Emergent Literacy in Children of Migrant Farmworkers: The Complementary Roles of Home and Classroom Activities

• In Event: Dual Language Learners' Language and Literacy Experiences in Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Global Contexts

Abstract

In the United States, there are about 3 million migrant and seasonal farmworkers, most of whom are Spanish speakers (NCFH, 2020). Children of these families face challenges including frequent moves, poor living conditions, language barriers, and limited educational and healthcare resources (Tavassolie et al., 2018). The current study focused on migrant and seasonal children’s emergent literacy skills, an important precursor of future reading skills and academic success (Lonigan et al., 2000). Children’s engagement in the home and classroom language and literacy activities are key contributors to early literacy development (Vernon-Feagans et al., 2013). The bioecological model emphasizes the importance of considering the interactions among various developmental contexts (Bronfenbrenner & Morris, 2006). Yet, few studies have examined children’s home and classroom experiences simultaneously.

Here we asked: 1) How do home and classroom language and literacy activities respectively contribute to migrant and seasonal children's emergent literacy skills in English and Spanish? 2) Do home and classroom activities complement each other in their contributions to children’s emergent literacy skills?

Participants were 255 children and their parents and teachers, drawn from the Migrant and Seasonal Head Start (MSHS) Study (Caswell et al., 2020; see Table 1 for demographics). Parents reported how often children engaged in language and literacy activities with their family members (e.g., teaching letters, words, or numbers, book-reading, etc.; 1–zero days, 4–five to seven days a week). Teachers reported how often children engaged in language and literacy activities in the classroom (i.e., learning letters, writing name, retelling stories, etc.; 1–never, 6–every day). Children’s emergent literacy skills in English and Spanish were assessed using the Letter-Word Identification and Identificación de letras y palabras scales on the Woodcock-Muñoz Language Survey–Revised Normative Update (Woodcock et al., 2005). A group of demographic covariates were included in the analyses, including children’s age, gender, the number of children in the household, parental education, parents’ Spanish use with the child, teachers’ education, and instructional language.

To answer the first research question, a set of two-level random intercept models were estimated, using home language and literacy activities as the key predictor at Level 1, and classroom activities as the key predictor at Level 2. Neither home nor classroom language and literacy activities predicted MSHS children’s emergent literacy skills in English (see Model A, Table 2). However, both the home and classroom activities uniquely predicted children’s emergent literacy skills in Spanish (see Model C, Table 2).

To answer the second research question, an interaction term between home and classroom language and literacy activities was added to the models. In both the English and Spanish models, the interaction was significant (see Models B and D, Table 2), indicating that the positive effect of classroom language and literacy activities was stronger for children who experienced less frequent language and literacy activities at home.

Together, these findings highlight the complementary roles of home and classroom activities in MSHS children’s emergent literacy skills. High-quality classroom environment may buffer the adverse effect of limited home learning opportunities on early childhood development.

Authors

• Rufan Luo, Arizona State University - West
  Presenting Author

• Lulu Song, Brooklyn College - CUNY
  Non-Presenting Author