Effects of academic and non-academic instructional approaches on preschool English language learners’ classroom engagement and English language development

Abstract

This research compared the relative impact of different preschool activities on the development of bilingual students’ English-language skills. The study investigated whether bilingual preschool children would engage more, and use more of their second language (English), during free-play (non-academic) versus teacher-structured (academic) activities. The researcher utilized both quantitative and qualitative research approaches; data sources included 285 preschool observations made in three classrooms in Northern California. Data analysis consisted of descriptive statistics (e.g. frequencies/percentages, mean values, and standard deviations). In addition, children’s observed scores were also analyzed by normative scales using standardized z-scores. The findings of this study indicated that bilingual children engaged and interacted significantly more during free-play (non-academic) preschool classroom activities than during teacher-structured (academic) activities. Specific free-play activities enabling optimal engagement and second language acquisition were pretend play, free play, and monkey bars. The study’s major implication is that free-play (non-academic) activities may be much more helpful in developing bilingual preschoolers’ English-language skills than teacher-structured (academic) activities. Free-play activities are an affordance for making language available, which helps with building academic skills and cultural capital. This study proves that free-play activities are an affordance for language learning because bilingual children have shown dramatically greater engagement in non-academic activities (vs academic activities). The importance of free-play activities may extend beyond preschool classrooms (e.g. greater English-language development in early preschool may subsequently positively impact student performance in kindergarten). Thus, unstructured, social-based activities should be implemented for bilingual students in K-12 classrooms. Free-play (i.e. non-academic) activities should be implemented in preschool.