Instability of word reading errors of typical and poor readers

Abstract

Abstract We examined the instability of reading errors, that is whether a child reads the same word sometimes correctly and sometimes incorrectly, and whether typical readers differ in their instability from poor readers. With an interval of a few days, Dutch CVC words were read twice by typically developing first and second graders and reading-level matched poor readers. Error instability was considerable and second graders produced more unstable errors than first graders. Poor readers did not differ from typical readers, suggesting a developmental lag for poor readers. Of the word characteristics studied, frequency was the strongest predictor: the higher word frequency, the higher error instability. Our study indicates that error instability can be considered as an indicator of the transition from incompetence to reading competence.