Reading and Language Performance of Low-Income, African American Boys in Grades 1–5

Abstract

This investigation examined the gender gap in language and reading skills in a sample of low-income African American boys compared to African American girls from the same neighborhoods and schools. Using a longitudinal, accelerated cohort design, we used individual growth curve models to evaluate the reading and language performance of 1st through 5th graders. We analyzed data for 7 outcomes: (a) language, (b) letter-word identification, (c) passage comprehension, (d) decoding, (e) reading fluency, (f) reading vocabulary, and (g) intelligence. Descriptive statistics revealed no statistically significant differences in performance on language or intelligence measures between boys and girls at any grade level. Conversely, all 5 reading skills measured (e.g., decoding, fluency, and reading vocabulary) showed significant differences in performance by gender favoring girls, but only in 4th and 5th grades. Growth models revealed no differences in the growth trajectories of boys and girls for language or intelligence. However, we observed gender differences in growth trajectories for 2 reading measures—passage comprehension and reading fluency—with girls demonstrating slightly faster growth compared to boys on a measure of passage comprehension and boys showing significant deceleration in reading fluency at 5th grade. We discuss the results relative to African American boys and expected patterns of achievement in language and reading during elementary school.