Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40841369›Full record

ArticleNPJ science of learning2025

The impact of classroom soundfield systems on reading fluency in normal-hearing students.

Lucy Shiels, Peter Carew, Dani Tomlin, Gary Rance

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in NPJ science of learning, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Lucy ShielsDepartment of Audiology and Speech Pathology, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia. shiels.l@unimelb.edu.au.
Peter CarewDepartment of Audiology and Speech Pathology, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia.
Dani TomlinDepartment of Audiology and Speech Pathology, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia.
Gary RanceDepartment of Audiology and Speech Pathology, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

This study investigated the impact of soundfield amplification (SFA) on reading fluency in normal-hearing students (n = 84) aged 8-10 years. Twenty-three grade 3 and 4 classes participated across three academic terms, alternating between SFA-On and SFA-Off conditions. Reading fluency was assessed using the Wheldall Assessment of Reading Passages. Baseline cognitive abilities, including non-verbal intelligence, auditory working memory, speech discrimination in noise, and attention, were also evaluated. Results showed no significant overall difference in reading fluency development between SFA-On and SFA-Off conditions. However, intelligence was mildly predictive of the reading fluency advantage obtained during SFA-On periods, with lower-IQ students benefiting more from amplification. The study's findings suggest that while SFA may not provide universal academic benefits for all students, it may offer advantages to students with lower cognitive abilities, suggesting it is a valuable support for the many classrooms that do not meet recommended acoustic standards.

Identifiers

PMID40841369
PMCPMC12371092

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.