RUNNING HEAD: ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY

Annotated Bibliography

Amy Crawford

Purdue University

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ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY

Ford, K.L., Invernizzi, M.A., and Huang, F. (2014). Predicting first grade reading
achievement for spanish-speaking kindergarteners; Is early literacy screening in
english valid? Literacy Research Instruction, 53(4), 269-286. https://doi.org/10.1080
/19388071.2014.931494

Ford, Invernizzi and Huang detailed the research they conducted to determine the

effectiveness of the Phonological Awareness Literacy Screening for K (PALS K) as a predictor

of first grade reading achievement for both native English-speaking and Spanish-speaking

English-language learners (ELLs). The rationale behind the study was to ensure that proper

interventions can be put in place for ELL students given that data from this assessment is

typically used to identify children who are at risk of having difficulty in reading. Their findings

indicated that the measures of phonological awareness, alphabet knowledge and orthographic

knowledge, administered in English effectively predicted end-of-year first grade reading success

as effectively for Spanish-speaking kindergarteners as for English L1 students. Research

methods also compared the predictive power of the subtests when the assessment was given in

the fall and spring of kindergarten.

The authors provided multiple instances where their research correlated with other research

done on the subject. At least one of the researchers has co-written other studies on other facets

of the same issue. Discussion of the findings and the limitations was thorough. Methodology

was clearly explained in narrative, and the charts were well-designed to give further information.

Care was taken to describe the assessment and the sample group from the study.

This article was helpful to me in understanding the reliability and validity of a well-known

assessment that will soon be used in my school as a screener to comply with the new dyslexia

laws. The sample group in the study is very similar to the demographics at my school, and gives

me confidence that using this assessment will yield valid results for all of our students. This

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research will be helpful as I continue to seek information on valid assessments, appropriate

interventions and curriculum for ELL students. Information in the article helps solidify the need

for us to include more phonological awareness in the curriculum for our pullout ELL program.

The ease of reading in this article will allow me to use it in professional development sessions

for teachers at my school.

Huang, F.L., and Konold, T.R. (2014). A latent variable investigation of the
phonological awareness literacy screening-kindergarten assessment: Construct identifi-
cation and multigroup comparisons between spanish-speaking english-language
learners (ELLs) and non-ELL students. Language Testing, 31(2), 205-221.
https://doi: 10.1177/0265532213496773.

Researchers investigated the relationship between the subtests within the Phonological

Awareness Literacy Screening for Kindergarten (PALS K) and for Preschool (PALS-PreK) to

see if any of the six subtests were stronger predictors of reading achievement than the others

when used with ELL and non-ELL students. Three models were explored, and it was determined

that a hierarchical model in which a second-order Early Literacy factor (Contextual Knowledge)

influenced the three first-order factors (Phonological Awareness, Alphabet Knowledge and

Inventive Spelling). A secondary study was done with half of the sample to attempt to replicate

the best model determined by the first study in order to determine if the same psychometric

properties would arise if the test is used with different populations. Results show metric

invariance between the ELL and non-ELL populations.

The study’s focus on the weight of the subtests in the overall predictability of success is

important since the researchers set out to show the assessment’s usefulness in accurately

identifying children who need additional intervention, and in determining the specific needs they

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have for intervention. Weaknesses within the study mentioned by the authors were an exclusive

focus on students who were economically disadvantaged, and the fact that differing levels of

English proficiency and background of ELL students weren’t considered.

Looking more at the subtests, rather than just the overall score is more helpful for use in

designing interventions, and helping teachers know how to focus instruction for all students. I

am grateful for this article because there is not much information on this topic, especially studies

limited to Spanish-speaking ELLs and phonological awareness. The work of these authors

helped me understand the importance of careful selection of sample groups in research studies.

Yaden, D.B., Marx, R.W., Cimetta, A.D., Alkhadim, G.S., and Cutshaw, C. (2017).
Assessing early literacy with hispanic preschoolers: The factor structure
of the phonological awareness literacy screening—espanol. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral
Science, 39(2), 193-210. https://doi: 10.1177/0739986316688877.

Seeking to answer whether or not it is necessary to assess literacy skills of preschoolers in

their primary language, Yaden, Mark, Cimetta, Alkhadim and Cutshaw tested the structure of the

Phonological Awareness Literacy Screening for Preschool (PALS-PreK) Espanol with Spanish-

speaking children in the southwestern United States. Data analysis led to the conclusion that the

latent structure of the Spanish test is very similar to that of the English version, and that scores of

the students in the sample were very similar regardless of the language of the test. Students

scored better on letter recognition

A weakness of the study was that the sample group was very small (188) and several students

had to be excluded from the latent variable study because they didn’t meet conditional criteria

for completing parts of the test. The test did give some subgroup data as well when comparisons

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were made between male and female students. Other studies on the same test were referenced,

and differences exist between the studies in regards to the strength of the models of the test.

The authors provided good explanation for the variances between the structure of the test

models, their reason being lack of formal instruction for some preschoolers who took the pre-K

assessment.

The issue of whether or not to test in the primary language of the student or in English will

always be an issue until more studies like this yield similar results. This particular article is

applicable to my work in a primary setting with public preschool classes in the same building.

When designing my capstone project related to phonological awareness and ELLs, I may include

the preschoolers in my study now that I know that the strength of the Spanish preschool test and

the English test are similar.