TRANSFER AMONG PHONOLOGICAL MANIPULATION SKILLS

Skills that require the manipulation of sounds that make up words are closely associated with the process of learning to read. This study in volved an experimental analysis of the relations among phonological ma nipulation skills. Several of these skills were taught to 35 Head Star t preschool children (M age = 5.2 years), and the degree to which lear ning 1 of these skills resulted in improved skill performance and acce lerated learning of a 2nd skill was investigated. Instruction produced robust gains in skill performance and generalization of skills to nov el instances. Posttest scores and data on students' efficiency of lear ning, however, offered no evidence of transfer across phonological man ipulation skills. These results imply that the class of phonological m anipulation skills does not have a simple structure and suggest that t ask and subject characteristics must be considered in predicting trans fer among such skills.