Young Learners: A Mixed-Methods Study of Early Literacy Assessment Responses

• In Event: Assessment Studies Focused on Pre-Kindergarten and Early Childhood Design, Development, and Stakeholder Perceptions

Abstract

This paper argues for the need to critically examine the theoretical lenses used in early literacy assessment to support teaching. It reports on a mixed methods study which analyzed the assessment responses of 293 four to six-year-olds using quantitative and qualitative methods at group and individual levels. A comparison of the results suggests that different research methods could focus on distinct aspects of early literacy development, where different ways of processing and analyzing the data may reflect different assumptions about the nature of early literacy development. The validity of research or assessment evidence therefore may be contingent upon the epistemological position being adopted by the investigator. Implications of the findings for early literacy research and teaching are suggested.

Author

• Man Ching Esther Chan, Victoria University