A critical review on the relationship between executive functions and literacy

Abstract

This thesis has explored and discussed the relationship between executive functions and reading in children between the ages of 4-7 years old, which are the years that early literacy skills are developed. The discussion was based on data gathered from a review of literature on this findings. The general conclusion was that there is significant theoretical and empirical evidence to suggest a relationship between executive functions and emergent literacy at this early age, but that the exact nature of this relationship is hard to establish concretely due to the inconsistent use of executive functions in the literature reviewed.