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Background: The way in which socioeconomic status (SES) moderates the etiology of reading attainment has been explored many times, with past work often finding that genetic influences are suppressed under conditions of socioeconomic deprivation and more fully realized under conditions of socioeconomic advantage: a gene–SES interaction. Additionally, past work has pointed toward the presence of gene–location interactions, with the relative influence of genes and environment varying across geographic regions of the same country/state. Method: This study investigates the extent to which SES and geographical location interact to moderate the genetic and environmental components of reading attainment. Utilizing data from 2,135 twin pairs in Florida (mean age 13.82 years, range 10.71–17.77), the study operationalized reading attainment as reading comprehension scores from a statewide test and SES as household income. We applied a spatial twin analysis procedure to investigate how twin genetic and environmental estimates vary by geographic location. We then expanded this analysis to explore how the moderating role of SES on said genetic and environmental influences also varied by geographic location. Results: A gene–SES interaction was found, with heritability of reading being suppressed in lower‐ (23%) versus higher‐SES homes (78%). The magnitude of the moderating parameters were not consistent by location, however, and ranged from −0.10 to 0.10 for the moderating effect on genetic influences, and from −0.30 to 0.05 for the moderating effect on environmental influences. For smaller areas and those with less socioeconomic variability, the magnitude of the genetic moderating parameter was high, giving rise to more fully realized genetic influences on reading there. Conclusions: SES significantly influences reading variability. However, a child's home location matters in both the overall etiology and how strongly SES moderates said etiologies. These results point toward the presence of multiple significant environmental factors that simultaneously, and inseparably, influence the underlying etiology of reading attainment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Utilizing a multi-level meta-analytic approach, this review is the first to systematically quantify the efficacy of reading interventions for school-aged children with ADHD and identify potential factors that may increase the success of reading-related interventions for these children. Method: 18 studies (15 peer-reviewed articles, 3 dissertations) published from 1986 to 2020 (N = 564) were meta-analyzed. Results: Findings revealed reading interventions are highly effective for improving reading skills based on both study-developed/curriculum-based measures (g = 1.91) and standardized/norm-referenced achievement tests (g = 1.11) in high-quality studies of children with rigorously-diagnosed ADHD. Reading interventions that include at least 30 hours of intervention targeting decoding/phonemic awareness meet all benchmarks to be considered a Level 1 (Well-Established) Evidence-Based Practice with Strong Research Support for children with ADHD based on clinical and special education criteria. Conclusions: Our findings collectively indicate that reading interventions should be the first-line treatment for reading difficulties among at-risk readers with ADHD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many of the analytical models commonly used in educational research often aim to maximize explained variance and identify variable importance within models. These models are useful for understanding general ideas and trends, but give limited insight into the individuals within said models. Data envelopment analysis (DEA), is a method rooted in organizational management that makes such insights possible. Unlike models alluded to above, DEA does not explain variance. Instead, it explains how efficiently an individual utilizes their inputs to produce outputs, and identifies which input is not being utilized optimally. This paper provides a history and usages of DEA from fields outside of education, and describes the math and processes behind it. This paper then extends DEA's usage into the educational field using a study on child reading ability. Using students from the Project KIDS dataset (n = 1987), DEA is demonstrated using a simple view of reading framework, identifying individual efficiency levels in using reading-based skills to achieve reading comprehension, determining which skills are being underutilized, and classifying new subsets of readers. New subsets of readers were identified using this method, with implications for more targeted interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper extends the understanding of the relation between ADHD and reading comprehension, through examining how this relation differs depending on the quantile an individual falls in for each. Samples from three twin projects around the United States were used (Florida Twin Project, Colorado component of International Longitudinal Twin Study of Early Reading Development, & Western Reserve Reading and Math Projects). Phenotypic analysis using quantile regression showed relations between ADHD related behaviors and reading comprehension to be stronger in the lower quantiles of reading comprehension in two of three samples. A new method was developed extending this analysis into the bivariate genetic space. Results of this quantile genetic analysis revealed that overlapping common environmental influences accounted for a larger proportion of variance in the lower quantiles of these variables in two of three samples. Finally, in all three samples the phenotypic relation was strongest when shared environmental influences accounted for a larger proportion of the overall variance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]