Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a federally funded early literacy project that aimed to promote the school readiness skills of preschool-age children from low income families. Through daily, explicit, and systematic instruction, the project targeted to improve preschoolers’ oral language skills, phonological awareness, print awareness, and alphabet knowledge that aligned with the existing curriculum of the local school district. Data were collected through multiple sources at the individual child level, classroom level, and from the family/home environment. Significant gains were found between pre- and post-tests in child outcomes, classroom environments, instructional practices, parent attitudes toward early literacy, and family involvement in literacy activities. Additionally, classroom organization was identified as a significant predictor for children’s receptive language skills. Limitations of the current study and implications for future research as well as instructional practices were discussed.
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Notes
The alphabet knowledge subtest includes three separate but related tasks to assess the various levels of the alphabetic code: upper-case alphabet recognition, lower-case alphabet recognition, and letter sounds. Once a child demonstrates the ability to identify 16 or more upper-case letters, s/he moves to the Lower-Case Alphabet Recognition. Once a child names 9 or more lower-case letters correctly, s/he moves to Letter Sounds task.
For the first year of the project, the Fall semester was used to develop assessment plan, recruit and train project staff, and prepare materials and devices for intervention. Pre-intervention data were collected in January and post-intervention data were collected from mid-May to Mid-June.
For detailed information of the survey and a complete set of the results, please contact the first author.
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Xu, Y., Chin, C., Reed, E. et al. The Effects of a Comprehensive Early Literacy Project on Preschoolers’ Language and Literacy Skills. Early Childhood Educ J 42, 295–304 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-013-0613-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-013-0613-6