Cognitive Attributes of Adequate and Inadequate Responders to Reading Intervention in Middle School

Abstract

No studies have investigated the cognitive attributes of middle school students who are adequate and inadequate responders to Tier 2 reading intervention. We compared students in Grades 6 and 7 representing groups of adequate responders (n = 77) and inadequate responders who fell below criteria in (a) comprehension (n = 54); (b) fluency (n = 45); and (c) decoding, fluency, and comprehension (DFC; n = 45). These students received measures of phonological awareness, listening comprehension, rapid naming, processing speed, verbal knowledge, and nonverbal reasoning. Multivariate comparisons showed a significant Group-by-Task interaction: the comprehension-impaired group demonstrated primary difficulties with verbal knowledge and listening comprehension, the DFC group with phonological awareness, and the fluency-impaired group with phonological awareness and rapid naming. A series of regression models investigating whether responder status explained unique variation in cognitive skills yielded largely null results consistent with a continuum of severity associated with level of reading impairment, with no evidence for qualitative differences in the cognitive attributes of adequate and inadequate responders.

Accuracy and Validity of Methods for Identifying Learning Disabilities in a Response-to-Intervention Service Delivery Framework

“…Similarly, Miciak et al (2014a) Results indicated a clear hierarchy on both cognitive and academic variables, with the adequate responder group scoring highest on academic and cognitive variables, the groups with specific reading deficits (comprehension or fluency) scoring similarly, and the globally impaired group scoring lowest on both cognitive and academic measures. In both of the above studies, the differences in level observed on cognitive and academic variables between adequate and inadequate responders parallel differences in readings skill, consistent with a continuum of severity hypothesis.…”

“…This is most clearly illustrated in population studies of academic achievement, in which student performance in reading and mathematics are normally distributed (Jorm et al 1986;Rodgers 1983;Shaywitz et al 1992;Silva et al 1985). In recent years, large-scale studies investigating response to reading intervention have further supported the dimensional nature of attributes of LD, as individual instructional response is continuously distributed, without naturally occurring demarcations of qualitatively different groups Miciak et al 2014a;Vellutino et al 2006). Further, studies applying methods from behavioral genetics have failed to identify qualitatively different genetic constellations associated with the heritability of reading and mathematical disorders (Fisher and DeFries 2002;Grigorenko 2001Grigorenko , 2005Plomin and Kovas 2005).…”

“…Recent largescale studies suggest that intervention response lies on a continuum, with no naturally occurring demarcations which would separate adequate from inadequate responders Miciak et al 2014a;Vellutino et al 2006). Thus, students whose measured performance lies near the cut point(s) (however it is defined) are likely to be very similar, and group membership will fluctuate across different measures or measurement occasions.…”

“…These measures could assess highly related attributes, such as reading or writing, or could assess more distal attributes such as behavior, attention, or even subsequent intervention response. At this level, empirical studies suggest that classifications based on differential intervention response consistently separate groups on a number of theoretically related attributes, including academic level (Al Otaiba and Fuchs 2006;Nelson et al 2003;Vellutino et al 2006), cognitive characteristics Miciak et al 2014a), behavior (Al Otaiba and Fuchs 2006;Nelson et al 2003), and even brain activation patterns (Molfese et al 2013;Rezaie et al 2011).…”

Cognitive Attributes, Attention, and Self‐Efficacy of Adequate and Inadequate Responders in a Fourth Grade Reading Intervention

“…Within these interventions there are subgroups of students who are considered high responders particularly when the intervention has been intensive. Also, there is a subset of struggling readers who continue to struggle even after receiving intensive instructional support (e.g., Miciak et al, 2014). This latter group is often described as “inadequate responders.” The purpose of this study was to examine the cognitive attributes, attention problems, and self-efficacy of adequate and inadequate responders to intensive reading intervention.…”