Promoting emerging literacy skills of Malaysian indigenous children through shared-book reading

This quasi-experimental study investigated whether and how an approach to classroom reading instruction, Shared Book Reading (SBR), impacts the development of vocabulary and oral Malay language of young Malaysian indigenous children learning Malay as a second language. 57 Orang Asli children from two first-grade classrooms participated in the study. One of the classes was randomly assigned to implement SBR sessions while the other served as control (delayed treatment). Prior to the intervention, all students were assessed on a grade-appropriate literacy test (LINUS 1), a rapid-automatized naming task (RAN), and a Children’s Nonword Repetition test (CNRep). After a five-week intervention, all students were assessed on a second literacy screening test (LINUS 2), vocabulary, storytelling, motivation, and Malay language learning attitudes. Results showed that experiences of SBR accelerated young Malaysian indigenous children’s oral Malay language production and increased their word-meaning knowledge. The SBR group performed significantly better than the control group on the word-defining task. They also produced more coherent narratives in a wordless picture story-telling task. They told the stories with greater verbal rate and their stories contained significantly greater vocabulary diversity. SBR discussions enhanced students’ motivation, engagement and attitudes toward Malay language learning. These results altogether yield significant implications for the literacy instruction of Malaysian indigenous children.

Name thesis:degree_name

M.S.

Level thesis:degree_level

Thesis

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Educational Psychology

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2012

Author dc:creator

• Ma'rof, Aini Marina

Contributors dc:contributor

• Anderson, Richard C.

• Literacy
• Shared-book Reading
• Second Language
• Indigenous children
• Achievement Gap

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 2012 Aini Marina Ma'rof

Language dc:language

en

Handle dc:identifier

http://hdl.handle.net/2142/34507

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/34507