Improving Literacy Outcomes for Disadvantaged Girls Through Empowerment

2022 ◽  
pp. 149-164
Author(s):  
Monazza Aslam ◽  
Laura Cashman ◽  
Moaaz Hamid ◽  
Shenila Rawal ◽  
Baela Raza Jamil ◽  
...  

Literacy acquisition is important for the formation of higher order skills, further engagement with written forms of knowledge, and deeper participation in society. Yet not all children have the opportunity to acquire literacy skills in their own mother tongue to allow them to continue to advance to these wider benefits of learning. This is particularly the case for girls living in poverty in Pakistan, where about 40% of the poorest girls are out of school compared to 24% of the richest girls not going to school. For those who start school, less than half complete a full cycle of basic education and less than 20% complete secondary schooling. In this chapter, the authors develop evidence for the effectiveness of a remedial learning program—Siyani Sahelian—which aims to support the reintegration of disadvantaged girls into schooling by developing literacy skills in Urdu (among other academic and life skills). The chapter provides evidence of the extent to which the programme supports literacy acquisition in an equitable way, and the main reasons behind the observed trends.

2021 ◽  
pp. 293-301
Author(s):  
Barbara Combes

Providing opportunities and learning environments on-line where students are actively engaged and feel in control of their own learning experiences, encourages lifelong learning skills development such as independence, problem-solving and higher order thinking. Discrete on-line environments can also use the functionality of the technology to facilitate different learning styles and provide a 'safe' environment where students can explore and experiment before presenting their ideas to a larger audience. This paper considers current research and the importance of the fiction collection in the development of literacy outcomes for all students. It also examines an interactive on-line module that: incorporates the concept of literature or reading circles to promote reading; the development of higher order literacy skills and encourages the development of a reading culture. The on-line module was developed using a model that utilizes an holistic approach to learning to create a seamless learning environment where students work within a structured framework that is designed to foster independent learning and teamwork.


Author(s):  
Joanna E. Cannon ◽  
Jessica W. Trussell

Examining the importance of morphosyntax comprehension in literacy acquisition across languages, this chapter will highlight the bilingual and bimodal advantages some deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) learners may possess. Since DHH readers may experience variations in hearing, language, and literacy levels, we examine the interplay of how they develop literacy skills. The complexity of the interplay among the components of reading and writing are considered along with the current research on morphosyntax interventions and assessments for this population of learners. Morphosyntax components that are historically challenging for DHH learners are discussed. Potentially promising practices across morphology and syntax are reviewed, as well as implementations for practice that include an informal assessment designed for DHH learners. Future research necessary to expand our knowledge of how morphology and syntax connect to text is included as a call to action in the quest to improve literacy outcomes for DHH readers.


2013 ◽  
Vol 38 (2) ◽  
pp. 54-60 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ruth Knight

The Pyjama Foundation is an Australian charity working to improve the literacy and numeracy outcomes for children in foster care. The foundation delivers the Pyjama Foundation Love of Learning programme, a learning-based mentoring programme in which volunteer ‘Pyjama Angels’ visit children in care each week to read books, play games and engage in other learning-based activities.This study surveyed 121 Love of Learning mentors (‘Pyjama Angels’) to assess their perceptions of the relationships they had developed with the children they mentored and of the children's improvement in their literacy skills, a key aim of the programme.The statistical data analysis based on the structural equation modelling and multiple regression approach showed that several factors had a statistically significant impact on the mentors’ perceptions of the children's improvement in literacy skills: relationship with the child, child's engagement and tenure in the programme, and frequency of meetings. Age and gender of the mentors were not found to have a statistically significant impact on mentors’ perceptions of this improvement, while mentors’ perceptions of their relationship with the children was the most important factor influencing their perceptions of improvement in literacy skills. The study did not include objective measures of the children's literacy outcomes, so its results are limited to the mentors’ perceptions. However, this study offers valuable insights for mentoring programmes working with children living in foster care.


Obiter ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Chrizell Chürr

Mother-tongue and mother-tongue education are recognized worldwide as one of the most efficient ways to function cognitively and socially. This article addresses the role of proper mother-tongue education with an emphasis on the importance of “language” since language is vital to a child’s right to a basic education in all its dimensions. Without mother-tongue education, every child’s right to learn and to become a skilful adult, able to participate independently in society, is at risk. The cumulative effect of the South African Constitution, the National Education Policy Act, the South African Schools Act, several international instruments and a number of ground-breaking cases, as well as the interaction between them on mother-tongue education will be examined. The implementation of certain education models will also be proposed.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xi Yu ◽  
Silvina Ferradal ◽  
Danielle D. Sliva ◽  
Jade Dunstan ◽  
Clarisa Carruthers ◽  
...  

AbstractFunctional brain networks undergo extensive development within the first few years of life. Previous studies have linked infant functional connectivity to cognitive abilities in toddlerhood. However, little is known regarding the long-term relevance of functional connections established in infancy for the protracted development of higher-order abilities of language and literacy. Employing a five-year longitudinal imaging project starting in infancy, this study utilizes resting-state functional MRI to demonstrate prospective associations between infant functional connectivity fingerprints and subsequent language and foundational literacy skills at a mean age of 6.5. These longitudinal associations are preserved when key environmental influences are controlled for and are independent of emergent language abilities in infancy, suggesting early development of functional network characteristics in supporting the acquisition of high-order language and pre-literacy skills. Altogether, the current results highlight the importance of functional organization established in infancy as a neural scaffold underlying the learning process of complex cognitive functions.


2017 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 277 ◽  
Author(s):  
Taina M Wewer

This practice-oriented article, also applicable for general foreign and second language instruction, outlines experiences and classroom practices recognized as functional and effective in CLIL (content and language integrated learning) contexts. CLIL can be defined as a comprehensive approach to foreign language teaching because it aims at learning language through various content across the curriculum. Since one of the guidelines in the Finnish basic education is teacher autonomy, the fluctuation in materials, practices and methods is notable. Therefore, there is no sole authenticated model of CLIL implementation, but the practices rather vary significantly from one classroom to another. Furthermore, the extent of the target language (TL) exposure has an impact on the instructional choices as well as the pre-negotiated and defined learning objectives. In most cases, the primary aim is that the child learns to read and write in the mother tongue or the main language of instruction (most often Finnish in Finland), and the target language (in this case English) is gradually and increasingly incorporated into the everyday classroom practice. Hence, instruction is bilingual. Research on foreign language teaching and learning helps to formulate some of the recurring linguistic practices in CLIL classrooms which is important in shaping the language used for social purposes. The integration of language and content and academic language need special attention in CLIL. In a similar manner, assessment of the target language, has to be specifically addressed. I will touch upon all these issues in the three main sections drawing on CLIL instruction with approximately 25% English exposure of total instruction.  


2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 97
Author(s):  
Eka Yusnaldi ◽  
Fia Alifah Putri ◽  
Wahyu Iskandar

The rules 2013 Curriculum is very interested in providing learning processes and items that have Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) degrees for students. The HOTS function is very representative of providing logical, reflective, critical, creative and metacognitive abilities which are higher order thinking abilities. This study aims to determine the HOTS-based learning planning program in MI At-Taqwa GUPPI Wojowalur Yogyakarta Special Region 2018/2019 and HOTS-based learning implementation program in MI At-Taqwa GUPPI Wojowalur Yogyakarta Special Region 2018/2019. Data were analyzed by describing or describing data according to the rules of descriptive qualitative research by taking interview and documentation data. In determining the subject, the researcher used a non-probability sample. The results of this study that (1) HOTS learning program 2018/2019 school year teachers implement learning plans using syllabus and RPP based on HOTS (2) HOTS learning implementation program 2018/2019 school year teachers have used variations in the determination of HOTS-based methods such as discussion, question and answer and students' ability to argue.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1351010X2110573
Author(s):  
Kiri Mealings

Literacy skills are essential for success in today’s society. However, classrooms often have suboptimal acoustic conditions for learning. The goal of this review was to synthesize research assessing the effect of different classroom acoustic conditions on children’s literacy. A comprehensive search of four online databases was conducted in August 2021. The search term was classroom AND (noise OR reverberation OR acoustics) AND (reading OR spelling OR writing OR literacy). Eighteen papers were deemed relevant for the review plus an additional seven from their references. The types of acoustic conditions that have been assessed, the types of measures used to assess literacy, and the effect of the acoustic conditions on children’s reading, writing, and spelling outcomes are discussed. Suggestions for the classroom acoustic conditions needed to ensure appropriate literacy development and areas for future research are also considered.


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