The relationship of students' classroom behaviour and word reading—The role of on‐task behaviour as a mediator

Abstract The aim of the present study is to examine the relationship between students' classroom behaviour and word reading (decoding), considering the role of students' engagement in learning (defined as on‐task behaviour, OTB, as part of the more global ‘behavioural engagement’ sensu Fredricks) as a mediator between behaviour and reading. A wide range of classroom behaviour of 171 first‐grade students (M = 6.7 years; SD = 0.30), including internalizing and externalizing behaviour, was rated after 2 months of schooling in grade one. Reading was tested at the end of first grade. Results indicated that out of six behavioural dimensions we analysed, only depression, aggression and hyperactivity had significant indirect effects on reading test scores via students' on‐task behaviour, but no direct effects. Impulsivity, withdrawal and oppositional behaviour showed no effects at all. Learning engagement had a significant effect on reading.