Literacy and First Graders - Article Example

Literacy and First Graders A Discussion of Literacy Issue and First Grade Literacy is a common concern in the United s. It seemsunreasonable that children manage to graduate from high school, and are still unable to read. And yet, t is happening, all over. Literacy and reading readiness are issues of particular importance in early grades. First grade is considered the grade at which most, if not all children are successfully able to read. It is therefore the keystone in the literacy debate. How are children prepared to read by first grade, and how does literacy and illiteracy affect first grade children In an article on school and literacy reform, four models of reading readiness and literacy programs are reviewed, noting how they are run, who is involved, and how children are affected by these programs. Looking at literacy and reading readiness at the academic and scholastic level, it is much easier to see the current issues and concerns in literature. Pre-reading skills are already considered to be of the most important in children learning to read quickly and successfully. These skills include, but are not limited to sight awareness of letters and common words, phonemic awareness, basic comprehension, writing skills, vocabulary, and word attack skills. Sight awareness suggests that children can fully recognize all letters in both lower and uppercase forms, and are able to recognize simple and common words (the, at, apple) regularly, with no assistance. This is perhaps the most crucial of all pre-reading skills, since children use this base to build vocabulary. Phonemic awareness is a child's understanding of what sounds a letter or a pair of letters makes, and how it can change from situation to situation. This recognition makes it possible for children to link a written and a spoken word in their mind. Basic comprehension deals with a child understanding what they have read or had read to them, and able to discuss what they have just read or heard. Basic comprehension skills are essential for successful readers, since it is not the ability to read a word, rather the ability to understand the word that is being tested. Writing skills are considered pre-reading skills, since they help children develop a physical understanding of how words are formed, and how letters are formed. Along with basic comprehension, writing is used to determine a child's literacy rate, rather than necessarily improve their ability to read. While increased reading has been proven to improve writing skills, there have been no recent studies suggesting that the opposite is true. Vocabulary is the words that a child knows, which help them to decode words that they are unfamiliar with. The greater a child's vocabulary, the greater chance they have of being successful in understanding a new word or idea. Vocabulary is built both through successful reading skills, and through comprehension of stories both read by the child and read to the child. Finally, word attack skills are the child's ability to look at a word and to successfully decipher its' meaning, in the context in which it has been presented. The more willing to attack a word a child is, the greater chance they have of succeeding. These skills are all necessary pre-reading skills, and are presented in Tivnan and Hemphill's 2005 study of literacy programs in high poverty areas. By looking at children from high poverty areas, and from minority groups, it is clear that literacy is still a primary concern for the educational community. Children from low socioeconomic classes, particularly those from minority families, are at risk for developing poor literacy skills. These children enter school with less early literacy training, and are more likely to leave elementary school with an inadequate ability to read (Tivnan and Hemphill, 2005). Clearly, early introduction to pre-reading skills and literacy campaigns makes a significant difference in children's ability to excel at the reading task. Children from poor urban areas and high poverty areas score as much as 60% lower than children from areas in which literacy is focused upon, or income is higher (Tivnan and Hemphill, 2005). Early literacy skills are key to developing strong reading skills later on in life (Tivnan and Hemphill, 2005). One of the first programs to recognize this importance was the Head Start program, which offers pre-school and pre-kindergarten classes to children of lower socioeconomic status. These classes stress literacy, and reading at home, because it is these early experiences which affect a child's ability to grasp literacy. First grade is the year in which most children will successfully learn to read. Delaying reading beyond this point will not only damage a child's ability and self-esteem, but may also offer permanent inability to read at the same comprehension levels as their peers (Tivnan and Hemphill, 2005). In their research, Tivnan and Hemphill look at four different literacy programs (Building Essential Literacy, Success for All, and Literacy Collaborative, in additional to traditional literacy education). All these programs break reading down into the pre-reading skills discussed above, and while each offers a different program, all show varying rates of success. Clearly, then, it is not the program itself, but rather the inclusion of a literacy program which makes the primary difference in children's ability to read. Looking at the table (see appendix B) provided in the article at the linear regression models of the four different literacy models used to improve reading readiness in public schools, it is clear that all four literacy campaigns had a significant impact on the children's ability to read. While their ability to read prior to the study was widely varied, ranging from only able to recognize letters and some numbers, to being fully able to read, all children who completed the literacy program showed a marked increase not only in pre-reading and reading skills, but also in writing and comprehension (Tivnan and Hemphill, 2005). This study suggests that literacy is almost entirely based on children's early experiences with pre-reading and reading readiness skills. In this paper, we have reviewed reading readiness and pre-reading skills, why they are important, when they should be presented, and the affect of such a lack of experience has on children from high poverty areas. We have also looked at how adding additional literacy campaigns can significantly improve a child's ability to read in the course of a single year. Children need to be given every opportunity possible to experience pre-reading skills, including writing, being read to, comprehension questions, phonics awareness, and sight recognition of letters and simple words. Reading readiness and literacy are especially key during the early elementary years, and early childhood years, and will impact the person and their reading ability throughout their life. By recognizing the importance of the early years, and implementing increased literacy awareness campaigns, it will overall decrease the number of people who are unable to read successfully or to read at all, which is the goal of the educational system. Appendix A For this paper, I chose to use Tivnan and Hemphill's 2005 study on various literacy campaigns and their success, particularly in reference to children who live below the poverty level, and have a minority status. This paper was published in the Elementary School Journal, a respected journal where educators go to read about new and recent advances in education, and to look for new ideas to integrate into the classroom. I chose this journal primarily because it is well respected by teachers, and as they are the people who need the best and most recent research, their opinions of the journals are very valuable. I also chose it for their insistence in only publishing very recent works. Of concern in the area of education in the rapid changes, in which research can nearly be out of date by its completion. While the study was published in 2005, it still carries far more relevance than something published in 1975 which is just being reviewed. This journal only accepts studies which have been reviewed by other journals, and are currently relevant to the teaching community. Appendix B Works Cited Tivnan, T., & Hemphill, L. (2005). Comparing Four Literacy Reform Models in High-Poverty Schools: Patterns of First-Grade Achievement. The Elementary School Journal. 105, 419-448. Read More