Evolutionary studies that analyse the development of reading comprehension and related difficulties among teenagers are relevant, given importance of this skill for academic performance at this age. The aim of this study is to analyse performance and difficulties in reading comprehension and its components during adolescence. The sample is composed of 203 students aged 12 to 14, in the first, second, and third year of compulsory Secondary Education from a randomly selected school in an average socio-cultural area of Malaga. Students are evaluated for reading comprehension through the selection and organisation of textual ideas, as well as semantic and morpho-syntactic knowledge, after reading a descriptive text. Metacognition is assessed by means of a reading awareness questionnaire. The design is cross-sectional and observational, measuring five variables across three groups of students. A comparison of means and analysis of percentages of difficulties is carried out. The results show significant differences between the groups in the study variables, with the highest scores in the third year. Furthermore, between 15-30% of reading comprehension difficulties are found at these ages. The percentages are higher in the selection and organisation of ideas across all three school years examined, and the percentages are higher in the third year for all the variables. These results imply the need to control the teaching-learning processes of reading comprehension from an early age, in order to avoid difficulties in the first few years of secondary education. Estudios evolutivos que analicen el desarrollo de la comprensión lectora y sus dificultades en la adolescencia son relevantes, dada la importancia que ello tiene a estas edades en relación al rendimiento académico. El objetivo de este estudio es analizar el rendimiento y las dificultades en comprensión lectora y sus componentes en la adolescencia. La muestra está compuesta por 203 alumnos entre 12 y 14 años, pertenecientes a 1º, 2º, y 3º de Educación Secundaria Obligatoria de un centro seleccionado al azar de una zona sociocultural media de Málaga. Los alumnos son evaluados en comprensión lectora a través de la selección y organización de ideas textuales, conocimiento semántico y morfosintáctico, tras la lectura de un texto descriptivo, y en metacognición, con un cuestionario de consciencia lectora. El diseño es observacional trasversal, con una medida en cinco variables y tres grupos de estudiantes. Se realiza comparación entre medias y análisis de porcentajes de las dificultades. Los resultados muestran diferencias significativas entre los grupos en las variables de estudio, siendo las puntuaciones más altas en tercer curso. También se encuentra entre un 15-30% de dificultades de comprensión lectora en estas edades. Los porcentajes son mayores en selección y organización de ideas en todos los cursos, y en todas las variables los porcentajes son mayores en 3º curso. Estos resultados implican la necesidad de incidir en los procesos de enseñanza-aprendizaje de la comprensión lectora desde edades tempranas, con el fin de evitar las dificultades en la ESO.

The study examines the individual and combined contribution of several cognitive variables (phonemic awareness, phonological memory, and alphanumeric and non-alphanumeric rapid naming) to word and pseudoword reading ability among first-grade Spanish children. Participants were 116 Spanish-speaking children aged six years and without special educational needs, all of whom were attending schools in a medium socioeconomic area. Descriptive/exploratory and bivariate analyses were performed with the data derived from three measures of reading ability (accuracy, speed, and efficiency), and hierarchical multivariate regression models were constructed. In general, the results confirm that, with the exception of non-alphanumeric rapid naming, the cognitive variables studied are predictors of reading performance for words and pseudowords, although their influence differs depending on the reading measures and type of linguistic unit considered . Phonemic awareness, phonological memory, and alphanumeric rapid naming were the best predictors of reading accuracy for words and pseudowords. Variability in the other two measures of reading ability (speed and efficiency) was best explained by alphanumeric rapid naming. These results suggest that reading is a complex skill that depends on different types of cognitive variables according to the age and/or level of the reader, the type of orthography and the type of measure used. Furthermore, they highlight the need to provide instruction in these processes from an early age so as to address or prevent the problems that children may present.

Este estudio examina la contribución individual y conjunta de la motivación, la comprensión lectora y la composición escrita en el rendimiento académico de adolescentes españoles de distintos niveles educativos. La muestra está formada por 203 sujetos, de edades comprendidas entre 12 y 14 años [1.º de ESO (M = 12.4 y DE =1.28), 2.º de ESO (M = 13.6 y DE = 1.02) y 3º de ESO (M = 14.2 y DE = 1.34)], de nivel sociocultural medio y con niveles intelectuales normales. Se evalúa el rendimiento académico, la comprensión lectora, la composición escrita y la motivación de logro. Se realizan análisis de correlación y análisis de regresión lineal. Los resultados indican que las variables conjuntamente estudiadas contribuyen a explicar un relevante porcentaje del rendimiento académico en los distintos niveles educativos. La comprensión lectora y la motivación explican entre un 44 y 64 % y entre un 27 y 36 %, respectivamente, de la variabilidad el rendimiento académico en las distintas edades. Se pone de manifiesto la importancia de las variables motivacionales y lingüísticas, en concreto, de la comprensión lectora, para la mejora del rendimiento académico y de la prevención del fracaso escolar en adolescentes españoles.

Adolescence is a psychologically vulnerable stage in which problems of emotional adjustment and psychological well-being can appear. The aim of this study is to analyse the relationship and comparison of emotional deficits and resources among adolescents with or without specific learning disabilities. We evaluated 80 students distributed into two groups: 40 adolescents with specific learning disabilities and 40 normative adolescents matched with the previous group in terms of age, sex, and school year. The study variables are internalising problems (anxiety and depression), externalising problems (aggression, anger control, defiant behaviour, and antisocial behaviour), and personal resources (self-esteem, social competence and integration, and awareness of problems), evaluated by means of the SENA test. The results indicate a positive relationship between externalising and internalising problems and a negative relationship between the latter and some personal resources in both groups. We also found that adolescents with specific learning disabilities displayed more internalising and externalising symptoms than their peers, greater awareness of their emotional difficulties, and lower self-esteem and social integration and competence. The findings highlight the need for preventive interventions that promote the psychological well-being and mental health of adolescents within the school setting at an early age.

Teaching literacy and decreased risk of learning disabilities // Enseñanza de la lectoescritura y disminución del riesgo de dificultades de aprendizaje