Training of early childhood teachers for the use of successful shared reading strategies

ABSTRACT

Purpose

Verify the effects of a training program held with pre-school teachers to carry out specific strategies in shared reading and generalize these strategies in other daily activities of oral language motivation.

Methods

A total of 14 teachers from low socioeconomic level schools participated in the study. The teachers were randomly distributed in an experimental group and a control group. The experimental group attended training on how to use five strategies during shared reading in the classroom and discuss how to motivate their students towards oral language. To evaluate the effectiveness of training, two instruments were applied pre- and post-intervention. The Assessment Scale of Oral Language Teaching in School (EVALOE) was applied to analyze the teaching of oral language and the Checklist was used to characterize the behavioral changes of the teachers during shared reading.

Results

Overall, EVALOE data were higher at post-intervention analysis for 11 of the 13 participants. Checklist showed that 10 of the 13 teachers presented higher post-intervention total scores compared with their respective pre-intervention scores.

Conclusion

The training program provided improvement in teacher behavior during shared reading activities and demonstrated to have a positive impact on the increase of interactions, previously identified in the literature as important for oral language motivation.

Keywords
Teacher Training; Strategies; Reading; Language; Child Rearing