An Examination of Three Predictors of Literacy for Preschool-Aged Children
Loading...
Authors
Rohn, Emily
Issue Date
2009
Type
Thesis
Language
en_US
Keywords
Alternative Title
Abstract
To be a functional member of society, learning to read is essential. In order t~ place
children in level-appropriate learning environments, it is considered important by experts
in the educational field to gauge these skills with empirical assessments. Prevalent
methods of assessing children's literacy have relied on measures of letter knowledge, the
ability to write one's name, the ability to regulate one's own behavior, phonological
processing abilities, and oral language skills. This study addresses the validity of three
generally held predictors of preschool literacy: name writing, alphabet knowledge, and
behavioral self-regulation. Research assistants assessed 71 preschoolers from two
laboratory schools in Michigan on these three skills at the beginning of the school year,
and assessed their Woodcock-Johnson letter-word identification scores at the end of the
school year. Results showed that alphabet knowledge was a valid predictor of literacy,
whereas name writing and behavioral self-regulation were not. These findings both
bolster and weaken some widely held beliefs about children's literacy; they support the
extensively documented notion that in order for preschoolers to process text on a page,
letter knowledge is essential. However, they refute recent findings that behavioral self-regulation -- the ability to process direction and correct one's own physical behavior -- as well as the ability to write one's own name are key to learning t~ read. These results
indicate that we must reevaluate our previously held notions about children's ability to
read, and they also suggest that it is important to support these basic skills early in order
to produce a literate and competent generation.
Description
vi, 32 p.
Citation
Publisher
License
U.S. copyright laws protect this material. Commercial use or distribution of this material is not permitted without prior written permission of the copyright holder. All rights reserved.