International Reports on Literacy Research: Emergent Readers

This is a compilation of reports from international research correspondents on the topic of emergent reading. The report includes 14 separate reports on Nigeria, China, Hong Kong, Israel, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, Estonia, Italy, Canada, Mexico, United States, Argentina, and Chile. Overall, reports on the topic of emergent readers have delineated a range of attention to it. Some countries, such as Oman, do not use "emergent reader" at all. Some, such as Italy, do not give much attention to that category of learners, whereas others, such as Israel and Mexico, have increased attention to that group. There are also countries, such as Canada and Singapore, where formal programs have been put in place to work with emergent readers in various ways and at various age levels. One thing mentioned repeatedly throughout these reports is the role socioeconomic status plays for emergent readers. Many of the educators that participated in these reports have pointed out the importance of access to materials and resources for students' academic success and the advantages that more privileged students typically have. In a similar vein, there also seems to be a thread between reports about the role of electronic media in emergent-reading engagement.