Basic Literacy Skills Research Articles

Assistance in the process of grouping students based on basic literacy and numeracy skills in Karang Sidemen Village

This community service aims to provide assistance to the process of grouping students based on basic literacy and numeracy skills for teachers in accordance with the “Semua Anak Cerdas” approach in Karang Sidemen Village, North Batukliang District, Central Lombok Regency. Mentoring activities were carried out 1 to 2 times with the target schools for mentoring, among others, SDN Karang Sidemen, SDN Persil, SDN Rangkep, SDN Repuk Sintung Barat, SDN Senurus, and MI NW Nurul Hidayah. Mentoring activities are centred on two focus activities, namely: (1) Grouping students based on basic literacy and numeracy skills; (2) Identifying the number of students who have learning difficulties. Each school is assisted by their respective regional facilitators (FASDA). From this community service, we obtained that students who have good literacy skills are more than those who have numeracy skills, the number of students who experience functional learning difficulties is relatively not different, mentoring activities are running well and in accordance with the expectations of the implementing team, the obstacles encountered are related to mastery of literacy and numeracy concepts, facilities and infrastructure and conditions of students at the time of grouping. The results of the mentoring activity showed that the students' ability in literacy and numeracy was increasing. In addition, because they are in groups with students who have the same ability, students become more confident in class.

Effectiveness of Pre-School Teachers in Implementing English and Math Curricular in Nyamagana District, Tanzania.

Teachers are key to effective implementation of the preschool curriculum, especially in areas related to the acquisition of basic literacy skills which are necessary foundations for other levels of education. The purpose of the study was to assess the effectiveness of preschool teachers in handling preschool English and Math curricula in the Nyamagana District. The study was guided by the following specific objectives to find out if preschool teachers have relevant skills in handling of preschool English curriculum and to establish whether preschool teachers had relevant skills in the teaching of the Math curriculum. The population for the study was 100 preschools. This included 100 head teachers and 410 preschool teachers. The sample for this study was 100, inclusive of included 20 head teachers and 82 teachers. Simple random sampling was used to select teachers and headteachers who took part in the study. Descriptive statistics was used to analyze quantitative data with the help of Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20. Moreover, qualitative data was analyzed thematically. The responses from the open-ended part of the questionnaire were subjected to thematic analysis. The study found that majority of teachers had relevant skills in handling the preschool Math curriculum. However, some teachers could not handle certain aspects of the Math curriculum. Also, the study found out that the majority of preschool teachers could effectively implement the English language curriculum; however, a few teachers had challenges, such as using the medium of songs. The study recommended that there is a need to conduct workshops and refresher seminars for teachers in order to equip them with skills to effectively implement English and Math curricula in preschools.

Classification Accuracy of Early Literacy Assessments: Linking Preschool and Kindergarten Performance

A strong foundation in early literacy supports children’s academic pursuits and impacts personal, social, and economic outcomes. Therefore, examining the adequacy of early literacy assessments as predictors of future performance on important outcomes is critical for identifying students at risk of reading problems. This study explored the predictive validity of preschoolers’ literacy skills measured in the spring with the Individual Growth and Development Indicators 2.0 (IGDIs 2.0) to performance in the fall and winter of kindergarten as assessed by the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills Next Edition (DIBELS Next) using Pearson product-moment correlations. In addition, the classification accuracy of student performance on the IGDIs 2.0 measures to the publisher-identified benchmark scores on DIBELS Next assessment in kindergarten was examined by calculating the sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive power, overall correct classification, and kappa. Participants were 537 children from ethnically diverse backgrounds enrolled in an urban school district in the U.S. Northeast region. Results indicated small to moderate relationships between the individual IGDIs 2.0 tasks and DIBELS Next measures. Classification accuracy of student performance on the IGDIs 2.0 measures to the publisher-identified benchmark score on DIBELS Next composite in the fall and winter of kindergarten revealed inadequate levels of sensitivity; however, locally derived cut-scores improved sensitivity and specificity.

Cultural Responsive Teaching of Language Teachers in Indigenous Classrooms: A Phenomenological Inquiry

This phenomenological inquiry aimed to investigate the experiences of language teachers in indigenous classrooms of Pong-Pong Elementary School, New Bataan, Davao de Oro, Philippines. This also investigated the different coping mechanism of these challenges encountered in providing a cultural responsive teaching. The study utilized the purposive sampling technique which included seven (7) teachers for focus group discussion and for in-depth-interview; thematic analysis is used and themes were identified in this inquiry. In providing cultural responsive teaching experiences, themes revealed that teachers: use code-switching, linguistic contrast of teachers’ and students’ native language, challenges in the implementation of the curriculum, lowering the filter of anxiety level, and availability of language exercises in the target language. On the coping mechanism of teachers, themes are: use of student-centered strategies, immersion to students’ diverse cultural backgrounds, making the classroom into a class-home, translation as a strategy and mastery of basic literacy skills.

Learning to Read in an “Estranged” Language: Arabic Diglossia, Child Literacy, and the Case for Mother Tongue-Based Education

Reading proficiency of Arab students is amongst the lowest globally. Research in applied linguistics confirms the pervasive impact of Arabic language diglossia—that is the linguistic distance between the language of education, Standard Arabic (StA), and the vernacular mother tongue, Spoken Arabic (SpA)—on the acquisition of various basic literacy skills. This multidisciplinary paper argues that the current approach to education in Arab countries is not working and proposes to refocus on Mother Tongue-Based education. In a novel analysis, the paper examines through the lens of diglossia StA vocabulary in various educational materials designed to teach initial literacy to young children, including the new kindergarten Arabic textbook by the Ministry of Education of Egypt. The analysis shows that more than half the vocabulary used to teach basic reading skills, such as phonics and decoding, is unfamiliar to children, i.e., distant from their spoken language variety. A commonly proposed solution to the unfamiliarity of preschool-aged children with the language of literacy instruction is to expand their oral exposure to StA, through read-aloud and screen time, such that it is not a new language when they enter school. Drawing on findings from the fields of Arabic linguistics, Early Childhood Education, MotherTongue-Based education, and children’s literature, this paper discusses problems with this approach and deems it unimplementable. Using new survey data, the paper confirms the poor culture of reading to children in StA. It further outlines research demonstrating the limited role of screen time in developing language. Recognizing that children enter school with limited to no knowledge of StA, the paper presents evidence-based arguments for why adopting Mother Tongue-Based education—where SpA is the language of literacy instruction during the initial years of schooling—is the better pedagogical approach to teaching literacy and should be a steppingstone to learning StA.

Organization and Results of Mongolian National Online Olympiads in Informatics

Incorporating coding skills into the basic literacy skills of 21st century citizens is common in many parts of the world. This is because the development of artificial intelligence and smart devices and their social use have become real, and in the near future, the ability to use robots and artificial intelligence devices for their own purposes has become a skill that every citizen should have. Algorithms and programming are included in the Mongolian general education information technology course curriculum. The coding ability plays an important role in the development of a new century citizen’s thinking, creating and evaluating skills. One of the activities that promotes the development of this skill is the International Olympiad in Informatics. Our country has been participating in this Olympiad since 1991 and has won three bronze, one silver and one gold medal. You can participate in the online Olympiad regardless of where you live in Mongolia. This type of Olympiad is very important to support the continuous development of students who are gifted in programming and coding, as well as to enable them to successfully participate in national and international Olympiads. Mongolian Informatics Olympiad Committee (MIOC) organized 24 online contests using Contest Management System (CMS1 ) which is official IOI judging system. In this paper we considered 22 online contests organized in 2019, 2020, 2021 years and classified 115 problems chosen in those contests by topics and complexity. We also report here results of a small research about scores got by participants, development of problem-solving skills. A new registration web system developed while implementing IOI judging system is explained.

A Study of the Relationship between Family Income and Literacy Level

Many socioeconomic factors influence the literacy rate in Pakistan. Poverty is known to be the main factor considered to have coexisted with low literacy skills and under achievements. There is an established link between poverty and illiteracy in developing countries. Poverty forces people into child labor, which produces illiteracy and these illiterates are forced to take low-income jobs that produce poverty. Thus, poverty and illiteracy have a cyclical relationship. The study was launched to further probe the link between family income and the acquisition of literacy skills. The main aim of the study was to: examine the co-occurrence of family income and participants’ learning achievement level; and to explore the role of income on participants’ literacy skills and to recommend certain measures to improve literacy. The study was descriptive, and the survey method was adopted to gather data from the people of the District of Bahawalpur. Two types of research tools were employed in the current study. The first tool was adapted by the Lao National Literacy Survey 2001, which was based on household information. The second tool was a test, adapted by the Lao National Literacy Survey 2001, which measures the basic literacy skills (reading, writing, numeracy, and visual skills) and background information of respondents. The researcher used two separate sheets for each respondent. One sheet was used for households' basic information and the other for the compilation of test results of the literacy skills of the respondents. After gathering the complete information from respondents, the data was organized and analyzed statistically. The main finding of the study reflective that high family income correlates with a higher level of literacy skills, and lower-income with a lower level of literacy skills. Based on the findings of the study, it was recommended that the government launch facilitating programs for the needy and vulnerable wards of society.

Direct vs indirect management training: Experimental evidence from schools in Mexico

We use a large-scale randomized experiment (across 1,198 public primary schools in Mexico) to study the impact of providing schools directly with high-quality managerial training by professional trainers vis-à-vis through a cascade-style “train the trainer” model. The training focused on improving principals’ capacities to collect and use data to monitor students’ basic numeracy and literacy skills and to provide feedback to teachers on their instruction and pedagogical practices. After two years, the direct training improved schools’ managerial capacity by 0.13σ (p-value 0.018) (relative to “train the trainer” schools), but had no meaningful impact on student test scores (we can rule out an effect greater than 0.08σ at the 95% level).

LITERACY IN THE MIDST OF THE PANDEMIC: HOW ARE STUDENTS' LITERACY SKILLS?

During the pandemic, learning at elementary schools encountered many obstacles, including those related to literacy. One indicator of basic literacy skills is that having reading fluency and comprehension. During the pandemic, how are students' basic literacy skills? This study aimed to determine the profile of students' basic literacy skills during the pandemic. This study was conducted at one of the public elementary schools in Kabupaten Lombok Tengah. This study was survey research that administered a test as the instrument. The research subjects were 110 students who were selected saturated sampling technique. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The survey results showed that 7% of the students were at the beginner level is 7%, while 10% of students were at the letter level. Then, 11% of the students were at the word level; 12% of them were at the paragraph level; 12% of students were at story one level as much as 12%, and 48% of students were at story level. Most of the students were not fluent in reading and could not understand the reading content. Students who were fluent in reading and able to understand the text were less than half of the population or only 48% of 110 students. These data indicated a decline in students' basic literacy skills during learning in the pandemic era.

Influence of Teachers’ Subject Competence and Teaching Experience on Use of Instructional Strategies to Enhance Pupils Literacy Skills in Busia County, Kenya

Language skills in young children provides a foundation to a better acquisition of cognitive, social, physical and emotional skills useful in the later years of life for children. It also enhances smooth transition, performance, and retention and completion rate in school for children. The paper presents findings from a study conducted to establish the influence of teacher’s subject competence and teaching experience on use of instructional strategies to enhance development of literacy skills in children in lower grade in Nambale Sub-county, Busia County Kenya. It is paramount to generate evidence based understanding of the primary role of teachers for language in enhancing children’s literacy skills to improve their chances of acquiring quality and inclusive education later in life. Researchers aimed to establish the influence of teacher’s subject competence and teaching experience during foundation level at which children should primarily acquire basic literacy skills to facilitate a smooth transition to later grades.

Teacher Effectiveness in Adult Education: The Relationship Between Teacher Characteristics and Student Test Gains and Transitions Into Postsecondary Education

The federal adult education program serves over 2 million eligible adults who seek basic literacy and English language skills. Using administrative student-level panel data, this study provides the very first assessment of the relationships between adult education teacher characteristics and student achievement using hierarchical linear modeling design. Results show that students in classes with teachers with a bachelor’s or higher degree have higher post-test scores. Having a part-time adult education teacher was associated with lower odds of students transitioning to postsecondary education. Compared to teachers specialized in English as a second language, having an adult secondary education teacher is correlated with an increase in test score gains as well as higher odds of transitioning to postsecondary education. We also identified student characteristics (age, disability status, attendance hours, race, and employment status) and program characteristics (size, quality, and setting) that are statistically significantly correlated with student learning and students’ transition to postsecondary education.

Comparative Effects of Computer-Based Reading Programs on the Early Literacy Skills of At-Risk Students

Students displaying reading difficulties/disabilities at the end of third grade are unlikely to succeed in content areas and graduate from high school. One alternative to meeting the learning needs of students is to provide explicit instructional support in basic literacy skills through computer-based reading programs via after-school programs. This study examined the effects of two computer-based reading programs on the reading skills of 71 randomly assigned at-risk students using a pre–post-test design. Furthermore, tutor and students’ perceptions regarding the effectiveness and desirability of the programs were examined. The results indicated that there was a statistically significant difference between the programs on the Word Use Fluency measure and both computer-based programs were effective in facilitating the growth of basic early literacy skills of students at-risk for reading failure. A description of the computer programs, results, implications, and limitations of the study are discussed.

Peer Presence Effect on Numerosity and Phonological Comparisons in 4th Graders: When Working with a SchoolMate Makes Children More Adult-like.

Simple SummaryThe presence of others helps us when we are good or an expert at something and hinders us when we are bad or novice. Such social facilitation or inhibition is well-documented in adults, but much less in children despite the omnipresence of peers throughout education. To explore potential peer presence effects on children’s academic performance, fourth-graders performed basic numerical and language skills (typically mastered at their age) either alone or with a schoolmate. For comparison, the same was performed in adults. We found that a schoolmate’s presence enabled children to perform more like adults, with a better response strategy and faster and less variable response times than children tested alone. This provides research-based evidence supporting pedagogical methods promoting collective practice of individually acquired knowledge. Future studies pursuing this hitherto neglected developmental exploration of peer presence effects on academic achievements might have the potential to help educators tailor their pedagogical choices to maximize peer presence when beneficial and minimize it when harmful. The present study also paves the way towards a neuroimaging investigation of how peer presence changes the way the child brain processes cognitive tasks relevant to education.Little is known about how peers’ mere presence may, in itself, affect academic learning and achievement. The present study addresses this issue by exploring whether and how the presence of a familiar peer affects performance in a task assessing basic numeracy and literacy skills: numerosity and phonological comparisons. We tested 99 fourth-graders either alone or with a classmate. Ninety-seven college-aged young adults were also tested on the same task, either alone or with a familiar peer. Peer presence yielded a reaction time (RT) speedup in children, and this social facilitation was at least as important as that seen in adults. RT distribution analyses indicated that the presence of a familiar peer promotes the emergence of adult-like features in children. This included shorter and less variable reaction times (confirmed by an ex-Gaussian analysis), increased use of an optimal response strategy, and, based on Ratcliff’s diffusion model, speeded up nondecision (memory and/or motor) processes. Peer presence thus allowed children to at least narrow (for demanding phonological comparisons), and at best, virtually fill in (for unchallenging numerosity comparisons) the developmental gap separating them from adult levels of performance. These findings confirm the influence of peer presence on skills relevant to education and lay the groundwork for exploring how the brain mechanisms mediating this fundamental social influence evolve during development.

Perceptions of cigarettes and e-cigarettes: does health literacy matter?

Objective This study assessed the relationship between health literacy, perceptions of traditional and electronic cigarettes, and smoking status among college students. Participants Participants (N = 150; Mage = 20.41 years, SD 3.48), included nonsmokers (78%) and smokers (21%) of traditional (12%) and e-cigarettes (17%). Method Participants completed a novel questionnaire to assess perceptions of traditional and e-cigarettes, and the Health Literacy Skills Instrument to evaluate health literacy. Results Traditional cigarettes were perceived as having a greater negative impact on physical health than e-cigarettes, whereas e-cigarettes were perceived as having a greater positive impact on social-emotional health than traditional cigarettes. Most participants (57%) had below basic health literacy skills. Conclusions This study did not find a relationship between health literacy skills and smoking status or smoking perceptions. Further research is needed to investigate correlates of smoking status and perceptions to inform prevention and cessation efforts.

The Importance of Digital Literacy in Online Learning

Revolution and the COVID-19 pandemic have changed the learning process to be online based. Digital literacy competencies have a close relationship with the implementation of online learning, so it is necessary to conduct research to determine the level of digital literacy in online learning participants. One of the references for measuring the level of digital literacy is the Bawden Conception, which divides digital literacy competencies into four aspects, namely basic digital literacy skills, background information knowledge, key competencies in the field of ICT, and attitudes and perspectives of information users. This study will show a response to the level of digital literacy when measured using the Bawden Concept

Online Developmental Education Instruction: Challenges and Instructional Practices According to the Practitioners

Using a qualitative survey research design, researchers solicited faculty input on challenges and common instructional practices applied in teaching online developmental education courses. Online was defined as 80% or more of the instruction of a course being delivered online. Participants of the study were faculty teaching developmental education courses online, primarily in 2-year colleges. They completed an online survey on faculty characteristics and various aspects of teaching online. The most frequently occurring challenges identified by field practitioners included technology issues, student engagement, time management, and basic literacy skills. The most commonly used instructional activities reported were discussion boards, multimedia, offering of feedback and synchronous sessions, and communication. Based on the findings, implications for practice are discussed, which can benefit faculty as they design and deliver online developmental education courses.

The design and implementation of the Carolina Automated Reading Evaluation for reading deficit screening

This paper examines the design process and implementation of the Carolina Automated Reading Evaluation (CARE). Designed to automate the process of screening for reading deficits, CARE is an interactive computer-based tool that helps eliminate the need for one-on-one evaluations of pupils to detect dyslexia and other reading deficits. While other tests collect specific data points in order to determine whether a pupil has dyslexia, they typically focus on only a few metrics for diagnosis, such as handwriting analysis or eye tracking. The CARE collects data across up to 16 different subtests, each built to test proficiency in various reading skills. These skills include reading fluency, phoneme manipulation, sound blending, and many other essential skills for reading. This wide variety of measurements allows for a more focused intervention to be created for the pupil. For this study, elementary school pupils were tested both with the CARE and with the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) test, a well-established screener for elementary school-level reading deficits. The data collected was used in a comparison of average scores, a gradient boosting tree classifier, and a convergence test to determine if there was any correlation between the CARE and DIBELS scores. Based on these comparisons, a correspondence was found between the two tests, showing that the CARE can detect reading deficits comparable to manually administered testing instruments. Based on these findings, the CARE could be used as a replacement for current tests, giving the users more detailed data at a faster rate. This paper reviews the technical development and preliminary analysis of the CARE. It also provides insights into key considerations when translating standard psychological screeners onto computerized platforms.

Introducing Undergraduates to Primary Research Literature

All students pursuing STEM careers need to be adept at interpreting and evaluating primary research literature. The complexity of research articles requires significant practice and training in order to become skilled and efficient at this process. Thus, an early start in undergraduate education is essential and allows for development and practice through subsequent coursework and undergraduate research. The project presented here was an effort to develop fundamental literacy skills for a first semester honors general chemistry course. The curriculum included five iterative guided worksheet assignments comprising one secondary article and four related primary research articles. Each subsequent assignment was designed to be more challenging, by selecting more complicated articles and subjects, to encourage and increase literature assessment skills. Two workshops were presented after the first and third assignments to provide formal instruction on strategies to effectively read and understand research literature and promote discussion on the literature assignment articles. Assignment performance was consistently strong throughout the semester as the complexity of the assignments increased for three of the four learning objectives. However, students struggled with identifying research hypotheses despite direct instruction on this learning objective during both workshops. Pre- and post-semester survey data indicated that, while students came to the course with fairly strong confidence in their abilities to interpret and evaluate research literature, they also indicated very strong improvement in these skills by the end of the semester. These results indicate that this one-semester curriculum was an effective means to introduce students to scientific literature and develop basic literacy skills.

Examining the Correlates of Adolescent Food and Nutrition Knowledge.

Food literacy is a set of skills and knowledge that are integral to diet. It is common among teenagers to not have basic food literacy skills needed to consume a healthy diet. This study examined: (1) the current state of food and nutrition knowledge among adolescents 13–19 years of age in the census metropolitan area of London, ON, Canada; and (2) correlates of food knowledge and nutrition knowledge among adolescents. Data for this study were drawn from baseline youth and parent survey data collected from a larger population health intervention study. Statistical analysis of the survey data indicates that higher parental education and higher median neighbourhood family income, the use of mobile health applications, liking to cook, as well as confidence in reading and understanding food labels were all consistently associated with increased food and nutrition knowledge. Findings may help guide future research towards optimal methods for delivering food literacy interventions to effectively educate teenagers. Results of this study may help guide policy makers, researchers, and public health professionals in developing appropriate food and nutrition programs and curriculums to combat the decline in food literacy skills.

Literasi Digital Saat Pandemi

Entering the pandemic era where learning is carried out online, in tracking every learning process, high digital literacy skills can make it easier for students because digital literacy is predicted to be the main and important foundation in the education sector in the future. The research method used in this study is a descriptive research method which aims to describe and explain how to implement digital literacy in online learning during the current Covid-19 pandemic. Researchers conducted research at the SD Pilot Laboratory UPI Serang, the school was chosen because it had met the researchers' criteria to conduct research, namely fully online learning, being active in online learning, and having ICT (Information and Communication Technology) learning. From the interview data that has been carried out by the researcher, information was obtained that digital literacy at the UPI Serang Pilot Laboratory Elementary School has unknowingly been going well, as evidenced by students who have studied ICT lessons and have carried out online learning quite smoothly. In general, the students of SD Laboratoriaum Pilot UPI Serang have implemented digital literacy well with the fulfillment of four aspects, namely basic literacy skills (reading and writing), background knowledge of information (intellectual level), ICT skills, and attitudes and information (perspectives). Based on the results and discussions that have been presented by the researchers, it can be concluded that digital literacy activities during the Covid-19 pandemic at the UPI Serang Pilot Laboratory Elementary School went quite well and smoothly despite experiencing some difficulties.