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Background: The use of mobile health (mHealth) technology is rapidly expanding in healthcare worldwide. mHealth tools may provide parents with access to resources essential for promoting language development. Aim: The current study aimed to determine how an mHealth parental resource influenced 42 preschool children's (4.0-5.11 months old) language abilities after a 17-week intervention period. Setting: Participants were identified from six early childhood development (ECD) centres from a low-income community in Tshwane, South Africa. Method: A randomised controlled trial (RCT), pre-test post-test research design was employed to determine whether an mHealth parental resource influenced 42 preschool children's (4.0-5.11 months old) language abilities after a 17-week intervention period. Data were collected using the language subtests of a South African standardised protocol, the Emergent Literacy and Language Assessment Protocol (ELLA). Results: The parental mHealth application targeting language stimulation did not significantly improve the experimental group's language outcomes when compared with the control group because most of the parents (n = 27) used the application for less than 20% of the active days. Conclusion: Providing parents with more support with mobile resources may lead to improved usage of the application.

Literacy is essential to the development of any nation. Despite foreign aid to support education initiatives in Africa, high rates of illiteracy persist. This synthesis examined the extent to which early literacy intervention research has been conducted in Africa and the effects of these interventions on reading outcomes for students in kindergarten through third grade. Through an extensive search of published and unpublished research conducted in Africa between 1975 and 2019, 10 studies met inclusion criteria. Only four African countries were represented, with most studies being conducted in South Africa (k = 6). There was a wide range of effects (g = -0.88 to 6.98), with substantial variability in study methodology and intervention delivery. Findings from this review suggest that early literacy interventions are understudied in African countries and, as such, there is limited knowledge about the degree to which interventions with evidence of effectiveness are generalizable to these contexts.

As the world came to grips with the coronavirus diseases (COVID-19), educational institutions and the society at large faced the challenge of figuring out how to continue with teaching and learning in such a context. Many countries, including South Africa made efforts to help contain and suppress the spread of COVID-19. In the South African education sector, about 13 million learners and 440 000 teachers were released before the end of the first school term in March 2020. In addition, 30 000 Early Childhood Development (ECD) centres, about 100 000 teachers were also required to end their term before the official closing date. For many young learners, the lockdown period meant that they would be at home with (a) Limited access to age appropriate, fun and explicitly educational resources to play with as many shops considered resources that could be used to develop children's sensory skills as not essential goods (b) They had limited exposure to structured learning and play as most caregivers are not qualified ECD practitioners (c) Children could not play outside, visit playgrounds and parks, yet, freedom of movement, activity and exercise is important for every child's development and young children learn best through play and experimenting (d) Most of their curriculum content cannot be fully taught using online platforms. Given this background, through a semi-ethnographic study, the paper documents the early literacy experiences of two 3 year old children during the COVID-19 lockdown in South Africa. In addition, analysis of parents or caregivers' feedback about their experiences in providing assistance to the young learners during the lockdown is presented. Findings of the study show that in both research contexts, literacy practices were different, but not lesser. Challenging as it was for the caregivers to support the development of literacy, the home environment provided many opportunities for learning.

Background: The Early Learning Outcomes Measure (ELOM) assesses early learning programme outcomes in children aged 50-69 months. ELOM assesses gross motor development (GMD), fine motor coordination and visual motor integration (FMC & VMI), emergent numeracy and mathematics (ENM), cognition and executive functioning (CEF), and emergent literacy and language (ELL). Content and construct validity, reliability and cross-cultural fairness have been established. Aim: To establish the test-retest reliability and concurrent validity of the ELOM. Setting: Low income preschool and Grade R children. Methods: In study one, Test-retest reliability was investigated in a convenience sample of 49 English and isiXhosa speaking preschool children (Mean age = 60.77 months, SD = 3.70) tested and retested one week apart. In study two, concurrent validity was investigated in a convenience sample of 62 children (Mean age = 75.05 months, SD = 0.75). ELOM performance was compared with that on the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence Fourth Edition (WPPSI-IV). Results: Test-retest reliability was established for ELOM Total score (r = 0.90, p < 0.001). The concurrent validity of ELOM Total and the WPPSI-IV Full Scale Composite scores was established (r = 0.64, p < 0.001). FMC & VMI, CEF, and ELL domains correlated significantly with their corresponding WPPSI-IV indices: visual spatial, fluid reasoning, processing speed, working memory, and verbal comprehension. Conclusion: The findings of both psychometric studies contribute further to the reliability and validity of the ELOM.

Background: In this article, an analysis is done of the out of school factors of Foundation Phase learners that could influence the proper development of these learners' language abilities. Specific reference is made to the home environment of Foundation Phase learners in rural Mpumalanga. Aim: This article aims to draw attention to the fact that there are many factors in the out-of-school environment of Foundation Phase learners that could influence the young learners' ability to develop their language skills and language abilities well. Setting: This article relates to the out-of-school environment of Foundation Phase learners with specific reference to the influence of the environment at home of Foundation Phase learners in four schools in rural Mpumalanga. Bronfenbrenner's ecological system's theory is incorporated as it explains the home environment as the microsystem in a child's life. The home is the place where a child's first and vital education takes place and where the acquisition of language skill begins. Methods: In this article, sections from a qualitative research project, as well as a literature review were used. Results: The results show that there are many factors in the out-of-school environment of Foundation Phase learners that could influence the development of the learners' language skills and language abilities. Conclusion: The authors argue that if teachers and other school staff members are aware of the many aspects arising from the out-of-school environment that could influence young learners' well-being and progress, especially with regard to language abilities at school, they could help to address and overcome the unconstructive language influences in the lives of their young custodians.

Research Findings: Community-based playgroups in low-and-middle-income countries increase access to early learning at lower cost than centers. However, evidence of effectiveness is limited. The effects of one, two, or three playgroup sessions per week on children's performance on the Early Learning Outcome Measure (ELOM) (n = 112; baseline M = 55.32 months) were investigated using a quasi-experimental design. Data on children's home learning environments was obtained from primary caregivers, and program staff provided information on playgroup characteristics. Multilevel modeling demonstrated significant differences between programs in ELOM score improvement over eight months participation (F = 6.48; p = 0.01); Fisher LSD Post Hoc pairwise comparisons indicated that three session playgroups produced significantly greater gains than two and one session models (p < 0.01). ELOM Total scores at baseline, and the quality of children's interactions with adults and peers, predicted growth in ELOM Total scores by endline. Baseline age, height-for-age, child-practitioner ratio, and caregiver time for activities with their children, predicted growth in certain ELOM domains at endline. Practice or Policy: Until provision of quality center-based provision is realized, our findings indicate that well-designed community-based playgroups of sufficient dose, have the potential to improve learning outcomes and school readiness in children from poor households.

Parent participation is fundamental to children's early literacy development and later academic success. This small-scale qualitative study located in the interpretivist paradigm utilised semistructured interviews to collect data from two Grade R teachers' concerning their perceptions of parent participation in children's early literacy development. Findings revealed that teachers had a narrow and limiting understanding concerning parental involvement. Teachers attested to parents not being interested in their children's early literacy due to their socio-economic positions which hurdled their commitments to work. Teachers wanted parents to participate in storytelling but on their terms. These findings have important implications for how policy and practice need to be reconceptualised for a stronger focus on parental participation in children's early literacy and holistic parental participation.

Fifty-three percent of Grade 4 learners cannot read for meaning in low- and middle-income countries despite an investment of between 33-49% of education expenditure on primary education. Teaching children to read in the early grades is fundamental to building resilient education systems, as the ability to read early in life is a great predictor for education success, and will minimise learning loss during education emergencies similar to COVID-19 school closures, for children who can read for meaning can carry on learning outside of school buildings. Further, the predicted financing gaps in the next few years, as a result of COVID-19, will require governments to utilise limited financial resources effectively and efficiently by implementing literacy programmes proven to be impactful, using financial instruments like outcomes-based contracting that can mobilise and coordinate non-traditional educational finance and incentivise service providers to improve results by paying for achievement of agreed outcomes.

A documented transcript and a series of still images from two spontaneous, incidental and intra-active pedagogical encounters in a preschool are the focus and the source of this article. A turning over of data generated through a piece of doctoral research that explored intra-active learning as a phenomenon makes visible the agency of names and drawings in collaborative and intra-active literacy 'becomings'. These are the workings of a diffractive data analysis. Already strong affective connections between the children give buoyancy to the playful recitation of written names on a pile of pages. Familiar Grade R (reception year) activities take flight and diffract with age, race and gender to produce new knowledge about 'what matters' in early childhood. There are both inward and outward flows between the micro and the macro worlds of 'becoming reader' and 'becoming learner' as names move in between the sounds of belonging and recognition (the children's and their classmates' names), and the pull of identifiable shapes and letters, words and meaning. The importance of drawing as meaning-making is affirmed but exceeded as an experimental performativity spills over into further exploration that was shared and extended with a friend. The analysis moves between and among the conceptual, real and virtual through reflective and diffractive insights. The researcher notices patterns of sameness and difference in the playful literacy and drawing events performed by the children with their lively classroom environment. Reconceptualizing the material products of learning as lively co-producers of knowledge with their authors requires a reconceptualizing of the human and a refiguring of the child as learner. Making the 'child' visible in posthumanist research means recognizing the inseparability of the learner from the learning and the temporal, material and spatial realities that produce it, and noticing the lively entanglements of names and drawings and what they do.

Background: Research on teacher professional learning which supports teaching of reading and writing at the foundation phase (FP) is limited in developing countries, including South Africa. Aim: This article examines the ways in which three Foundation Phase teachers changed their practice during 18 months of learning from a formal university programme, the Advanced Certificate in Teaching (ACT). Setting: The ACT was offered by the University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. Methods: The principles of teaching English as a First Additional Language (EFAL) were used as an instrument for describing change in practice. Using nine principles of teaching EFAL, derived from the ACT literacy learning guide as indicators, six video-recorded lessons (per teacher) were analysed and corroborated with interviews and field notes. Results: The findings indicate a shift in teachers' practice in diverse ways. Two of the three teachers completed the programme having developed a deeper understanding of the natural approaches of acquiring EFAL according to Krashen's model. However, the third teacher did not change her practice. Conclusion: We argue that the findings support the research claim that teacher learning is influenced not only by the nature of the professional development activity but also by teachers' personal motivation to learn, and the school context in which they teach.

Background: Many South African children attend African language medium of instruction (MOI) schools, learn English as an additional language and switch to English MOI three years later. There is still much to be researched about how a child's first and second language literacy develops over time in South Africa. Aim: This study aims to outline the first and second language skills at the start of Grade 1, which are associated with English Second Language literacy at the end of Grade 1 through the use of a longitudinal design. Setting: Data was collected from 80 predominantly rural no-fee isiZulu and Siswati MOI schools in Mpumalanga. Methods: A total of 1347 learners were randomly selected from these schools and were individually assessed on various first language (isiZulu or Siswati) and English skills at the start and end of Grade 1. Results: The data show that learners begin school with varying first and second language oral language proficiency levels, and most learners are pre-literate. Decoding skills improved over the year, but 45.7% and 35% of learners were still unable to read a first language or English word correctly in 1 min. Conclusion: The data confirm the importance of first language phonological awareness and letter-sound knowledge for later word-reading abilities in isiZulu, Siswati and English, as well as their importance for English spelling. The study highlights the importance of the systematic development of English oral proficiency during the Foundation Phase especially for rural children who are not exposed to English in their communities.

Background: The role of phonological awareness (PA) in successful reading attainment in Northern Sotho has received some attention. However, the importance of developing an awareness to the different phonological grain sizes that underlie decoding (i.e. to different dimensions of PA) has not been established in this language. Aim: This study assessed different levels of PA in Northern Sotho learners in order to determine the relationship between phoneme awareness, syllable awareness and reading. Setting: The research was conducted in Atteridgeville, a suburb in Tshwane. The participants were Grade 3 learners who spoke Northern Sotho as home language, and who received their literacy instruction in Northern Sotho in the foundation phase. Method: The research was cross-sectional, with a correlational component. Phoneme awareness was assessed via a phoneme identification and elision task, whereas syllable awareness was assessed with a syllable elision task. Results: Statistical analyses revealed that Northern Sotho learners are significantly better at identifying syllables than phonemes, but that phoneme awareness predicts reading outcomes more accurately. Conclusion: This study suggests that phoneme awareness does not necessarily develop early or automatically in languages with a simple syllable structure and a transparent orthography and evaluates this finding against the predictions of the Psycholinguistic Grain Size Theory. The importance of explicitly teaching phoneme-grapheme correspondences to Northern Sotho learners is highlighted.

Background: A large amount of evidence highlights the obvious inequalities in literacy results of South African learners. Despite this, a sound understanding of how learners approach the task of reading in the African languages is lacking. Aim: This article examines the role of the syllable, phoneme and morpheme in reading in transparent, agglutinating languages. The focus is on whether differences in the orthographies of isiXhosa and Setswana influence reading strategies through a comparative study of the interaction between metalinguistic skills and orthography. Setting: Data was collected from Grade 3 first-language and Grade 4 Setswana home language learners attending no fee schools in the Eastern Cape and North West Province respectively. Methods: Learners were tested on four linguistic tasks: an open-ended decomposition task, a phonological awareness task, a morphological awareness task and an oral reading fluency task. These tasks were administered to determine the grain size unit which learners use in connected-text reading. Results: The results indicated that syllables were the dominant grain size in both isiXhosa and Setswana, with the use of morphemes as secondary grains in isiXhosa. These results are reflected in the scores of the metalinguistic tasks. Conclusion: This research contributes to an understanding of how linguistic and orthographic features of African languages need to be taken into consideration in understanding literacy development.

This article argues that imaginative play can fulfil a valuable role in the development of reading among pre-school children. It uses Feuerstein's Mediated Learning Experience as a theoretical lens and defines the concepts related to imaginative play, focussing particularly on symbolic and dramatic play. Drawing on an ethnographic case study of the reading development of four pre-schoolers, aged between 5 and 6, in their home environments in KwaZulu-Natal, it shows how imaginative play is a generative aspect of early reading in the home. It is through imaginative play that the children were able to make sense of what they had read, transfer it to other contexts and explore its implications in a child-centred way. Imaginative play can take early reading from the realms of print and digital media into those of movement, dressing-up, role-playing, visual and aural stimulation--holistic and integrative ways of 'comprehending' the text. The article concludes with a discussion of the challenges and potential pedagogical implications of the research findings.

Early literacy teaching and learning in the foundation phase of rural schools in South Africa experience persistent challenges. In order to address some of these challenges, a national reading programme to improve literacy among rural learners was initiated by a nongovernmental organisation. The article provides an overview of how teachers in selected Eastern Cape foundation classrooms use the reading programme to enhance literacy of the learners. The objectives of the article are to investigate how the reading project has been incorporated into the teachers' teaching pedagogy and their perceptions as to how the reading programme has contributed to the school and community. Four purposively selected rural schools, each being part of the reading programme, served as research sites. Participants included eight teachers who used the reading supplement in their classroom. Qualitative data were gathered using semi-structured interviews with the teachers in each school. Through a process of thematic content analysis, the following themes emerged: (1) pedagogical challenges, (2) infrastructure and provisioning for literacy and (3) community engagement. The considerations for future reading programmes in rural areas include cost, availability of resources, training of teachers and practical aspects of the supplement, for example, font size and length of stories. These findings illustrate how the foundation teachers use the reading programme to enhance the literacy curriculum in schools situated in rural settings. The recommendation of the article is that the reading programme is useful and teachers should be encouraged to use the supplement reading activities in the foundation phase.

Despite evidence supporting the implementation of book sharing interventions, few studies have examined the value of providing caregiver training in these contexts. This study draws on the quantitative findings of a larger project that employed a non-randomized comparison group crossover repeated measures design as part of a mixed research approach. The goal of the study was to determine the outcome of a caregiver training video on the book sharing behaviours of 40 caregiver-child dyads in an impoverished peri-urban settlement in South Africa. Children in this study were aged 3 to 6 years of age. Caregivers included older siblings, parents, and other relatives. Findings revealed a significant improvement in caregiver shared reading behaviours in both experimental and comparison groups after viewing the caregiver training video, both within and between groups. The significant change in the shared reading behaviours of the caregivers and children, coupled with the positive impact observed in the children and the cost-effective nature of the intervention, suggest that training videos may constitute an effective intervention medium with the potential to promote children's literacy as a population-based intervention in majority world settings.

Multiple studies and systematic reviews have shown that music instruction improves phonological awareness (PA) and early literacy skills in children, although findings vary. In meta-analyses, the reliability and significance of the transfer effect are reduced. The study evaluated the effect of varying durations of music instruction exposure, over a single academic year, on PA and early literacy of young children. Based on the exposure to music instruction, participants were assigned to either a low- or high-exposure group. Additional analyses were conducted for 17 age-matched pairs and to compare participants that only received class music to those that received additional music instruction. Between-groups comparisons showed no significant difference after a single academic year of music instruction. Within-groups comparisons identified more PA improvements in the high-exposure group. Exposure to music instruction for no less than one academic year, is required to conclusively evaluate the effect on PA and early literacy.

The purpose of this study was to find out how parents can contribute to the early reading development of children in a Grade R class. The research was conducted in a low-income area in the Cape Flats. To gain a deeper understanding of the parents' cultural values and aspirations when interacting with the Home-School Partnership Programme (HSPP) literacy programme, I elected to frame my study within the work of Paulo Freire, who argued that the purpose of education, at the time of his writing, was to make oppressed people passive. Qualitative data were gathered in a case study research design, utilising focus group interviews and semi-structured questionnaire tools, as well as footage from a local broadcasting studio. The findings show that the parents, who were previously unable to assist their children with literacy skills at home, were keen to change and to be active partners in their children's early literacy learning. This research is a descriptive example of how the home, the school and the community can collaborate in a meaningful and sustained way, especially in poverty-stricken areas where unemployment is rife.

This article examines two teachers' discourses of literacy as social practice in advantaged and disadvantaged early childhood centres for three- to four-year-olds. The intention is to make sense of the dominant discourse of literacy, its constitutive nature and its effects on children, teaching and learning. Foucault's theory of discourse is used to make salient the influence of interpretive frames of references on the understanding and practice of literacy. The data for the study was produced through a qualitative approach using in-depth semi-structured interviews. The findings show that teachers in both the advantaged and disadvantaged contexts are located in the dominant discourse of early literacy as a technical, autonomous skill. This discourse foregrounds children as adults-in-the-making (the becoming child) and a maturationist-environmentalist view of readiness for early literacy development. This narrow view of literacy discounts young children's positioning as social actors, issues of diversity and contextually situated practice.

Research has revealed that the academic performances of learners in South Africa are below the required level. The Western Cape Education Department (WCED) launched the literacy and numeracy strategy 2006-2016 in response to the low literacy and numeracy levels. In addition, the WCED introduced the Grade 1 baseline assessment in 2006, as part of the literacy and numeracy strategy. The purpose of this study was to observe the implementation of the Grade 1 literacy baseline assessment programme of the WCED. This study aimed to determine what literacy barriers, if any, the learners were experiencing and to recommend literacy support strategies, in order to inform teaching practices. Purposive sampling was used for the selection of a Grade 1 class, with English as the language of learning and teaching. Thirty-seven Grade 1 learners participated in the study. A mixed-methods research design was used to collect both quantitative and qualitative data. The data collection strategies employed included documentary analysis, by examining participants' school admission forms to provide biographical information as well as their written baseline assessment scripts. The baseline assessment process was also observed as it was being conducted. The findings suggest that some of the learners experienced literacy barriers in terms of receptive and expressive language, perceptual skills and fine motor development. The data were summarised, and the information was used to describe the literacy barriers in terms of the biographical variables and to recommend learning support strategies for literacy development.

This study employs the Comprehensive Emergent Literacy Model (CELM) theoretical framework, as it refers to the impact of context on learning early literacy skills. It is relevant to this study as the participants were English second language learners from cultures, communities, and demographics different from those of English first language speakers in South Africa. Early literacy skills, specifically phonological awareness (PA), are predictive of later literacy success. Many English second language (EL2) learners are unable to develop language and early literacy skills. Foundational skills such as general PA skills, often need explicit instruction to prepare the learners to learn to read in English. Twenty-one EL2 Grade 1 learners in an English medium private school in South Africa were selected as participants. Early literacy skills were assessed at the beginning of Grade 1. Reading, spelling, and reading comprehension skills were assessed after two terms in Grade 1 to determine if there is a correlation between early and later literacy skills. Results indicated significantly strong positive correlations between early literacy and later literacy skills. These results and previous research suggest that EL2 learners must be exposed to high-quality early literacy skills as early as possible to provide them with a foundation for future literacy success.

The article begins with setting the South African educational context for a postgraduate early literacy research project in the foundation phase (ages 4-9). The research examines how philosophy with children (P4C) might be part of a solution to current problems in reading comprehension. The second author reports on her P4C action research with her own children as well as her observations of a Grade 2 classroom in a school near Johannesburg. The research shows how the picturebook "Little Beauty" by Anthony Browne opens up a philosophical space within which children are allowed to draw on their own life experiences and prior knowledge. The project reveals the depth of their thinking when making intra-textual connections between "Little Beauty" and the movie "King Kong." The facilitated philosophical space also makes it possible for the children to make complex philosophical links between the emotion anger, destructive behaviour and the ethico-political dimensions of punishment. Central to this article are the second author's critical reflections on how her literacy practices as a mother and foundation phase teacher have fundamentally changed as a result of this project. The article concludes with some implications for the teaching of early literacy in South Africa. [This paper was presented at the Conference on South African Children's and Youth Literature (5th, North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, South Africa, September 20, 2012).]

This study explored receptive vocabulary size and early literacy skills (namely: letter naming, knowledge of phoneme-grapheme correspondences and early writing) in emergent bilingual Northern Sotho-English children. Two groups of Grade 1 learners were tested in both English and in Northern Sotho. Group 1 (N = 49) received their formal schooling in English, whilst group 2 (N = 50) received their formal schooling in Northern Sotho. Receptive vocabulary was tested using the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test. Letter knowledge was assessed by asking learners to name letter cards, whilst knowledge of phoneme-grapheme correspondences was tested by asking children to match letter cards with spoken sounds. Early writing was assessed by asking children to write their names. Statistical analyses indicated that both English and Northern Sotho receptive vocabulary knowledge had a significant effect on early literacy skills, whilst no main effect was found for the language of instruction. Group 1 performed significantly better than Group 2 in English receptive vocabulary, in knowledge of phoneme-grapheme correspondences and in early writing, but no group differences were found for Northern Sotho receptive vocabulary or for letter knowledge. English receptive vocabulary significantly predicted the outcome of all of the early literacy skills, whilst Northern Sotho receptive vocabulary significantly predicted phoneme-grapheme correspondences and early writing.

Children learning to read and write in rural areas in Southern Africa perform poorly compared to children in urban schools. The poor results of rural schools in national assessments of reading literacy are explained by the deficits of rural areas: poverty, under-resourced schools and under-qualified teachers. Children in rural areas are frequently not exposed to home literacy practices, which prepare them for formal literacy learning at school. Whilst acknowledging the impact of rural poverty on children's performance, this article explores a role-playing game amongst pre-school and school-going children of rural villages that enabled some children to become successful learners. Focusing on affect, I analyse the way in which the game motivated these children and suggest some of the benefits that promoting this practice may have for teaching and learning in rural areas. The continued underperformance of children in rural schools makes a compelling case for investigating ways of promoting learning and reading in rural homes.

The initiative of the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) in South Africa to strengthen foundation phase teaching has resulted in the development of new foundation phase (Grades R--3) programmes at institutions that did not previously offer them. In this article we reflect on the conceptualisation and development of a pre-service language curriculum for one such programme. We base our discussion on principles that underpin teacher education programme development for early childhood education and on issues and insights about appropriate language curriculum content for a foundation phase teacher. Whilst awaiting the outcome of our accreditation, the authors, as two of the persons who assisted in the design of the language curriculum, thought it appropriate to subject the curriculum to an internal scrutiny whilst we prepare to offer the programme. This internal dialogue is informed by the literature on early language development, particularly in multilingual contexts such as in South Africa.

Opening up space for authentic inquiry in preschool can influence the extent to which children can make use of their growing mathematical and linguistic understandings to make sense of themselves and the world around them. Authentic inquiry here refers to investigation that arises naturally from the interests and questions of the children as they experience the learning environment. Three authentic examples are presented from the work of four- to five-year-old children in the domains of mathematics and literacy development to illustrate how the two domains need to be viewed as intertwined at the preschool level. Reflections are also offered on the role of the learning environment, the role of curriculum and the role of teachers and other adults in the learning process. This manuscript is based on a plenary address given in Grahamstown, South Africa at the SARAECE Research and Development week: "Strengthening Foundation Phase Education" conference at Rhodes University in September 2012.

This paper explores one aspect of early literacy development in a low socio-economic context in South Africa. Assessments conducted with a sample of children from two disadvantaged communities in Cape Town indicated that in this context, almost half of the learners entering Grade One were unable to recognise any letters. A Grade R intervention conducted by volunteers showed that children from this context were able to learn letter-sounds in Grade R through a programme that focused on teaching letter-sounds in the context of building language skills, emergent writing and concepts about print. In order to strengthen the effectiveness of the intervention, the volunteer programme was supplemented by support for the Grade R teacher and teaching assistant. Follow-up assessments of one of the intervention groups at the end of Grade One revealed significant correlations between early Grade One letter knowledge and end of Grade One word reading and spelling skills. The findings of this exploratory study are in line with research that shows the importance of letter-sound knowledge in the earliest stages of learning to read. !is raises concerns about the historical lack of emphasis in the Grade R curriculum on this aspect of early literacy development. Although the study has a narrow focus and conclusions cannot be drawn about other aspects of early literacy learning in this context, the results suggest an urgent need for quality Grade R teacher training programmes with a specific focus on emergent literacy.

The Family Literacy Project works with women in rural KwaZulu-Natal to help them improve their levels of literacy and provides encouragement as they support the literacy development of their children. These women have regularly visited neighbouring families to read to and play with children and discuss early childhood development and relevant health messages with adults. In addition community libraries and book boxes provide books for these under resourced areas. The findings of an independent evaluation are used to highlight aspects of the project.

There exists an abundance of literature on the use of wordless picturebooks in literacy development, yet very little research exists on their use in the South African context. South Africa is facing what researchers have referred to as a 'national crisis of reading'. Only 5 per cent of parents read with their children, as a result, many children are not exposed to books or book-sharing activities prior to entering formal school. Despite the acknowledgement and acceptance of the importance of mother tongue education, especially in Foundation Phase, there still exists a lack of indigenous language picturebooks for young readers. The article reports on the findings of an exploratory study in which wordless picturebooks were used in parent-child joint reading. By moving the reading environment from a community centre or daycare to participant homes, the main aim was to determine the perceptions of the parents or primary caregivers and children that participated in the programme regarding the value of utilising wordless picturebooks in their homes. The research sought to gain an understanding of how wordless picturebooks could assist in ensuring that literacy-poor families are supported as a child's first educator. We argue that wordless picturebooks warrant further investigation in the South African context, as key findings indicated that they can be viewed as a valuable tool in fostering a culture of reading in the South African context.

Mastering emergent reading requires applicable concepts and processes, which implies proficiency regarding the neurological executive function. Relevant neurological processes include attention, planning, initiation of activity, inhibition, working memory, shifting of attention, and mental flexibility. A training programme, incorporating concept formation and the underlying neurological executive function was developed and practitioners were trained to support preschool children with regard to sensory-motor integration, language and pre-writing skills as elements of pre-reading skills. The research was conducted in a number of rural crèches in South Africa where a questionnaire was used as the survey instrument. The findings revealed that the control group demonstrated fewer readiness skills regarding the required sensory-motor integration, language and pre-writing skills while the experimental group demonstrated newly formed concepts to assist in the acquisition of early literacy and the development of emergent reading.

Many South African children struggle in acquiring literacy and reading skills. It seems as if caregivers may be missing an important aspect in guiding children's emergent reading development. The question is whether there are underlying concepts needed for emergent literacy and the acquisition of reading skills. The nature of the reading process and prerequisite skills were determined through a critical review of the literature and the deconstruction of the reading process. The critical review was more than description and included analysis and conceptual innovation as we seek to identify significant items in the field of emergent reading and the reading process. This research method was supplemented by an exploratory mode of inquiry to develop new ideas with regard to reading acquisition. A number of underlying concepts were identified. Findings from this research may serve to support teachers in solving the problem of low reading achievement amongst school beginners.

In 2015, Innovation Edge commissioned the development of South Africa's first national-level preschool child assessment tool. The project's key innovations were that the tool should fairly assess children from across the cultural and socio-economic spectrum, be inexpensive in terms of equipment and administration costs, and be administered in about 45 minutes. Rather than professional evaluators, well-trained persons with a background in early childhood education would serve as assessors. Finalized in 2016, the primary purpose of the Early Learning Outcomes Measure (ELOM) (www.elom.org.za) is to provide the country with a national instrument to fairly assess children age 50-69 months from all socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds. This brief article describes the program's early learning development standards and how to effectively interpret ELOM data.

This article presents the findings of an empirical comparative study in the Nelson Mandela Metropole investigating the difference between the written English of deaf children and the written English of hearing children and makes recommendations on how to improve the writing of deaf children. The psycholinguistic approach was used for the theoretical framework. Within the framework of psycholinguistics, the acquisition and development of language and writing are discussed from the perspective of (1) emergent literacy and (2) the critical period hypothesis. The findings of this research indicate a significant difference between the writing of the deaf and hearing children who participated in this study. In order for deaf children in South Africa to develop their writing, immediate government assistance is necessary in order to implement newborn screening country wide followed by medical and/or language-based intervention to minimise the impact of deafness on the language and writing abilities of deaf children. This is an essential foundation on which parents and teachers can build in helping deaf children reach age-appropriate levels of written English.

Recent reports on the quality of education in South Africa seem to be negative, indicating a downwards trend on a yearly basis. Consequently, early literacy is lacking in the majority of learners who enter the formal school environment. As part of the South African government's literacy campaign, Read Educational Trust, an NGO involved in literacy programmes, launched a literacy initiative to increase the level of reading ability of learners. To determine the extent of the problem, a baseline study was undertaken in five provinces in South Africa. Both a qualitative and a quantitative research approaches were followed. It is clear from the results that the quality of preschool programmes in South Africa in general is below standard. The programmes offered, as well as the knowledge and understanding of caregivers regarding young children, need urgent attention from those concerned about the standard of literacy in formal schools. (Contains 5 figures.)

This study examined factors contributing to poor literacy and numeracy development among black South African children ages 5.5 to 7 years. Findings pointed to a conglomerate of factors, namely inadequate visual-motor integration, poor visual analysis and synthesis, poor fine motor development, and inadequate exposure to mediated reading and writing experience. Cultural strengths of these children included enjoyment and ability in visual arts, expressive gestures, and excellent storytelling. (Author/KB)

After many educational reforms over the past 2 decades, South Africa is still 1 of the lowest performing countries in terms of literacy outcomes. Despite an increased access to early childhood education programmes, more than half of Grade R learners will enter Grade 1 without the required skills to master reading. Clearly, systemic interventions are not working. Against this background, a family literacy programme was launched with the aim to improve home-school partnerships, build capacity for teachers to work with parents and to provide parents with the information and support they need to strengthen literacy learning in the home. The study reported on here was based on the theoretical framework of Bronfenbrenner's ecological theory as well as Fullan's theory of action as a theory of change. An action research design and qualitative techniques of data collection were used for programme implementation, but the study was planned and evaluated against Fullan's theory of change. The Wordworks Home-School Partnerships programme was selected for implementation and a children's component was designed to accommodate the young children of participating families. A multicultural, independent primary school situated in Pretoria, South Africa, was selected through a combination of purposeful and convenience sampling. Data were gathered from parents, children and teacher-facilitators during parallel sessions using multiple techniques and were analysed according to qualitative principles. The article concludes with a critical engagement between the anticipated findings of the study and the literature on theories of educational change to indicate how family literacy programmes can bring about improved literacy outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

South Africa’s history of inequality and injustice has influenced its diverse population, who continue to experience marginalisation despite the era of democracy. These underserved communities have little access to services that support their children’s language and literacy development. The researchers argue that early intervention supports language and literacy skills of children in early childhood development centres (ECDs), improving literacy acquisition and future scholastic progress. This paper demonstrates that a collaborative approach in ECD interventions influences children’s language and literacy skills, and supports their learning. The aim of the study was to establish the levels of emergent literacy and language skills of the children pre- and post-teacher intervention. An exploratory quantitative and qualitative approach was employed with 20 participants from two ECD facilities, 10 from a middle socioeconomic (MSE) group and 10 from a lower socioeconomic (LSE) group. An adapted measure on concepts of print was conducted pre- and postintervention. Oral reading and one-on-one reading strategies were presented to the teacher from the LSE ECD. Data analysis included descriptive and inferential statistics, and content analysis. The findings indicate no difference in vocabulary between LSE and MSE groups, despite the MSE group having better resources at their disposal. Furthermore, there was a significant increase in the LSE group’s knowledge on print concepts post-intervention. The teacher observed changes in the teaching methods and in the children’s literacy, confirming that low-cost short-term programmes and collaborations do influence ECD teaching and learning. The collaborative role of the speech-language therapist should support both parents and teachers of children in ECD contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In South Africa, as in many developing countries, successful literacy accomplishment is not something all learners find easy, especially those learners from socioeconomically disadvantaged areas. This article looks at the effects of storybook reading in Zulu on the emergent literacy of a group of preschool children in three preschools in the poverty-stricken rural areas of KwaZulu-Natal. To contextualise the study, a brief overview is first given of literacy in South African schools in general, followed by a description of the Family Literacy Project (of which this study formed a part), and we then discuss the methodological procedures concerning the assessment of emergent literacy skills in Zulu. The emergent literacy skills of preschool Zulu children in the programme were compared with those of Grade 1 Zulu children who had not been in the programme. The findings suggest that storybook reading can make a difference to the language and literacy development of preschool children. The implications of this are discussed in the light of the South African context of early child development programmes, particularly in disadvantaged areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Success at school depends heavily on language and literacy skills. Research indicates that pre-school children whose parents read storybooks to them have a linguistic and literacy head start over other children when they start school. In contrast, learners who come to school with few literacy skills are at a disadvantage. A Family Literacy project was started in 2000 in disadvantaged areas of rural KwaZulu-Natal. One component of the programme promotes storybook reading in Zulu to pre-school children in Grade R. Various aspects of the children's language and emergent literacy skills were assessed longitudinally. Children in Grade 1 who were not in the project were also assessed, and their performance compared to those of the children in Grade R. The results showed that, on the whole, the Grade R children who were in the Family Literacy Project scored better on the literacy tests and showed stronger language and discourse development than the Grade 1 learners, even though the pre-schoolers were on average a year younger than the Grade 1 learners. These findings suggest that reading storybooks to pre-school children has beneficial effects on their language, literacy and discourse development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The purpose of this paper is to describe the content and process of a literacy and language support model that was implemented with young children from marginalised communities, where no access to speech and language pathologist (SLP) services exists. The importance of language for literacy development is emphasised with explicit strategies for classroom application., Method: The SLP introduced an intervention programme to Early Childhood Development (ECD) kindergarten teachers, as part of a pre- and post-test literacy study. The strategies included oral reading, one-on-one reading and paired-reading. The participants provided informed consent. The intervention was presented to the experimental (Exp) group during the study process and to the comparison group after the study was completed., Results: Post-intervention findings revealed a significant improvement in the Exp group scores on concepts about print. The ECD teachers reported a difference in the children's awareness of printed materials, confirming that the approaches introduced by the SLP are central in teachers' instruction. This finding supports the contribution that emergent literacy and language support models would have for children, especially those from marginalised communities, where access to resources are limited. Furthermore, the collaboration between SLP and the ECD staff will strengthen these support structures. Thus, explicit early intervention develops skills for school-readiness and academic success; this forms part of the solution in providing early access to language and literacy programmes in developing countries., (© 2019 S. Karger AG, Basel.)

Background:  Exposure to social trauma influences the psychosocial experiences of vulnerable children. This affects their positive development, consequentially resulting in poor scholastic progress. South Africa's history of inequality and injustice has compounded the current social, educational and economic situation, highlighting the need for research on children in care. A paucity of published studies exists on caregiver facilitation of literacy skills among vulnerable populations in South African children's homes. The purpose of this paper is to describe the reading practices that caregivers in one children's home (orphanage) used to promote literacy development. Method: An exploratory, descriptive contextual design was implemented, using inductive and interpretative approaches. Semi-structured interviews and focus group discussion were conducted. Ten caregivers, who supervised children aged 9-10 years at the home, consented to be participants. Applied content thematic analysis was used to interpret the data obtained. Findings: The caregivers at the children's home were implementing some reading strategies, but they did not engage sufficiently in self-reflection on the reading processes. The caregivers used relevant reading strategies, such as asking questions to develop understanding and memory recall. They encouraged dialogue through characterisation, where the children acted out the roles of the main characters. These reading strategies demonstrate the quality of the mediation. Conclusions: Speech-language therapists have a role in prevention and promotion programmes in children's homes. They should advocate for, collaborate on and support caregivers' facilitation of early literacy skills in these homes, as the link between literacy and language cannot be ignored. Providing guidelines and sharing knowledge on reading instruction for the children are essential in improving the literacy rates in vulnerable populations. Language and literacy interventions are only effective and meaningful if the social and cultural contexts are considered. Such interventions would add value and constitute a step towards redressing past inequalities in South Africa. These results contribute to our understanding of context when developing literacy programmes. The sample size was a limitation. However, the aim was not about generalisation but to gain an insight into caregiver reading practices so that literacy programmes are built on these strengths.