Phonological decoding and reading comprehension in deaf and hard-of-hearing children

Forty deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) children aged between seven and 13 were tested using two reading assessments selected to separately measure the skills of phonological decoding and reading comprehension. The Nonword Reading Test and the Edinburgh Reading Test, respectively, were used. All of the children were enrolled in full mainstream settings, i.e. they were not in special classes for deaf children or schools for the deaf. In spite of the fact that most DHH children were, on average, reading within the normal range compared with their hearing peers, there was a distinct gap between decoding and comprehension skills among the sample. Possible explanations for this gap include the emphasis on phonics and spoken language instruction with DHH children, coupled with underlying and unaddressed language delay leading to prolonged difficulties with comprehension.