Association between the Quality of Teacher-Child Interaction and Language Development

Abstract

The article presents a review aimed at studying the relationship between classroom quality and preschoolers' language development. Classroom quality is understood as the quality of teacher-child interactions in the kindergarten classroom. The rationale for this study is determined by multiple findings that language development at preschool age is a powerful predictor of schooling outcomes. Research results are analyzed and systematized separately for three domains of the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CL ASS™): instructional support, emotional support, and classroom organization. We demonstrate which aspects of language development (phonological awareness, vocabulary, sound-letter knowledge) are affected more or less by classroom quality. The article presents the results of correlational and longitudinal studies. The high level of agreement among their findings indicates effectiveness of the CLASS™ as a method to assess classroom quality and the significant impact of classroom quality on language development in the three domains specified.