Paired Reading as a Literacy Intervention for Foster Children

Abstract

The education of children in foster care has long been considered problematic. One contributing factor may be the lack of educational support from key adults in these children's lives. High turnover of school and home placements may preclude the presence of a consistent adult who is actively involved in a foster child's education. Moreover, research suggests that education is sometimes viewed as a low priority by carers in comparison with other aspects of a foster child's life. The aim of the study reported here by Cara Osborne, Julia Alfano and Tanya Winn was to address this issue by directly involving carers in supporting their child's literacy skills through the use of a ‘paired reading’ literacy intervention. Thirty-five carers and children took part in the project over a 16-week period. The results revealed an average improvement in reading age of 12 months during this time, suggesting that the programme offers a constructive way of enhancing foster children's literacy skills. Feedback from carers supported this view and suggested that the impact of the project may extend beyond the realm of literacy per se, resulting in improvements in confidence and motivation as well as reading ability.