This paper investigates developmental changes, as well as inter-linguistic
and inter-individual variations, in the expansion and composition of
French children's early lexicons. Two studies were conducted using
children's naturalistic productions: a longitudinal study of one child
between 1;2 and 2;6, and a cross-sectional study of two groups (12
children each) aged 1;8 and 2;6. Analyses indicate that lexical productivity
(measured in types, tokens, and new words) strongly increased
with age, whereas lexical diversity showed almost no developmental
progression. Nouns and para-lexical elements (including interjections,
fillers or formulas) were predominant until 1;8 and decreased over time,
while predicates and grammatical words increased. As compared to
English, French development was characterized by less frequent nouns,
initially more frequent predicates, and a remarkable expansion of
grammatical words. Inter-individual variability in lexical productivity,
in lexical diversity, and in the proportions of different categories was
more marked at 1;8 than at 2;6. Lexical profiles found at 1;8 suggest the
existence of more diversified organizational patterns than those captured
in the referential-expressive distinction.
The purpose of this article is to review empirical studies that have investigated the cognitive and language skills of adults who are functionally illiterate (A-IL), that is, individuals whose literacy skills are too low to meet the literacy demands of society, even though they have attended school and are not illiterate in the strictest sense of the term. Three questions are addressed: (1) What are the types of reading and spelling difficulties that characterize adults who are A-IL? (2) Are their written language difficulties related to cognitive or language impairments which could explain their failure to learn? (3) What are the implications of these psychological findings for adult education?
We analysed word reading and spelling in French adults with low levels of literacy (A-IL). As well as examining phonological and lexical processes, we explored the relationship between literacy and oral language skills. Fifty-two adult literacy students were compared with reading level-matched pupils in Years 1-3 of primary school on reading tasks (pseudoword reading, word reading, text comprehension), spelling tasks (pseudoword spelling, text dictation) and oral language tasks. A-IL scored the same as children on word reading and spelling but less well on pseudoword reading and spelling. They also produced fewer phonologically acceptable errors in the dictation. Regarding oral language skills, as a group A-IL encountered greater diffi culty in phonology than in morphosyntax and semantics, and correlations revealed strong relationships between literacy levels and oral skills, particularly in the domain of phonology. Within their group, however, A-IL displayed several distinct language profi les. These could refl ect different risk factors leading to functional illiteracy and are discussed regarding the cognitive and environmental causes of impaired reading acquisition.
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