Developing Print Awareness: The Effect of Three Instructional Approaches on Kindergarteners' Print Awareness, Reading Readiness, and Word Reading

Abstract

This study investigated the effectiveness of three instructional approaches for developing kindergarteners' print concepts and print awareness. The study also sought to determine if developing children's print concepts exerted an influence upon their reading readiness and word reading ability at the end of kindergarten. Three intact kindergarten classrooms participated in the study with a total of 132 kindergarten students. The three instructional treatments consisted of (a) a "traditional readiness" approach-the control, (b) an "immersion in print approach-an experimental group, and (c) an "immersion in print + teacher-led instruction" approach-an experimental group. Teachers were trained and provided the appropriate instructional methodologies and materials. They were also monitored regularly to check for compliance. A series of posttests assessing print awareness, readiness and word reading were administered at the conclusion of the study. Results indicated that "teacher-led" print concept lessons resulted in significantly greater print concept development, although increasing children's print concepts did not lead to improved reading readiness nor improved word reading ability among young readers. Finally, it was shown that an immersion in print, whether or not "teacher-led" print lessons were offered, resulted in significantly better readiness and word reading abilities at the end of kindergarten than did the "traditional readiness" approach.

Riding the Pendulum: A Rejoinder to Schickedanz and McGee and Lomax

“…The proper comparison is 52% versus 14%, not 17 versus 9. These suggest that WL/LEA programs were effective in kindergarten, results further buttressed by adding the recently published Reutzel, Oda, and Moore (1989) study. The numbers also support the lack of overall difference between WL/LEA and BR programs in first grade, which is confirmed by the near zero mean effect size found from the meta-analysis.…”

Early Literacy Research

“…Reutzel, Oda, and Moore (), in an experimental study, found that an immersion approach to teaching CAP in kindergarten produced significant effects on reading readiness and word‐reading test scores. The immersion approach embedded CAP instruction in a shared reading where the teacher would operate on the enlarged print as if all children in the class were seated in her lap.…”

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

“…Some studies have demonstrated the positive effects of whole-language/ literature-based programs, in comparison with other programs, on print awareness and word reading acquisition among kindergarten children (Kasten & Clarke, 1989;Reutzel, Oda, & Moore, 1989;Ribowsky, 1985), while other studies have not revealed significant differences on standardized tests of decoding skills and reading readiness (Morrow, O'Connor, & Smith, 1990;Stahl & Miller, 1989). Based on their review of studies comparing conventional reading instruction (basal instruction) and the whole-language/language-experience approach, Stahl and Miller (1989) found that the latter was more effective in kindergarten than in first grade.…”