Improving Latino children's early language and literacy development: key features of early childhood education within family literacy programmes

Abstract

Noting the lack of research on how early childhood education (ECE) programmes within family literacy programmes influence Latino children's early language and literacy development, this study examined key features of ECE programmes, specifically teacher–child interactions and child engagement in language and literacy activities and how these features relate to Latino children's early language and literacy development. Participants were 181 Latino children (3–5 years old) from low-income families enrolled in 22 ECE programmes within family literacy programmes. Teacher–child interactions were of medium quality on socioemotional support and low quality on instructional quality. Latino children spent about 20% of their day engaged in language and literacy activities. Multilevel regression analysis results showed that the length of Latino children's engagement in language and literacy activities in ECE programmes was more strongly related to their English oral language skills and alphabet knowledge than the quality of teacher–child interactions.

Keywords:

• Latinos
• early literacy
• early childhood education
• family literacy
• teacher–child interactions
• literacy engagement

Notes on contributor

Youngok Jung is an Assistant Professor in the College of Education and Social Services at the University of Vermont. She is interested in the effects of high quality early childhood education on child development, dual language learners, and children's unstructured play in the natural world.

Stephen Zuniga was a research scientist at Center for Improving Child Care Quality at University of California, Los Angeles.

Carollee Howes is a Research Professor of the Graduate School of Education and Information Studies and the Director of Center for Improving Child Care Quality at University of California, Los Angeles. Her research focuses on children's experiences in child care, their concurrent and long-term outcomes from child care experiences, and efforts to improve child care quality.

Hyun-Joo Jeon is an Assistant Professor in the College of Education at University of Nevada, Reno. Her research interests include influences of quality of peer interaction, teacher-child interaction, parent-teacher relationship, teacher education and qualification, and quality of early care and education settings on children's developmental outcomes.

Deborah Parrish is affiliated with American Institutes for Research and has over 20 years of combined research, evaluation, and early childhood and parent education teaching experience.

Heather Quick is a principal research scientist in American Institutes for Research's Education Program, has more than 15 years of experience leading research and evaluation studies of early care and education program quality, school readiness, family engagement, and teacher professional development.

Karen Manship is a senior researcher with American Institutes for Research focusing on early childhood and K-12 education policy and finance.

Alison Hauser is a researcher with American Institutes for Research focusing on early childhood.

ORCID

Youngok Jung http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9533-7287

Carollee Howes http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5902-7855

Notes

1 The data were collected prior to the publication of the revised CLASS (Pianta, La Paro, & Hamre, 2004).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Los Angeles Children and Families First Commission (‘First 5 Los Angeles’), via a subcontract from American Institutes for Research.