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Assessing the Role of Book Reading Practices in Indian Bilingual Children’s English Language and Literacy Development

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Abstract

The goal of this study was to examine the role of Indian bilingual parents’ book reading practices on the development of the children’s oral language, narrative and literacy skills in English, their second language. About 24 bilingual children from two preschools in Bangalore, India were tested in schools in English on receptive vocabulary, complex syntax, narrative expression, phonological awareness, and concepts about print. The findings suggest that exposure to book reading in English is associated with bilingual children’s oral language, narrative and literacy development in their second language.

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Acknowledgments

The author would like to thank Dr. Elaine Reese for her help and support with previously different versions of this paper. This research was supported by funds from the Francis L. Hiatt Fund at Clark University.

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  1. Department of Psychology, Clark University, 950 Main Street, Worcester, MA, 01610, USA

    Vrinda Kalia

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  1. Vrinda Kalia
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Kalia, V. Assessing the Role of Book Reading Practices in Indian Bilingual Children’s English Language and Literacy Development. Early Childhood Educ J 35, 149–153 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-007-0179-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-007-0179-2

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