spelling practices to support students spelling

spelling

1. Effective Spelling Practices to
Support Students’ Spelling and Word
Reading Skills
Brennan W. Chandler, Georgia State University
Christina Novelli, University of Georgia
International Dyslexia Association Annual Conference
October 2024

2. Overview
Why Spelling?
Results from a
Spelling Meta-
Analysis
Effective
Practices to
Support Word-
Level Literacy
Skills
Overview

3. The Importance of Spelling
Spelling plays a key role
in writing and reading
development
Many students with LD
struggle with written
expression and reading
comprehension
Spelling instruction leads
to improvement in
writing and reading
(Galushka et al., 2020;
Graham & Hebert, 2011)

4. Interactive Dynamic Literacy Model (Kim, 2020)

5. Interactive Dynamic Literacy Model (Kim, 2020)

6. Interactive Dynamic Literacy Model (Kim, 2020)

7. e, ea, ei,
ee, e_e
w–e-e–k
week
w
orthography
phonology
semantics
orthography
phonology
phonologywēk
ē
Word ReadingSpelling
semantics
k
Adapted from Perfetti (1997)
wēk

8. What’s a Meta-Analysis?
Summarizes
ResearchFinds Patterns More Reliable

9. Meat-Analytic Aims
Broaden evidence through
meta-analysis
Analyze spelling intervention
approaches

10. Research Questions
What are the average
effects of spelling
interventions on the
spelling and word
reading outcomes for
students with or at-risk for
LD in kindergarten
through 12th grade?
What are the effects
of different spelling
intervention
approaches on
spelling and word
reading outcomes?
How do the average
effects differ based on
characteristics of the
participants (e.g., grade
level), intervention (e.g.,
dosage), and study (e.g.,
design, measure type)?
RQ1:RQ2:RQ3:
Research Questions

11. Inclusion Criteria
Peer-reviewed articles, theses,
or dissertations published
between 1975–2022
Published and delivered in
English
Employed an RCT, QED, or
SCD design
At least 50% of the participants
were K-12 students with or at-
risk for LD
At least one primary word-level
outcome
Intervention consisted mostly
(>50%) of spelling tasks

12. Method
Comprehensive Search
Electronic database search
Ancestral search
Backward search
Forward search
Hand search

13. Method
Comprehensive Search
Electronic database search
Ancestral search
Backward search
Forward search
Hand search

14. Method
Comprehensive Search
Screening and Full-Text Review
Published between 1975-2022
Published in English
Delivered in English
50% K-12 students with or at-risk with LD
One primary word-level DV
>50% of spelling tasks
RCT, QED, or SCD

15. Method
Comprehensive Search
Screening and Full-Text Review
Data Extraction
General study information
Participant characteristics
Intervention characteristics
Treatment approach
Measurement characteristics
Study quality
Effect sizes

16. Instruction simple one-
to-one GPC mappings,
phonemic awareness
with letters, or
traditional phonics
approaches where
students were to spell
sounds
Phonemic
“The sound /b/ is
spelled with <b>.”
Coding of Treatment Approaches

17. Instruction simple one-
to-one GPC mappings,
phonemic awareness
with letters, or
traditional phonics
approaches where
students were to spell
sounds
Phonemic
Instruction in spelling
rules or deviations
from one-to-one
mappings
syllabication
Orthographic
“Double the
consonants f, l, and s,
at the end of a one-
syllable word that has
one vowel.”
“The sound /b/ is
spelled with <b>.”
Coding of Treatment Approaches

18. Instruction simple one-
to-one GPC mappings,
phonemic awareness
with letters, or
traditional phonics
approaches where
students were to spell
sounds
Phonemic
Instruction in spelling
rules or deviations
from one-to-one
mappings
syllabication
Orthographic
Instruction in spelling
inflectional or
derivational affixes and
awareness of
morphemes retaining
their spelling when
phonology diverge
Morphemic
“Double the
consonants f, l, and s,
at the end of a one-
syllable word that has
one vowel.”
“The sound /b/ is
spelled with <b>.”
“<-ed> is a suffix that
means in the past. We
attach this to the end
of a verb.”
Coding of Treatment Approaches

19. Instruction simple one-
to-one GPC mappings,
phonemic awareness
with letters, or
traditional phonics
approaches where
students were to spell
sounds
Phonemic
Instruction in spelling
rules or deviations
from one-to-one
mappings
syllabication
Orthographic
Instruction in spelling
inflectional or
derivational affixes and
awareness of
morphemes retaining
their spelling when
phonology diverge
Morphemic
Any interventions
where students were
instructed to memorize
or visualize whole
words in order to spell
them
Whole Word
“Double the
consonants f, l, and s,
at the end of a one-
syllable word that has
one vowel.”
“The sound /b/ is
spelled with <b>.”
“<-ed> is a suffix that
means in the past. We
attach this to the end
of a verb.”
“Cover the target word.
Now copy it from
memory. Compare your
spelling to the target
word.”
Coding of Treatment Approaches

20. Instruction simple one-
to-one GPC mappings,
phonemic awareness
with letters, or
traditional phonics
approaches where
students were to spell
sounds
Phonemic
Instruction in spelling
rules or deviations
from one-to-one
mappings
syllabication
Orthographic
Instruction in spelling
inflectional or
derivational affixes and
awareness of
morphemes retaining
their spelling when
phonology diverge
Morphemic
Any interventions
where students were
instructed to memorize
or visualize whole
words in order to spell
them
Whole Word
“Double the
consonants f, l, and s,
at the end of a one-
syllable word that has
one vowel.”
“The sound /b/ is
spelled with <b>.”
“<-ed> is a suffix that
means in the past. We
attach this to the end
of a verb.”
“Cover the target word.
Now copy it from
memory. Compare your
spelling to the target
word.”
Coding of Treatment Approaches

21. Method
Comprehensive Search
Screening and Full-Text Review
Data Extraction
Effect Size Calculations
Group: Calculated Hedges’s g between treatment and controls (Hedges, 1981)
SCD: Computed between-case standardized mean difference (BC-SMD) scdhlm calculator (Pustejovsky et al., 2023)

22. Method
Comprehensive Search
Screening and Full-Text Review
Data Extraction
Effect Size Calculations
Data Analysis
metafor package (Viechbauer, 2010)
clubSandwhich package (Pustejovsky, 2022)

23. Results Results
59
Studies327
Effect Sizes2,229
Participants
39 Group design
20 Single case-design Grades K–9Spelling and Word
Reading

24. Results Effect Sizes
What’s an Effect Size?
a statistical
measurement that
indicates the
strength of a
relationship
between two
variables or the
difference between
groups
It's a way to quantify
the practical
significance of a
research outcome
How do I interpret an effect size?
g = 0.2
g = 0.5
g = 0.8
small effect
medium effect
large effect

25. Results What’s a p value?
A way to measure
evidence
Smaller is better!
<0.05
Helps us make
decisions

26. Results How does a p value work with effect sizes?
p value = is it real?
effect size = how big
is the impact?
tells us if the results are likely due to the
intervention or just by chance
it measures how much the intervention
helped students

27. What are the average
effects of spelling
interventions on the
spelling and word
reading outcomes for
students with and at-risk
for LD in kindergarten
through 12th grade?
RQ1:
* p < .05; ** p <.01; *** p <.001
OutcomegSE95% CIk
Spelling0.33***0.04[0.26, 0.40]229
Word reading0.25***0.04[0.13, 0.37]54
OutcomeSMDSE95% CIk
Spelling2.47***0.33[1.82, 3.13]34
Word reading1.57***0.28[1.09, 2.11]9
Group Designs
Single-Case Designs
`Results Results

28. Results
RQ1:
What are the effects
of different spelling
approaches on
spelling and word
reading outcomes?
RQ2:
* p < .05; ** p <.01; *** p <.001
Treatment approachOutcomegk
Phonemic onlySpelling0.33***41
Word reading0.45***20
Multilinguistic Spelling0.43***57
Word reading 0.1019
Multilinguistic + WWSpelling0.42***37
Word reading0.177
Phonemic + WWSpelling0.0963
Whole word onlySpelling0.56***29
Word reading0.138
`Results Results

29. Results
How do these effects
differ based on
characteristics of the
participants (e.g., grade
level), intervention (e.g.,
dosage), and study (e.g.,
design, measure type)?
RQ3:
* p < .05; ** p <.01; *** p <.001
ModeratorgSE95% CI
Dosage0.000.01[0.00, 0.00]
Proximal measures0.16*0.07[0.02, 0.30]
Grade Level (vs. Primary K–2)
Grades 3–50.28**0.09[0.11, 0.46]
Grades K–50.000.20[-0.39, 0.39]
Grades 6–8-0.100.33[-0.59, 0.39]
Combination -0.400.33[-1.04. 0.24]
Control type (vs. BAU)
Active0.15.12[-0.09, 0.38]
Treatment0.000.13[-0.25, 0.25]
Spelling outcomes Results Results: Spelling Outcomes

30. How do these effects
differ based on
characteristics of the
participants (e.g., grade
level), intervention (e.g.,
dosage), and study (e.g.,
quality, measure type,
control type)?
RQ3:
* p < .05; ** p <.01; *** p <.001
ModeratorgSE95% CI
Dosage0.000.00[-0.00, 0.00]
Proximal Measures-0.090.11[-0.30, 0.12]
Grade Level (vs. Primary K–2)
Grades 3–5-0.43***0.11[-0.65, -0.21]
Grades K–5-1.38***0.30[-1.96, -0.79]
Grades 6–8-0.450.69[-2.11, 0.59]
Combination -0.99*0.30[-1.57, -0.41]
Control Type (vs. BAU)
Active-0.28**0.11[-0.50. -0.07]
Treatment0.300.18[-0.05, 0.64]
Results
Spelling outcomes Results Results: Word Reading Outcomes

31. Results
Spelling outcomes Results Implications
Spelling interventions have
small to moderate effects on
spelling and word-reading
outcomes
Smaller effects reported than previous
meta-analyses
(Galuschka et al., 2020; Graham &
Santangelo, 2014)

32. Results
Spelling outcomes Results Implications
Spelling interventions have
small to moderate effects on
spelling and word-reading
outcomes
Interventions employing whole-
word memorization had the
largest effect on spelling
outcomes (g = 0.56) but not on
word reading (g = 0.13)
Smaller effects reported than previous
meta-analyses
(Galuschka et al., 2020; Graham &
Santangelo, 2014)
Phonemic only spelling interventions
had the largest effects on word
reading (g = 0.45)

33. Results
Spelling outcomes Results Implications
Spelling interventions have
small to moderate effects on
spelling and word-reading
outcomes
Interventions employing whole-
word memorization had the
largest effect on spelling
outcomes (g = 0.56) but not on
word reading (g = 0.13)
Smaller effects reported than previous
meta-analyses
(Galuschka et al., 2020; Graham &
Santangelo, 2014)
Phonemic only spelling interventions
had the largest effects on word
reading (g = 0.45)
Measure type and grade level
(upper elementary) significantly
moderated effects on spelling
outcomes; grade level and control
type (active) significantly
moderated effects on reading
outcomes
Dosage did not moderate effects

34. Results
Spelling outcomes Results Implications
Spelling interventions have
small to moderate effects on
spelling and word-reading
outcomes
Interventions employing whole-
word memorization had the
largest effect on spelling
outcomes (g = 0.56) but not on
word reading (g = 0.13)
Smaller effects reported than previous
meta-analyses
(Galuschka et al., 2020; Graham &
Santangelo, 2014)
Phonemic only spelling interventions
had the largest effects on word
reading (g = 0.45)
Measure type and grade level
(upper elementary) significantly
moderated effects on spelling
outcomes; grade level and control
type (active) significantly
moderated effects on reading
outcomes
Dosage did not moderate effects
There is little systematic replication of spelling intervention studies

35. Results
Spelling outcomes Results Implications
Spelling interventions have
small to moderate effects on
spelling and word-reading
outcomes
Interventions employing whole-
word memorization had the
largest effect on spelling
outcomes (g = 0.56) but not on
word reading (g = 0.13)
Smaller effects reported than previous
meta-analyses
(Galuschka et al., 2020; Graham &
Santangelo, 2014)
Phonemic only spelling interventions
had the largest effects on word
reading (g = 0.45)
Measure type and grade level
(upper elementary) significantly
moderated effects on spelling
outcomes; grade level and control
type (active) significantly
moderated effects on reading
outcomes
Dosage did not moderate effects
There are limited commercially or openly available programs

36. Effective Practices to Support
Students’ Spelling and Word Reading

37. Explicit
Instruction
Results
Spelling outcomes Results Effective Spelling Practices
Self-Study
Techniques
Scaffolded
Practice

38. Results
Spelling outcomes Results Explicit Instruction
1.Name and/or define the target phoneme,
orthographic rule, or morpheme
2.Explain when to use the target
3.Provide examples and non-examples

39. Results
Spelling outcomes Results Explicit Instruction
1.Name and/or define the target phoneme,
orthographic rule, or morpheme
2.Explain when to use the target
3.Provide examples and non-examples
This is the letter pattern “ai.”
What pattern?
This is the suffix “-ed.” It
means “in the past.” What
does it mean?

40. Results
Spelling outcomes Results Explicit Instruction
1.Name and/or define the target phoneme,
orthographic rule, or morpheme
2.Explain when to use the target
3.Provide examples and non-examples
We usually use the pattern “ai” in
the middle of words to spell the
long “a” sound like in the word
“rain.” Tell your partner when we
use the “ai” pattern.
We use ”-ed” at the end of a
word to show past tense like in
the word “played.” When do we
use “-ed?”

41. Results
Spelling outcomes Results Explicit Instruction
1.Name and/or define the target phoneme,
orthographic rule, or morpheme
2.Explain when to use the target
3.Provide examples and non-examples
We usually use the pattern
“ai” in the middle of words to
spell the long “a” sound like
in the word “rain.”
We use ”-ed” at the end of a
word to show past tense like
in the word “played.”

42. Explicit
Instruction
Results
Spelling outcomes Results Effective Spelling Practices
Self-Study
Techniques
Scaffolded
Practice

43. Results
Spelling outcomes Results Scaffolded Practice
Spelling Dictation
Peer-Assisted Spelling

44. Results
Spelling outcomes Results Spelling Dictation
T: The word is trick. What word?
S: trick!
T: Fist up, say and count the sounds in trick
S: /t/ /r/ /ɪ/ /k/
T: What do we hear first?
S: /t/
T: Yes, /t/! Now spell /t/. [Write <t>] Okay. Let’s
keep spelling trick. What do we hear next /t/ /r/?
S: /r/ …
/t/ is spelled like this <t>. Fix it!
T: The word is regretful. What word?
S: regretful!
T: Hands to chin, say and count the parts in
regretful
S: re / gret / ful
T: Spell regretful on your paper as you whisper
each word part
Regretful is spelled like this (show
stimulus). Cross out your spelling
and rewrite it while saying each
word part as you spell it correctly.
More scaffoldedLess scaffolded

45. Results
Spelling outcomes Results Peer-Assisted Spelling
(Lundburg et al., 2022)
1.Pair students together with a list of practice spelling words
2.One student is the speller, one is the spelling “coach”
3.The coach reads a word
4.The speller spells a word
5.The coach provides feedback
6.Repeat and switch roles

46. Explicit
Instruction
Results
Spelling outcomes Results Effective Spelling Practices
Self-Study
Techniques
Scaffolded
Practice

47. Results
Spelling outcomes Results Taped Spelling
Students listen to a collection of audio files
that contain the pronunciation of a word,
followed by a pause, and then the correct
spelling of the word.
Students are instructed to "beat the
recording" by writing the correct spelling
of each word before it is provided
(McCallum et al., 2014)

48. Results
Spelling outcomes Results Cover-Copy-Compare
1.Provide student with a list of
target words
2.Student reads and covers a
target word, copies the word,
and compares the spelled word
to the target word
Adaptations
-Sound-out procedures
-Dictated words (audio recording)

49. Spelling Mastery
Results
Spelling outcomes Results Spelling Programs
SPELL-Links

50. Results
Spelling outcomes Results Spelling Mastery
Research-based spelling program
Explicit and systematic approach (multilinguistic)
15-20 minute daily lessons
Built in progress monitoring system
(Darch et al., 2006)

51. Results
Spelling outcomes Results Spelling Mastery

52. Results
Spelling outcomes Results SPELL-Links
(Wanzek et al., 2017)
SPELL-Links isa word study
program that helps students
learn to read and write by
teaching them to connect
sounds, letter patterns, and
meanings.

53. Thank you!
[email protected]
@chandler_bren
brennanchandler.com