Reading/Writing Interventions Joint Storybook Reading and Joint Writing Interventions Among Low SES Israeli Preschoolers: Differential Contribution to Early Literacy

The study compared two interventions: one focusing on language and storybook reading and the other on alphabetic skills and writing. Seventy-one preschoolers from a low SES city in [the center of] Israel, age 3-5 (35 in the reading program and 36 in the writing program) participated in the study. Twenty-four untreated preschoolers were chosen for control purposes. The children were tested twice, at the beginning and at the end of the school year, in: alliteration, rhyming, word writing, letter knowledge, orthographic awareness, listening comprehension, receptive vocabulary (PPVT) and general knowledge (WPPSI). The writing program involved games and activities that encouraged letter knowledge, phonological awareness, and functional writing activities. The reading program utilized 11 children’s books. In each reading session, student-mediators read the book aloud twice and discussed central concepts and ideas via games, creative activities, and drama activities. Results indicated that children in the two literacy programs progressed significantly more than the control group on three out of the five early literacy measures (alliteration, rhyming, and orthographic awareness). However, the joint writing group significantly outperformed both the joint reading group and the control group on all five literacy measures (alliteration, rhyming, word writing, orthographic awareness, and letter knowledge). We also found that children as young as 3 to 4 years gained from literacy programs as much as did older children, aged 4 to 5, on all the measures assessed in our program. The younger children even gained significantly more than the older children on receptive vocabulary (PPVT). Reading/Writing Interventions Joint Storybook Reading and Joint Writing Interventions Among Low SES Israeli Preschoolers: Differential Contribution to Early Literacy The present study examined the differential effects of major daily adult-child activities in promoting various skills related to early literacy among young children from a background of low socioeconomic status (SES). We questioned: What should daily literacy interactions with preschoolers emphasize to help equip them better for reading and writing acquisition when they start formal schooling two or three years later? This study compared the effects of two programs aiming to promote literacy among low SES preschool children aged 3-5. One program focused on alphabetic skills via joint writing activities; the other dealt with general competencies via joint storybook reading and linked activities. Poverty comprises a major environmental high-risk factor that exerts a profound adverse effect on many aspects of development in ways that are not yet completely understood (Starfield, 1992). Children from low SES generally reach a lower level of literacy than their peers from middle or high SES, a discrepancy that is already salient in preschool. Research in Israel showed that preschoolers and kindergartners from lower SES lag behind their counterparts on emergent literacy measures such as recognition of environmental print, phonological awareness, letter naming, word writing, word recognition, and orientation to print (Aram & Levin, 2001; Korat, Bachar, & Snapir, in press; Levin, Korat, & Amsterdamer, 1996; Levin, Share, & Shatil, 1996). Researchers in other countries have been reported similar findings during the last three decades (e.g., Bowey, 1995; Dickinson & Snow, 1987; McCormick & Mason, 1986; Snow, Burns, & Griffin, 1998; Wells, 1985). The emergence of this link in various societies and across decade suggests multiple causes that appear difficult to counteract. The field of early education has struggled to demonstrate conclusively the efficacy of early interventions as a means to combat the damaging effects of poverty on young children (Zigler, Reading/Writing Interventions 2000). General consensus exists that literacy begins to emerge during infancy (Scarborough, 2002; Whitehurst & Lonigan, 2002). Evidence suggests a continuity from early literacy in preschool to literacy achievement in school (Aram & Levin, 2003; Levin, Ravid, & Rapoport, 2001; Shatil, Share, & Levin, 2000) and even to higher education (Cunningham & Stanovich, 1997). A good start is likely to help children become active in literacy and develop efficient reading habits. Yet, minimal understanding exists concerning how classrooms and preschool teachers can support literacy emergence (Dickinson, 2002). During the last decade, changes occurred in researchers’ and educators’ vision of developmentally appropriate literacy practices for young children. Two shifts transpired: First, from a position that favored free natural exposure to literacy and resented any tendency to use formal teaching techniques, educators moved to a stance that recognizes the importance of direct mediation. Second, a shift occurred from emphasizing mainly general language abilities to paying more attention to alphabetic skills like letter recognition and phonemic awareness. Promoting Early Literacy Zigler (2000), in a forward to a handbook on early childhood intervention, wrote (p. XII): Now that we have a clearer picture of the general program efficacy, the major task is to identify which programs work better and how these results are achieved, as well as which components of programs are most essential to achieve maximum benefit. This latter question is critical, given the limited funding with which most intervention programs must be mounted and sustained. Interventionists (educational planners, policy makers, researchers, etc.) have developed numerous programs to induce teachers of young children, especially from low SES, to promote early literacy—mainly via two means: storybook reading and alphabetic skills training.