Dita.te-A Dictation Assessment Instrument with Automatic Analysis.

Area of Science:

• Linguistics
• Educational Psychology
• Speech and Language Pathology

Background:

• No validated automated tools exist for European Portuguese connected text dictation.
• Existing international studies focus on word dictation and lack automatic scoring.
• This study addresses the need for reliable assessment of children's written language skills.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the reliability (internal consistency, inter-rater) of the Dita.te tool for automated analysis of text dictation.
• To establish normative data for text dictation performance in European Portuguese children (3rd-6th grade).
• To analyze error patterns in children's orthographic performance.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the Dita.te tool with 315 European Portuguese children (3rd-6th grade).
• Assessed orthographic errors using phonological, morphological, and prosodic criteria.
• Analyzed reliability (internal consistency, inter-rater) and established normative data via descriptive statistics and non-parametric tests.

Main Results:

• The Dita.te tool demonstrated excellent internal consistency (α = 0.929) and inter-rater reliability (ICC = 0.925).
• Orthographic errors significantly decreased from 3rd to 6th grade.
• Syllable nucleus errors were most frequent, followed by orthographic substitutions (grapheme omission being prevalent).

Conclusions:

• The Dita.te tool is a reliable method for assessing children's connected text dictation in European Portuguese.
• Orthographic competence appears largely established before 3rd grade, with typical development showing residual errors.
• Findings provide valuable insights into developmental orthographic patterns and assessment needs.