Successful engagement in an early literacy intervention

Abstract

The aim of the research reported here was to investigate why a percentage of students experience continued difficulty in literacy learning while participating in Reading Recovery. It was hypothesized that this is to do with particular aspects of teacher—learner interactions. Accordingly the study used ethnographic methodology to describe teacher—learner interactions generally and to then examine selected dimensions of the interaction between particular cohorts of students and their teachers. Specifically investigated were the characteristics of this group, mapping students' learning trajectory, and identifying key points and events that impact on teacher decision-making processes with regard to student learning. The learners who participated in this study were 10 children identified as being at risk of literacy failure. Their participation in one-to-one literacy support resulted in six of the children making considerable progress, with the other four identified as requiring ongoing support beyond the short-term intervention provided by Reading Recovery. The reasons for the successful outcome for the six learners are related to the ways that their teachers orchestrated positive reading and writing opportunities through closely focused verbal support. While this `helping talk' appeared to be decisive in the six successful cases, it was productive but inadequate in the remaining four.