There are several factors known to impact the alphabet knowledge of
young children without disabilities The impact of these factors on the alphabet
knowledge of students with significant cognitive disabilities is unknown The purpose
of this preliminary investigation was to explore the impact of three factors that
might influence uppercase alphabet knowledge among students with significant
cognitive disabilities own name letter order in the alphabet string, and letter frequency.
Archival data documenting identification of each of the 26 uppercase letters
of the alphabet for 131 8- to 21- year - old students were analyzed using a multilevel
logistic regression model. While the use of extant data has limitations, results
indicated that own-name advantage gave students a 10% greater likelihood of
knowing the first letter of their own first name/nickname than any other alphabet
letter. Letter-order analysis showed there were differences between letters found
earlier in the alphabet string versus those that were found later in the alphabet string
however the results were not statistically significant Letter-frequency analysis did
not reveal a significant impact of frequency on letter name knowledge in this
sample The findings provide preliminary evidence that at least some of the factors
that influence alphabet knowledge in young children without disabilities also impact
students with significant cognitive disabilities and point to the need for more
research in this area.

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• A preliminary exploration of uppercase letter-name knowledge among students with significant cognitive disabilities