Exploring the Opportunities for Online Assessment of Phonological Awareness at the Beginning of Schooling

Phonological awareness plays a key role in learning to read; therefore, its assessment has received a lot of attention. Research in the domain of phonological awareness has been characterized by attempts to develop reliable and valid assessment tools for diverse populations. Over the past few decades, phonological awareness assessment has gone through a significant evolution. Computer-delivered tests have led to new opportunities. Integrating the new medium into the testing process offers multiple benefits compared to traditional face-to-face and paper-and-pencil methods. Studies on the feasibility, structure and results of online assessments are scarce. The aim of the present study is to explore the possibilities for a technology-based assessment of phonological awareness of Hungarian first language learners ( N = 5838) and to develop a reliable and valid online instrument. Results suggest that we have managed to develop a valid, reliable and easy-to-use online phonological awareness test that can be used easily in elementary school classroom settings. The unique results about the multi-dimensional nature of the construct can help rethinking and reconceptualizing phonological assessment in a wide range of languages. Since Hungarian is a language with a high level of orthographic transparency, the results could be generalized to other languages with similar qualities.