Anglo-American University in Prague Psychology of Language and Literacy
| Course Name | Psychology of Language and Literacy |
| Course Code | PSY306 |
| Description | This course offers a comprehensive overview of the psychological foundations of language and literacy development with a particular focus on childhood and school-aged learning. Drawing on cognitive, linguistic, developmental, and neuropsychological perspectives, the course explores key components of language acquisition, emergent literacy, reading and spelling development, and reading comprehension. Attention is given to diverse learning contexts, including bilingual and multilingual environments, and to identifying and supporting learners with language and literacy difficulties such as developmental language disorder and dyslexia. Students will engage with both theoretical models and evidence-based examples of assessment approaches. |
| Learning Outcomes | By the end of the course, students will be able to: – Understand and compare key theoretical frameworks explaining the relationship between language development and literacy acquisition. – Identify cognitive, linguistic, and social factors that influence reading, spelling, and comprehension across different developmental stages. – Critically analyse cross-linguistic and multilingual perspectives on literacy, including the role of orthographic transparency and home literacy environments. – Recognize major developmental language and literacy disorders (e.g. DLD, dyslexia), including their diagnostic criteria, causes, and manifestations. – Apply basic assessment tools and interpret literacy data to evaluate early reading, comprehension, and language development. – Evaluate and propose evidence-based interventions tailored to diverse learners, including those with specific educational needs. – Explain key cognitive processes such as attention, memory, perception, and executive functions, and describe how they are studied in psychological research. |
| School | School of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Level | BA |
| Number of credits (US / ECTS) | 3 US / 6 ECTS |
| Prerequisites | PSY150 |