Reading performance in Maltese children with Down syndrome: Cognitive and linguistic factors across orthographic systems

This study compared word and nonword reading abilities in Maltese-speaking children with Down syndrome versus typically developing peers matched on fluid intelligence, examining how cognitive-linguistic skills influence decoding across two languages with different orthographic depths. Participants with Down syndrome showed stronger word reading than nonword reading in both languages, with larger discrepancies in English (deeper orthography), while visual-perceptual skills and vocabulary differentially predicted reading outcomes by language.