Language Predictors of Word Reading in Bilingual English-Arabic Children - Abstract

Oct 15, 2026

Word reading fluency and word reading accuracy are central to reading development, linked to phonological, morphological, and vocabulary skills in monolingual learners. Evidence for how these relations work in bilingual children remains limited. This study examines language predictors of word reading accuracy and fluency in bilingual English-Arabic children using hierarchical regression analyses. Results show Arabic components differentially predict Arabic accuracy and fluency. Findings support the extended triangle model and outline research and pedagogy implications.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages26

Reading Time1 h 6 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Theoretical Framework

Language and Reading in Bilingual Children

Method and Analyses

Hierarchical Regression Results

Discussion and Implications

Language Predictors of Word Reading in Bilingual English-Arabic Children Arab Journal of Applied Linguistics e-ISSN 2490-4198 Vol. 2, No. 1, December, 2016, 91-116 [http://www.arjals.com](http://www.arjals.com) Lama K. Farran1, Gary Bingham2 & Mona Matthews3 Abstract Word reading fluency and word reading accuracy play a critical role in reading development (Perfetti, 1985; Stanovich, 1986) and are related to multiple language components such as phonological, morphological, and vocabulary skills in monolingual children. Our knowledge about this relation remains limited in bilingual children, however. This study investigates language predictors of word reading fluency and word reading accuracy in bilingual English-Arabic children. We conducted hierarchical regression analyses to examine the relation among phonology, morphology, vocabulary, word reading accuracy, and word reading fluency. Results revealed that Arabic language components differentially predicted Arabic word reading accuracy and Arabic word reading fluency. These findings lend support for the extended triangle model of reading (Bishop & Snowling, 2004), which highlights the paramount role of multiple components of language in reading development. Implications for research and pedagogy are presented. Keywords: Arabic, bilingual, language, reading, word reading accuracy, word reading fluency, phonological awareness, morphological awareness, vocabulary, triangle model of reading. 1 Communication Sciences & Disorders, University of West Georgia, USA Address for correspondence: Lama K. Farran, 1601 Maple Street, Carrolton, GA 30118 Email [lfarran@westga.edu](lfarran@westga.edu) 2 Early Childhood Education, Georgia State University, USA 3 Early Childhood Education, Georgia State University, USA Arab Journal of Applied Linguistics Introduction Learning to read is a developmental process that rests on a foundation of language (Bishop & Snowling, 2004; Scarborough, 2001) and draws from multiple component skills including print-related skills (Sénéchal & LeFevre, 2002) and word reading (Catts & Kamhi, 2005) . Evidence suggests that word reading accuracy and word reading fluency are foundational components in reading development. Specifically, word reading fluency is thought to enable children’s accurate, fast, and efficient reading, thus freeing attentional resources to be allocated to higher order processes such as reading comprehension in monolingual (LaBerge & Samuels, 1974; Perfetti, 1985) and bilingual children (Pasquarella, Chen, Gottardo, & Geva, 2015) . Many cross-linguistic studies point to multiple predictors of reading fluency in monolingual and bilingual children, including phonological awareness (Landerl & Wimmer, 2008; Saiegh-Haddad & Geva, 2008), and vocabulary (Gottardo, 2002; Jean & Geva, 2009), with the relative contribution to reading varying as a function of the specific orthography and children’s developmental level. Overwhelmingly, however, studies examining reading have conceptualized and measured word reading differently, often failing to distinguish between word reading accuracy (number of words read correctly) and word reading fluency (number of words read correctly per unit of time, e.g., one minute) . The importance for delineating distinct factors associated with word reading accuracy versus word reading fluency is well substantiated on both theoretical and empirical grounds (Wolf & Bowers, 1999; Landerl & Wimmer, 2008) . Notably, each has been differentially related to the identification of typical and atypical reading development across languages that vary in transparency and orthographic depth (Ziegler & Goswami, 2005) . While reading accuracy predicts reading outcomes in less transparent languages such as English, it is not equally predictive of such outcomes in more transparent languages like German. Rather, it is word reading fluency-fast and accurate word reading-that determines risk for reading disabilities i

FAQs

What does the study investigate in bilingual English-Arabic children?

It investigates which language components predict word reading accuracy and word reading fluency in bilingual English-Arabic children.

Which predictors and reading measures are analyzed?

The study analyzes phonology, morphology, and vocabulary as predictors, and distinguishes between word reading accuracy and word reading fluency as outcomes.

What do the results show about Arabic word reading accuracy and fluency?

Arabic language components differentially predict Arabic word reading accuracy versus Arabic word reading fluency.

Oct 15, 2026

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