The development of word segmentation and writing in two scripts

• Published in: Cognitive development 1998, Vol.13 (1), p.1-24
• Main Authors: Tolchinsky, Liliana, Teberosky, Ana
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0885-2014; 1879-226X
• DOI: 10.1016/S0885-2014(98)90018-1

This study examined the changes in word segmentation and word writing from preschool through second grade in Hebrew and Spanish, two languages which use different scripts. Participants were 56 Spanish-speaking and 59 Hebrew-speaking children from middle-class public schools in Barcelona and Tel Aviv. Word segmentation developed with grade level from segmentation according to syllables to segmentation into subsyllabic elements. Very few children were able to completely segment words into consonants and vowels. The syllable was found to be the most important unit of segmentation across grade levels and in both language groups, although to a greater degree in Spanish. Two oral segmentation strategies were language specific: oral spelling in the Spanish group and pronunciation of consonants in isolation in the Hebrew group. Word writing evolved with grade level from formally constrained writing through syllabic mapping to alphabetic writing, according to the particular constraints of each script.