Influence of graphic symbol use on reading comprehension

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to review the literature examining the skills and processes related to reading comprehension and to speculate about the potential impact that graphic symbols used in many augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) systems might have on a person's ability to comprehend written text. Reading comprehension is defined and research describing the relationship between language knowledge and word and text level comprehension is described. The development of metalinguistic skills and their relationship to reading comprehension are presented. Finally, the potential impact of the use of graphic symbols for communication on the language variables related to reading comprehension is explored. We conclude that the use of certain types of graphic symbols may potentially develop select areas of metalinguistic knowledge related to reading comprehension. However, these conclusions are speculative in nature; future research is warranted.