First Grade Reading Instruction and Reading Growth: Asian Language Minorities and Native-English-Speaking Peers

The present study explores whether the relation between aspects of first grade reading instruction and reading growth through eighth grade differed for Asian Language Minority (LM) children and Native-English-Speaking (NE) children. The sample consisted of 6,715 NEs and 242 Asian LMs, followed from first to eighth grade. Findings were: (a) The relation between first grade sounds/letters instruction and reading growth slightly differed for Asian LMs and NEs. For example, Asian LMs who received more sounds/letters instructional emphasis decelerated less through middle grades, and by eighth grade, performed on par with NEs. (b) The relation between first grade meaning instructional emphasis and reading growth did not differ for the two groups. (c) NEs experienced more deceleration through middle grades. Implications and future directions are discussed. <br><br><br><br>