Emergent literacy and childhood literacy-promoting activities for children in the Ontario Child Welfare System†

Abstract

Research has demonstrated that early exposure to literacy is one of the essential foundations for promoting positive outcomes and successful life transitions for children and young people. Academic and social successes within the domain of education are recognized factors in fostering resilience in at-risk populations. Unfortunately, in Canada the potential for differing outcomes exists between children within the general population and those children within the child welfare system, due to the latter's lack of educational and social supports. The purpose of this study was to investigate the frequency of engagements in literacy-promoting activities by children in the child welfare system. Participants were approximately 114 children living in out-of-home care in the province of Ontario, Canada, who were participating in the Ontario Looking After Children project. They were aged between 1 and 4 years, and virtually all the participants had experienced severe adversity while living with their birth families and, as a consequence, were under the custody and care of their local Children's Aid Society. The study incorporated the literacy-promoting activities scales from the National Longitudinal Study of Children and Youth, and explored the relationship between national literacy strategies and childhood development. Findings demonstrated that the in-care population was provided with ample opportunities to engage in literacy-promoting activities, and in fact generally did so more often than children in the general population. Implications for government policy and interventions to promote positive educational outcomes will be discussed.