Elizabeth A. Sloat

Four Educational Myths That Stymie Social Justice

Abstract Four myths that underlie persistent, but ineffective, practices in early literacy education are analyzed in this article. Such analysis is essential because literacy disadvantage ultimately is an issue of equity—a matter of social justice. Research shows that these practices can be refuted and that optimal early literacy outcomes are possible for all students when parents, teachers, and school administrators serve as agents of equity.

The International Adult Literacy Survey: Implications for Canadian Social Policy

Results of the first (1994) International Adult Literacy Survey show a dispro- portionate number of Canadians scoring at the high and low ends of the scales used in the study. We outline three significant Canadian results; examine their implications for educators and policy makers; propose a number of interventions to support literacy learning, especially for families from low socio-economic back- grounds; and argue that a concerted effort by schools, communities, families, and governments is essential for literacy skill development throughout life. Les resultats de la premiere enquete internationale sur l’alphabetisation des adultes (1994) indiquent un nombre disproportionne de Canadiens se situant aux ex- tremites superieures et inferieures des echelles d’evaluation utilisees dans cette etude. Les auteurs presentent trois resultats canadiens significatifs, analysent leurs implications pour les enseignants et les decideurs, proposent plusieurs interven- tions en matiere d’alphabetisation, notamment pour les familles defavorisees sur le plan socio-economique, et affirment la necessite d’un effort concerte de la part des ecoles, des familles et des gouvernements pour le developpement de la litteratie tout au long de la vie.

Evaluating Programs for At-Risk Adolescents: Toward an Outcome-Based Assessment Framework

This article presents an outcome-based model for evaluating school and community programs serving at-risk adolescents, and a cost-effective technique for comparing the progress of youth receiving an intervention with youth in a pseudocontrol group. The outcomes considered most important for success were derived from the literature pertaining to at-risk youth, consultations with stakeholders who work with at-risk youth, and program leaders and teachers involved in a local program for youth disaffected from school. The analytic strategy entails matching children to comparable individuals participating in Canadas National Longitudinal Study of Children and Youth (Statistics Canada & Human Resources Development Canada, 1995). We provide information on the survey instruments used, discuss their reliability and validity, and describe our data collection issues and procedures. We conclude with the strengths, limitations, and implications of our approach for further research.

Parent-Mediated Reading Interventions With Children Up To Four Years Old: A Systematic Review

Research demonstrates that literacy and academic achievement are predicated on the emergent literacy knowledge and skills children acquire from birth up to 4 years of age. Parents are children’s first and most important language and literacy teachers, yet not all parents have the capacity to establish an adequate early literacy foundation. Efforts to address this situation have resulted in numerous programs aimed at fostering emergent literacy development. This systematic review evaluates evidence on the effectiveness of parent-mediated interventions that increase the time parents spend reading with young children up to 4 years old. Four studies met inclusion criteria, reporting outcomes for 664 children. Three provided data for meta-analysis of effects on reading duration. The standardized mean difference in reading duration was 1.61 (95% CI, 1.03, 2.19 fixed-effect), favoring intervention over control. Results indicate that interventions aimed at increasing the amount of time parents spend reading interactively with their children yield positive results. Findings also demonstrate that pediatric primary care providers are well positioned to deliver reading promotion programs to parents and preschoolers.

Effects of an Animated Book Reading Intervention on Emergent Literacy Skill Development An Early Pilot Study

Early language and reading experiences are known to predict later reading success. Interactive shared reading activities particularly benefit children’s emergent literacy development. Converging research has begun to show that certain educational television programs can significantly influence early literacy skill acquisition. There is a need, however, to combine interactive shared reading with the educational television production techniques known to purposefully facilitate emergent literacy. This research begins to address that need by pilot testing a research-based animated book reading intervention developed specifically to promote the vocabulary, alphabet knowledge, print concept, and rhyme knowledge of preschoolers in child care between the ages of 3 and 5 years. Employing a quasi-experimental pre- and posttest research design, results indicate that children in the experimental group made greater gains on standardized emergent literacy measures compared with children in a control group. Early findings suggest that the animated book reading intervention may be a feasible and effective way for child care educators to teach early reading skills.