Reading Performance of First Graders: The Effects of Pictorial Distractors

Forty-four matched pairs of Israeli first graders were administered reading comprehension passages. Both experimental and control subjects read one text at their self-paced reading rate, followed by a similar passage that included pictorial distractors within the text. Control subjects read the text with distractors at their own pace. Experimental subjects, however, were prompted to read it at a rate that equalled the fastest rate at which they had read a correctly answered passage in the self-paced condition. In spite of the distractors, reading at a faster pace increased comprehension and reduced errors. Although distractors did not significantly interfere with reading, they were subsequently better recognized by the control subjects.