The Relationship between Language and Reading Skills in Bilingual Spanish-English Speakers

This study was conducted to determine the relationship between first (L1) and second language (L2) oral language proficiency and reading skills in Spanish-English speakers. Eighty-five children with Spanish as their L1 were tested in first grade. Reading, phonological processing, and oral language processing were measured in English and Spanish. Reading and phonological processing were related both within and across languages. In both languages, reading and related skills and oral language proficiency formed three separate factors: (1) a reading factor; (2) an oral proficiency factor; and (3) an implicit phonological factor. However, English vocabulary and reading were related, suggesting that vocabulary knowledge supports partial phonological recoding skills in beginning readers. These findings suggest that measures of phonological processing in the child's L1 and/or L2 and oral vocabulary be included when screening children at risk for early reading difficulties.