Early Literacy Instruction and Learning in Kindergarten: Evidence From the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study—Kindergarten Class of 1998–1999

Abstract

Using a nationally representative sample of 13,609 kindergarten children in 2,690 classrooms and 788 schools from the base year of the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998–1999, along with three-level hierarchical linear models, this study investigates the impact of early literacy instruction on kindergarten children’s learning, as measured by direct cognitive test scores, indirect teacher ratings of children’s achievement in language and literacy, and indirect teacher ratings of children’s approaches to learning. Two composite measures of phonics and integrated language arts are constructed from teachers’ reports of their instructional practices. Findings show that classroom mean outcomes were significantly higher when classroom teachers reported using both integrated language arts and phonics more often. However, children with low initial performance benefited less from integrated language arts instruction, as measured by direct measures of achievement; such differential effects of instruction were not observed for teacher ratings of children’s achievement and learning style. Policy implications of the findings are discussed.

Exploring parental involvement and teachers’ activities in early literacy development

“…Studies on the relation of preschool programs, elementary school reading instruction and peers to reading competence have proven that classroom environments that are rich in literacy materials, that have teachers with high expectations of students and with adequate preparation to teach reading, that provide opportunities for dialogic reading or for children to be involved in the book reading experience, that provide support and opportunities for writing, and that promote stimulating teacher-child conversations enhance early language and literacy skills. They also suggest that peers play a role in influencing early reading proficiency, with children in schools with larger concentrations of less skilled, lower SES, an minority peers exhibiting lower gains in reading during the kindergarten year (Xue & Meisels, 2004).…”

Does Structure of Content Delivery or Degree of Professional Development Support Matter for Student Reading Growth in High-Poverty Settings?

“…In the conditional model predictor variables, interaction terms and control variables were added to the model to determine if each accounted for significant variation. In each set of models, all noncategorical variables were standardized (M = 0, SD = 1) to allow for a comparison of coefficients in standard deviation units (e.g., Xue & Meisels, 2004). The metric also allowed for a comparison of effect coefficients across HLM models.…”

How do teachers respond to tenure?

“…Palardy and Rumberger (2008) found positive effects on student achievement by teachers who use different curricula and approaches to instructional practices (e.g., journal writing, silent reading, geometric manipulations, etc.). Other literature has found similar effects of instructional practices on student achievement (Lee et al 1997;Xue and Meisels 2004;Guarino and Hamilton 2006). In the SASS, teachers who serve as curriculum specialists may be willing to improve their curriculum and approach to teaching.…”