Mukaka, 2012). Study 2: This study analyzed the behavior and association between reading fluency (words per minute and percentage of correct words per minute) and cognitive-linguistic skills (phonological awareness, writing, working memory, and intelligence) in the final years of elementary school. The sample was the same as in Study 1. Instruments applied included the Assessment of Reading Comprehension of Expository Texts, the tool for collective assessment of reading fluency and comprehension through silent reading (Gentilini et al., 2020), the writing subtest from the TDE - 2nd Edition, the Phonological Awareness and Auditory Memory Test for Adolescents and Adults - CONFIAD (Moojen, Bassôa, & Alves, in press), and the Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence (WASI) (Trentini, Yates, & Heck, 2014). Parameters analyzed included reading speed (words per minute), accuracy (percentage of correct words per minute), number of reading errors, number of self-corrections, silent reading speed, comprehension task scores, total scores on the phonological awareness test, memory performance, number of correct answers in dictation-based writing tasks (TDE - correct answers), raw and scaled scores in vocabulary and matrix reasoning, and total IQ on the intelligence test (WASI). Data were recorded in Excel spreadsheets and analyzed descriptively using measures of central tendency and variability. Statistical distribution was evaluated using the Shapiro-Wilk test. Comparative analyses by school year and institution were conducted using Student’s t-test and the Mann-Whitney test, with a significance level of 0.05. Correlation analysis between variables was performed using Spearman’s correlation test. Qualitative analysis of Spearman’s correlation results was conducted using Spearman’s Rho (Mukaka, 2012). Results: Study 1: Results showed the progression of reading fluency and spelling skills across school years in both private and public schools. It was concluded that in both settings, writing errors might be related to reading fluency performance—good readers make fewer writing errors and vice versa. Disparities were observed between public and private school systems, with public school students consistently performing below expected levels in both reading fluency and spelling, with more errors related to language irregularities. Study 2: Results indicated progression in reading fluency, silent reading, phonological awareness, memory, and spelling skills in both private and public schools in the final years of elementary school. In public schools, phonological awareness, memory, and spelling skills showed stabilization in the later years. Intelligence quotient findings reflected factors such as teaching quality, students’ educational background, and socioeconomic status. Correlations indicated that good readers demonstrate better spelling, memory performance, and verbal skills in describing word meanings. However, no strong correlation trends were found between reading fluency and comprehension, phonological awareness, fluid intelligence (measured by matrix reasoning), or total IQ. The study reinforced the disparities between educational institutions, with private schools outperforming public schools in all tasks and public schools showing below-expected results in reading and writing fluency across all grades.