Variability in the age of schooling contributes to the link between literacy and numeracy in Côte d’Ivoire (Draft)

Abstract

Literacy and numeracy are correlated throughout development and require many of the same underlying cognitive skills. We explored the predictors of literacy and numeracy and their covariance (overlap between the two skills) in rural Côte d’Ivoire. Many Ivorian children are old for their grade due to late enrollment and grade repetition, leading to variation in age-for-grade (i.e., how far a child’s age differs from official age for a given grade). Structural equation models were used to examine how cognitive components and individual-level factors predict literacy and numeracy covariance. Phonological awareness, numerical magnitude, ordinality, working memory, and inhibitory control were cognitive predictors of covariance. Additionally, age was positively related to covariance and age-for-grade was negatively related to covariance. Post-hoc multi-group modelling revealed literacy and numeracy covariance was significant for the on-time group (students in the correct grade based on official age) but not the late group (students in a lower grade). Our results suggest that literacy and numeracy covariance depend on the maturity of underlying cognitive components.

Is a Phone‐Based Language and Literacy Assessment a Reliable and Valid Measure of Children's Reading Skills in Low‐Resource Settings?

“…We specifically avoided using a picture‐based vocabulary task, as images can often be strongly culturally‐bound and therefore inappropriate for rural Ivorian context. Notably, all in‐person measures were previously implemented in Côte d'Ivoire to assess the language and literacy skills of children in this age range (see Akpé et al, 2021; Ball et al, 2022; Brice et al, 2023; Jasińska, Akpe, et al, 2022; Jasińska, Zinszer, et al, 2022; Whitehead et al, 2023; Zinszer et al, 2023a, 2023b).…”