An Investigation of Perceptual Training and Reading Achievement in First Grade

To investigate the effects, if any, of perceptual training upon selected measures of reading achievement in first grade, 12 experimental classrooms of first grade pupils, randomly selected, received a 29‐day adaptation of the Frostig Program for the Development of Visual Perception while 13 control classes added comparable time to the regular reading instructional program. Analysis of the data revealed statistically significant differences between the treatment groups in most of the post‐perceptual capabilities, favoring the experimental groups, without concomitant effects on reading criterion measures. While the total score from the Frostig Developmental Test of Visual Perception appeared to have a strong predictive function regarding first‐grade reading, the training of visual perception subskills did not appear to have a significant effect on reading ability at the end of the first grade year. Additional findings are reported that strongly suggest the need for further research.