When more is more: effect of context and stimulus set size on orthographic learning

Orthographic learning was measured over two experiments after adults trained words written with unfamiliar symbols. Participants were randomly assigned to read a set of either 24 or 86 target words, both in context and in isolation. Training took place over six trials, followed by delayed reading and spelling post-tests. Reading in context consistently bolstered reading accuracy during and after training. In contrast, the highest spelling scores were noted following reading in isolation. The number of words to be learned (stimulus set size) moderated the effects of isolation training. Self-teaching a large set of diverse words in isolation increased reading accuracy, closing the gap with context. Overall, training in context helped establish orthographic representations that were good enough to support reading accuracy, especially when training with a small set of words. Whereas, reading in isolation refined orthographic representations to be precise enough to support later spelling accuracy.