# Neurocognitive Basis of Language Comprehension in Children with Dyslexia

> **NIH NIH F32** · MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY · 2021 · $72,958

## Abstract

Developmental dyslexia (dyslexia) is an unexplained difficulty in learning to read, affecting approximately 10-
12% of all children. Dyslexia is characterized by deficits that result in slower and less accurate decoding,
important prerequisites for adequate reading comprehension, the overall goal of reading. As children progress
in school, when instructional focus shifts from “learning to read” to “reading to learn,” reading comprehension
becomes increasingly critical to academic success. Although much is known about the neurocognitive basis of
impaired single-word decoding in dyslexia, very little is known about the neurocognitive basis of impaired reading
comprehension in dyslexia. This is a major gap in knowledge, as it is the comprehension impairment that places
the greatest burden on children with dyslexia throughout their education. Guided by the conceptual framework
of the Simple View of Reading, the current proposal will address this gap by investigating the neural and cognitive
components of reading comprehension in children with dyslexia (Dys) and their typically developing peers (Typ).
I will recruit 30 Typ and 30 Dys second and third grade children, matched in age, gender, and parental education
levels. All children will be comprehensively assessed using tests of oral language, reading, and cognitive skills.
Structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging data will also be collected. I will examine the structural
substrates of listening comprehension and decoding, and observe how they vary between Typ and Dys. I will
relate functional brain activation during listening comprehension and decoding tasks to children’s out-of-scanner
reading comprehension performance separately in Dys and Typ. Finally, I will test whether cognitive and
linguistic factors, as well as brain structure, mediate the association between decoding and reading
comprehension differently across the two groups. Knowledge gained from this project will provide a better
understanding of variation in reading comprehension skills in dyslexia, and potentially inform assessment and
remediation efforts for children with dyslexia and poor comprehension. The proposed study will provide ample
opportunities to complete the fellowship training goals by advancing the following: 1) conceptual understanding
of language development and comprehension, 2) technical expertise in advanced behavioral and neuroimaging
methods, and 3) translational knowledge of how children with developmental language disorders are helped in
clinical settings.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10240729
- **Project number:** 5F32HD100064-03
- **Recipient organization:** MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
- **Principal Investigator:** Ola Ozernov-Palchik
- **Activity code:** F32 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $72,958
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-09-01 → 2023-02-28

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10240729

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10240729, Neurocognitive Basis of Language Comprehension in Children with Dyslexia (5F32HD100064-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10240729. Licensed CC0.

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