In two visual world eye-tracking experiments, this dissertation examines the role of literacy on predictive processing during spoken language comprehension. Previous studies have shown that comprehenders can use morphosyntactic cues available in the input to generate predictions about upcoming information. Recent key findings also suggest that…

The purpose of this quasi-experimental, mixed-methods study was to address the gap in understanding regarding second language (L2) comprehension of stories by using a taxonomical approach based on Anderson and Krathwohl's (2001) revised taxonomy that includes multiple levels of cognitive processing to provide insight into L2 learners' depth of…

Reading Comprehension is one of the key skills that supports the child's overall learning progress. Belize is a developing country striving towards the development of its educational system. The primary purpose of this research study was to determine the effects of reciprocal teaching with multilingual students in Belizean elementary schools. A…

While the study of family literacy in Latino communities has grown in the U.S. since the 1990s, this is a nascent research area in Latin America, with Chile being no exception. Limited information is available about the impact of parents' literacy practice on child literacy outcomes at different developmental stages, the shared reading practices…

Reading comprehension is a very integral element of encouraging lifelong learning amongst kindergarten students. The main objective of this research is to investigate teachers' perspectives on the effectiveness of interactive read-aloud (IRA) in improving reading comprehension skills amongst kindergarten students in Saudi Arabia. The study's…

This dissertation explores clear speech which is defined as a specific speaking style people adopt when fluent communication could be compromised for various reasons. Although acoustic properties and their perceptual benefits of clear speech produced by monolingual speakers of English are well documented, there has only been a small body of past…

In the current globalized world, English is an international language that makes it possible for people from different language backgrounds to communicate with each other. In this situation, English users in EIL (English as an international language) should be able to comprehend various accents spoken by English speakers from all over the world.…

The Perceptual Assimilation Model (PAM) (Best, 1995) claims listeners directly perceive articulatory gestures of the vocal tract rather than acoustic/auditory signals. Accordingly, the articulatory similarities and discrepancies between native and non-native sounds determine the perceptual assimilation patterns of non-native sounds. This study…

The advent of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020 started a crisis in higher education worldwide, as postsecondary institutions struggled to quickly manage many complex and novel challenges at once to maintain operations. Using a hermeneutic phenomenological research method, the lived experience of 15 administrators in the Ontario college system…

Students with specific learning disabilities (SLD) represent between 5% and 10% of the total number of students in public schools in Saudi Arabia (Abu Nayyan, 2015). Further, 80-90% of students with SLD exhibit reading difficulties including difficulties in reading comprehension (Mercer & Pullen, 2009). Although there is a large number of…

Curriculum-based measurement is designed to predict students' future reading performance and identify children in need of early reading intervention. Although curriculum-based measures in reading are commonly implemented in schools throughout the United States, their use with children living overseas is restricted due to the disparity that exists…

Recent education-based challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as a growing need to read and understand multiple internet-based sources in both academic and daily life, have highlighted the importance of better understanding how children read and learn both online and in traditional print-based environments. Previous research suggests…

The purpose of this mixed-methods sequential explanatory study was to investigate the effects of watching text-relevant video segments on reading comprehension of a culturally unfamiliar text when technical words are present or absent. Therefore, 44 adult English Language Learners (ELLs) with higher-intermediate to advanced English language…

This mixed-method study explored teachers' perceptions of the Living Libraries (LL) professional development program. The study investigated the program's perceived effectiveness and impact on students' reading skills. Additionally, the researchers sought to understand how LL trained teachers perceived the program as aiding their reading…

Hearing loss adversely affects language and literacy development and reading difficulties of deaf and hard of hearing (d/Dhh) students are well documented by a large body of research. Effective instructional strategies that employ evidence-based strategies to support the reading development of d/Dhh students are required. Therefore, the purpose of…