Parents as Literacy Supporters: A Bilingual Family Literacy Program With Immigrant and Refugee Families

• In Event: A Place for Indigenous, Immigrant, and Refugee Cultural Contributions to Family Literacy

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to report findings of the Parents As Literacy Supporters (PALS) in Immigrant Communities project with about 400 new immigrant and refugee families from five linguistic communities (Farsi, Karen, Mandarin, Punjabi, and Vietnamese) in the Greater Vancouver area of British Columbia.

Framework: This work is informed by socio-historical theory (Vygotsky, 1978) and the recognition that much children’s learning is social and guided by significant others. We also draw on Bronfenbrenner’s (1979) ecological theory of human development wherein children’s learning is seen as occurring within three overlapping spheres of influence: the family, community and school. Finally, this work recognizes the importance of first language maintenance from cognitive, linguistic and socio-cultural perspectives (Roberts, 2008; Schecter & Cummins, 2003). The PALS program is designed for 3-5 year olds and their parents and/or significant others. Families participate in 10 or more two hour sessions offered in their first language. Topics for the sessions, identified through focus group sessions with families and early childhood educators, include: learning to read; learning to write; literacy and technology, and early mathematics.

Method: For this study, the following measures and data sources were used: pre and post measures using Normal Curve Equivalency Scores of the Test of Early Reading Ability-2 (Reid, Hresko, & Hammill, 1989), a widely used standardized instrument with good psychometric properties that taps children’s emerging knowledge of the alphabet, concepts of print and meaning; two focus group sessions held toward the beginning and end of the program; audio-recordings of two sessions at each site; and the researchers’ field notes. Transcripts of the focus groups meetings, and the audio-recordings of the two sessions, as well as the field notes, were analyzed thematically.

Findings: Major findings included: children’s literacy knowledge as measured by the Normal Curve Equivalent Scores on the Test of Early Reading Ability-2 (Reid, Hresko, & Hammill, 1989) increased significantly from Time 1 (M = 35.91, SD = 20.12) to Time 2 (M = 52.71, SD = 22.92), F(1, 91) = 42.56, p < .001 with an effect size, partial eta squared of .318 which is large according to Cohen’s (1988) criteria; boys appeared to benefit from the program equally with girls; parents indicated that they appreciated insights and understandings of child centered, play based pedagogy that their children would experience in school, while retaining some traditional ways of supporting children (Rogoff, 2003); parents believed they had gained new insights into children’s learning and how they could support that learning; parents were generally very supportive of their children maintaining their first language; and parents believed the program would facilitate their children’s transition to Kindergarten.

Significance: The study is the first that we know of that demonstrates the impact of a family literacy program on young children’s literacy development while also promoting the maintenance of the children’s first language. It should be of interest to early childhood educators, those who work in family literacy and policy makers.

Authors

• Jim Anderson, The University of British Columbia

• Fiona Morrison, Decoda Literacy Solutions

• Ji Eun Kim, The University of British Columbia