Abstract
The purpose of this study was to explore the development of second graders’ spelling knowledge across the academic year using a researcher developed, word-dictated spelling test administered in fall, winter, and spring of second grade. Second grade students (N =100) from 10 classes were the participants in this study. Students’ spelling tests were analyzed for patterns of overall growth, spelling pattern, and linguistic knowledge (i.e., phonological, orthographic, and morphological). Words were crossed with students to identify significant predictors of spelling accuracy. Hierarchical linear modeling and descriptive statistics were used to analyze the data. Results revealed that students demonstrated significant growth in their spelling performance from fall to spring. Number of letters predicted spelling accuracy at the end of the year, but word frequency and number of phonemes did not. Females were more accurate at spelling words than males. Students struggled with mastery of the spelling patterns expected to be taught and learned during second grade. There were relatively few phonological errors made in comparison to orthographic and morphological ones. Students in second grade, even those who made many spelling errors, tended to represent all the phonemes in their spellings. Orthographic errors occurred most frequently and there were no significant differences based on student demographics. Morphology remained difficult for all students throughout the year and would benefit from explicit instruction. Interestingly, results indicated that students and classes varied significantly in their spelling performance at the beginning of the year, but did not vary in their rate of growth. It is speculated this could be due, in part, to the lack of meaningful spelling instruction occurring at school.
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