Using tablet technology in preschool and early kindergarten for the identification of children at risk for reading difficulties

Abstract

In 2016, approximately 3.8 million children in the United States entered public school kindergartens ( NCES, 2016 ) joining the estimated 656 million children of primary-school age worldwide ( United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, 2017 ), where they embarked on a journey of learning to read and write, skills that will carry them through high school and beyond. For up to 20% of these children across different languages and countries, this journey carries with it a risk of school failure due to an inability to learn to read as expected ( Brunswick et al., 2010 ; Elliott & Grigorenko, 2014 ; Görker et al., 2017 ; Shaywitz et al., 1990 ; Ziegler & Goswami, 2005 ). Intervention research demonstrates that targeted, evidence-based programs in kindergarten and fi rst grade can substantially improve reading outcomes for those children who require intensive intervention in order to become successful readers (e.g. Catts et al., 2015 ; Fricke et al., 2013 ; Hatcher et al., 1994 ; Hatcher et al., 2004 ; Torgesen, 2000 ; Vellutino et al., 2004 ). However, preand beginning readers are not routinely screened for risk in part due to the formidable logistical and fi nancial challenges of providing millions of children with a full clinical assessment of the language and cognitive skills that are precursors to reading. One solution to the impracticality of administering a full diagnostic assessment to every child is a rapid screener that would identify children with an elevated risk of reading failure. Such a screener would provide a systematic and reliable basis for close monitoring and evidence-based instruction within a general education setting. Further, a screener that pointed to resources, teacher-training opportunities and evidence-based instructional strategies could aid parents, daycare providers and teachers to address weaknesses in the component skills of reading before or without formal diagnosis. In the following sections, we fi rst describe the research on reading demonstrating that early screening is not only feasible but also necessary in order to prevent reading failure. Next, we outline the critical components of a high-quality screening tool for early reading risk and describe the