Reading comprehension skill in English as a second language of Japanese middle school students with cochlear implants

Objectives To assess the English reading comprehension skill of Japanese middle school students with cochlear implants (CIs). Materials and Methods The subjects were pre- or perilingually deafened CI recipients between seventh and ninth grades (age 12-15 years). English reading comprehension skill was evaluated using the Norm Referenced Test developed for Japanese students. Furthermore, factors related to English reading comprehension were assessed, focusing on a total of 11 variables: age; sex; age at CI; length of CI use; aided pure-tone thresholds with CI; Japanese listening word recognition score; performance intelligence quotient (PIQ) score; verbal intelligence quotient (VIQ); grade; school type; and Japanese reading comprehension skill. Results A total of 40 subjects completed the test. Their average word recognition score was good, at 80.2%,and the average age at CI was late, at 4.4 years. The chi-square goodness of fit test showed the English reading comprehension skill level deviated toward lower achievement in the students with CIs compared with children with normal-hearing. VIQ and Japanese reading comprehension skill were correlated with English reading skill. On the other hand, there was no relationship between English reading skill and the factors of hearing level and CI experience.