Early childhood educators’ competences for supporting children’s academic language skills in Germany

This study investigates early childhood educators’ language training competence that is required to support children's linguistic development. Hundred and forty-four early-years-professionals in Germany completed a computer-based assessment. We first tested knowledge of linguistic topics (e.g. morpho-syntax, developmental stages). Second, we probed their ability to make relevant linguistic observations in videotaped child–educator interactions. Third, we asked them to select adequate language interventions for the observed child. The participants’ knowledge and observing ability scores were slightly above 50% but they scored low in selecting effective interventions. More detailed analyses indicate that those with a higher level of secondary education outperformed low-educated early-years-professionals. Only those with intensive specialist training were better equipped to choose appropriate intervention methods. We discuss the results in light of the current German and (inter-) national practice of early childhood educators’ professional training and suggest a greater emphasis on linguistics and language awareness in their education

The Reading Fluency and Comprehension of Fifth- and Sixth-Grade Struggling Readers Across Brief Tests of Various Intervention Approaches

Development Psychopathology in context: clinical setting

The development of phonological awareness and letter knowledge in young New Zealand children

The predictive nature of phonological awareness for the development of literacy skills has been replicated frequently. While the conclusions of these studies have been overwhelmingly supportive of phonological awareness being important for early literacy, there has been less groundswell in terms of its application, particularly in early childhood settings. This paper examines the nature of phonological awareness, letter knowledge, and own name knowledge in a sample of 98 New Zealand children, aged between 3 and 5 years. It examines the development of emergent literacy skills over a 3-month period, with assessments carried out at the start of that time and the end. The nature of the relationships between the emergent literacy skills of phonological awareness, letter name knowledge, and own name knowledge was also examined. A developmental pattern from own name spelling ability to letter knowledge to initial phoneme awareness was found. Support for the lexical restructuring hypothesis was also found with the relationship between vocabulary and rime awareness. Rime awareness and initial phoneme awareness also appeared to be different forms of phonological awareness, with a lack of correlation between them. © W. S. Maney & Son Ltd 2014