Emergent Literacy Instruction in Acquisition of Reading Readiness Skills Among Primary School Pupils in Ikom Education Zone, Cross River State, Nigeria

Abstract

This study investigated emergent literacy instruction in acquisition of reading readiness skills among primary school pupils’ in Ikom Education Zone, Cross River State, Nigeria. Five research questions and five corresponding null hypotheses were formulated to guide the study. Ex-post facto research design was used for the study. The population of the study was twenty one thousand, eight hundred and one (21,801) pupils. Stratified random sampling technique was used to select three hundred and sixty (360) pupils as sample for the study. A structured and validated 30-item questionnaire was used for data collection. Data was analyzed using population t-test and Independent t-test to test the null hypotheses at .05 level of significance. The result of the analysis showed that Primary school pupils’ acquisition of reading readiness skills in Ikom Education Zone, with respect to, phonological awareness, knowledge of alphabets activities, oral language activities, and story book reading, is significantly high; there is a significant mean difference in phonological awareness, alphabet recognition skills, oral skills, and print awareness skills mean achievement scores of private and public school children exposed to emergent literacy instruction. Based on the findings, the following recommendations were made among others, teachers in public primary schools should cultivate preschool children’s willingness to listen to stories, desire to be read to, curiosity about words and letters, exploration of print forms, playfulness with words, enjoyment of songs, poems, rhymes, jingles, books, and dramatic play.