Computerised assessment of children and adults with dyslexia

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Computerised assessment of children and adults
with dyslexia

• Dr Chris Singleton
• Department of Psychology
• University of Hull
• c.singleton_at_psy.hull.ac.uk

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Dyslexia

• Dyslexia is a specific language-based disorder
  of constitutional origin characterised by
  difficulties in single-word decoding, usually
  reflecting insufficient phonological processing
  abilities. These difficulties in single-word
  decoding are often unexpected in relation to age
  and other cognitive and academic abilities.
  International Dyslexia Association, 1994

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Traditional criteria for identifying dyslexia

• Significant discrepancy between intelligence and
  literacy attainment.
• Exclusion of other possible causes of a literacy
  difficulty (e.g. low ability, medical, social, or
  emotional problems).
• Positive indicators (such as left-right
  confusion letter reversals)

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Limitations of the traditional criteria

• Discrepancy and exclusion tend to bias
  towards identification of bright, middle-class
  children.
• Criteria of discrepancy means waiting for
  children to fail, resulting in severe loss of
  motivation.
• Dyslexic children often slip through the net.
• When diagnosis in made late in schooling dyslexia
  is more difficult to remediate.
• Assessment is largely restricted to Educational
  Psychologists.

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Phonology and memory

• Phonological processes are the basis for the
  development of a phonological decoding strategy
  in reading.
• Working memory is integral in that it enables
  constituent sounds and/or phonological codes to
  be held in short term store while phonological
  coding processes are carried out.

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Causal model of dyslexia
Genetic brain abnormality
BIOLOGICAL
Phonological deficit
Poor phoneme- grapheme conversion
Environment
COGNITIVE
Poor reading
Poor memory
Poor phonological awareness
BEHAVIOURAL
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Visual memory

• Visual memory is especially important in early
  stages of learning to read.
• Poor readers show bias towards visual encoding of
  words (rather than phonological encoding).
• Children with good visual memory but poor
  auditory memory find acquisition of phonics
  difficult.

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Key features in identifying dyslexia

• Phonological processing difficulties
• Poor working memory
• Poor or good visual memory
• Poor single-word decoding skills
• Poor nonword reading
• Poor spelling
• Discrepancy between intelligence and literacy
  performance

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Advantages of computer-based assessment

• Standardised presentation
• Improved accuracy of measurement
• Speedier administration (esp. adaptive tests)
• Less training of administrators needed
• Labour (and cost) saving
• Results available instantly
• Enjoyable for children
• Confidential for adult self-assessment

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CoPS - Cognitive Profiling System(Singleton,
Thomas and Leedale, 1996)

• Zoids Friends (Visual sequential memory)
• Rabbits (Visual sequential memory)
• Toybox (Visual asso-ciative memory)
• Zoids Letters (Visual sequential memory)

• Zoids Letter Names (Visual-verbal associative
  memory)
• Races (Auditory-verbal sequential memory)
• Rhymes (Phono-logical awareness)
• Wock (Auditory discrimination)

Age range 4 yr 0 mos - 8 yr 11 mos
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KoPS (Kognitiv Profilerings System)

• Swedish version of CoPS by Singleton, Ohlis and
  Leedale (1997)
• Produced in collaboration with ReLS, Bollnäs.
• Published by Elevdata, Malmö.
• Windows version now available.

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How are CoPS and KoPS used?

• Identify strengths and limitations in cognitive
  skills that predict of progress in literacy.
• Identify dyslexia as well as borderline problems.
• Develop an individual programme of tuition based
  on cognitive strengths and limitations.
• Monitor progress in the key cognitive skills.

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LASS Junior and Secondary

• Self administered, adaptive assessment
• 4 tests of cognitive abilities
• 4 tests of literacy abilities
• Tests are challenging, but enjoyable
• Based on national norms
• Instant results to print out
• Manual with teaching recommendations
• Network versions available

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LASS Junior and Secondary Horne, Singleton and
Thomas, 1999/2000

• Cave (Visual memory)
• Mobile (Auditory sequential memory)
• Nonword reading
• Syllable segmentation

• Word reading
• Sentence reading
• Spelling
• Reasoning

Age range Junior 80 - 1111 Secondary 11.0 -
1511
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How is LASS used?

• Assess reading and spelling skills
• Spot limitations in memory and phonological
  skills (severe and borderline)
• Estimate intelligence
• Measure discrepancies in attainment
• Identify dyslexia and other difficulties
• Monitor progress in reading and spelling
• Evaluate developments in cognitive skills

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Teaching strategies
Phonological skills weak
Visual strategies build up phonics using
multisensory methods
Multi-sensory phonic teaching intensive support
Visual skills strong
Visual skills weak
Auditory methods practice in word recognition
and spelling
Seek non-cognitive explanation for difficulties
Phonological skills strong
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Differentiation based on age and severity of
difficulties
Severe difficulties
Some specialist input support (teaching
assistant computer)
Intensive specialist input essential
Primary Age
Secondary Age
Can rely solely on support tools, e.g.
computer, tape recorder
Small group work computer practice
Mild difficulties
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Adult assessment DLOST(Olofsson, Ohlis,
Singleton and Leedale, 2000)

• DLOST is a computerised test in Swedish for the
  16 population.
• Developed by Lucid in conjunction with Åke
  Olofsson (Univerity of Umeå) and Karin Ohlis
  (ReLS, Bollnäs).
• Self administered - takes about 30 minutes to
  complete.
• Standardised and produces graphical print-out of
  results.

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DLOST Tests

• Patterns (visual associative memory)
• Mobile phone (auditory sequential memory)
• Sounds (auditory discrimination)
• Orthographical reading
• Phonological reading
• Spelling (Easier and Harder)

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DLOST Graphical report
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LADS Lucid Adult Dyslexia Screening

• Computerises screening test for age 16
  comprising three measures
• Working memory (Backwards digit span)
• Phonological decoding (speeded recognition of
  real words and nonwords)
• Phonological encoding (speeded assembly of
  nonwords from syllables)
• Adaptive assessment taking less than 15 minutes
• Singleton, Horne and Thomas currently under
  development

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LADS - Development trials 2001

• 134 adults, aged 16 to 74 (mean age 32)
• 41 in HE 47 in FE 46 in adult literacy classes
• 65 dyslexic 69 not dyslexic
• WRAT3 scores (centiles)
• Reading Dyslexics 24.6 Non Dys 68.6
• Spelling Dyslexics 14.1 Non Dys 70.2
• Adult Dyslexia Checklist ( /20)
• Dyslexics 12.03 Non Dyslexics 4.47

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Correlational analysis

• LADS Phonological decoding with
• WRAT3 Reading r 0.89
• Adult Dyslexia Checklist r 0.56
• LADS Digit Span r 0.30

• LADS Phonological encoding with
• WRAT3 Spelling r 0.84
• Adult Dyslexia Checklist r 0.55
• LADS Digit Span r 0.35

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Some recent research papers

• Singleton, C.H., Horne, J.K. Thomas, K.V.
  (1999) Computerised baseline assessment of
  literacy. Journal of Research in Reading, 22(1),
  67-80.
• Singleton, C.H., Thomas, K.V. Horne, J.K.
  (2000) Computer-based cognitive assessment and
  the development of reading. Journal of Research
  in Reading, 23(2), 158-180.
• Singleton, C. H. (2001) Computer-based assessment
  in education. Educational and Child Psychology,
  18(3) 58-74.