An alternative explanation of the divergent findings appearing in the literature on conceptual tempo and reading acquisition is presented. The discussion yields three hypotheses, which are the focus of the present study: (1) conceptual tempo is related to phonological awareness; (2) the relationship between phonological awareness and reading ability (in beginning readers) is stronger than the relationship between conceptual tempo and reading ability; and (3) conceptual tempo and phonological awareness are differentially related to the recognition of real and synthetic words. Thirty-seven first grade children were individually administered tests of verbal intelligence, conceptual tempo, phonological awareness, and reading ability. The data indicate that phonological awareness is significantly correlated with conceptual tempo, that phonological awareness is related to synthetic word recognition, and that synthetic word recognition is highly correlated with real word recognition. The results are explained in terms of a model of reading acquisition that emphasizes the role of metalinguistic abilities in learning to read.
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