Seminar SCALab 06/07/2023

Séverine Casalis, Ludivine Javourey, Gwendoline Mahé & Sandrine Mejias

From the learning of symbols to the access to meaning. 

Spelling and number processing

Compared to oral language, processing written language, and more particularly written words, requires adding a third component, the written symbol (i.e. letter). In the context of numerical processing, the written symbol corresponds to the Arabic digit (e.g. “3”).

Whether it is alphabetical spelling or the processing of Arabic digits, these systems constitute a secondary signaling coding compared to oral. Thus, from the point of view of the literate and numerate individual, the lexical and numerical processing consists in relating 3 types of representations: phonological representations, semantic representations and, orthographic/numerical representations (in both cases formal representations).  

Our work questions the way in which written symbols (spelling units/letters, Arabic numbers) are processed. Our work seeks to identify the constraints that weigh on their treatment.

We will present 4 different situations, implementing different populations and methodologies. The common goal pursued for some of us, in the language team, is to identify obstacles, constraints or levers that complicate/help the processing of orthographic or numerical information.