The Effects Of Two Different Instructional Programmes On Literacy Skills Of Kindergarten Children

Abstract

Lately, research exploring the effects of tutorial instructional programmes and educational games on literacy skills of kindergarten children has attracted large number of educational technology researchers and practitioners. Even though overwhelming research literature on the subject is available, the majority of this existing work is designed and organized in western contexts i.e. developed countries. Due to that reason, much less is known about the effects of tutorial instructional programmes and educational games on the literacy skills of Arabic speaking kindergarten children. Our study tries to bridge this gap in the existing literature by performing a comparison study of two different instructional programmes on the development of literacy skills amongst 5 to 6 years old kindergarten children in Saudi Arabia. As a result of this study, it was found that educational games were more effective in supporting and facilitating literacy skills of participating kindergarten children compared to tutorial instructional programmes.

Educational technology for reading instruction in developing countries: A systematic literature review

“…In addition, this screening process further supported comments made by many researchers that most of the existing research base on educational technology is based in developed countries, and that there is limited evidence to justify the technology interventions currently being implemented in developing countries (Gahwaji, 2016;Iyare et al, 2018;Piper et al, 2016;Rodriguez-Segura, 2020). A total of 158 texts were excluded for not being based in a developing country during the abstract screening phase, and another 31 when screening the full texts.…”

“…Ongoing teacher professional development was also mentioned as an important factor for the success of reading interventions in many studies (Castillo, 2017; Gahwaji, 2016; Mak et al, 2017; Oakley et al, 2018). An evaluation of technology to improve primary grade reading in Afghanistan recommended building teacher capacity to integrate technology into teaching and learning practices and adopt more student‐centred pedagogy (MGTWell Consulting Services, 2018).…”

“…The researchers came to similar conclusions as other studies about the importance of not merely providing technology, but using sequential, guided interactive software linked to learning goals, as they explain: it is not just exposure to English that matters for significant gains in the language; rather, it is the type of instruction a student receives, or the quality of instruction in which the software engages the students interactively in a hands-on, minds-on, scaffolded manner, that matters the most in developing steep gains. (Alvarez-Marinelli et al, 2016, p. 103) Similarly, Gahwaji (2016) found reasons for an educational game's effectiveness were the focus on specific literacy content, and continuous feedback to scaffold students in achieving more challenging tasks. He compared educational games with tutorial instructional programs for 41 kindergarteners in Saudi Arabia and found educational games led to a statistically significant improvement in literacy outcomes.…”

Wordless and Picture Books Model Development based on Minangkabau Folklore to Build Early Childhood Character and Literacy

“…In the context of Minangkabau culture, the identity and pride of being Minangkabauness who are known for their cultural and religious customs has began to fade away due to various influences [3]. Similarly, [22] states on his research that there has been a shift in the use of language in Minangkabau. The number of Minangkabau speakers does not guarantee that the mother tongue can be transmitted to their children.…”

Designing an Interactive Program in Arabic for Preschool Children Using Q-Mold Program

“…Sec interactive pr which ind xposing pres reach the lev ry [3], [4]. Stu activities invo vations becom mputer [5].Ins g and e-learnin tools because etween the le e the learner tools [6] The Saudi experience has been limited to the use of computers in education as a subject of study only or for teacher support, without being used as an educational tool, because of the lack the existence of good interactive programs in Arabic mostly [10]. Resulting in a need to improve interactive programs used in teaching preschool children to consider their cognitive patterns to increase motivation and children's learning, increase their enthusiasm towards learning, and develop their literacy and math skills attainment.…”