LITERACY EVENTS IN A RURAL PRESCHOOL

An engaging learning environment is vital for successful mastery of reading and writing skills of young children. This study investigated the literacy events that occurred in the English classes of five-year old children from a Chinese preschool in a rural area. Teachers were interviewed, audio and videotaped during their English lessons over a period of five months to offer a closer look on interactions between preschool children and their teachers to assess the effectiveness of the pedagogical approach of teachers. Interviews too provided supporting details necessary for this research. Data collected from the interviews were transcribed and analyzed qualitatively. The analysis of the data shows that literacy events during the English classes involved mainly the teaching of phonics and vocabulary using the MELS program. Most of the time students were asked to read words and memorize spellings of words at home for tests after a few days. At times, students were asked to write out each word taught several times, a task aimed at improving their ability to spell accurately. Recitation of Nursery rhymes and story telling, two of the common interactive practices in preschool classes, were totally absent in class. Students were rarely asked to read aloud in class and this resulted in the lack of practice in sight-reading of longer sentences in class. Due to the teacher-centred approach adopted in class, students were hardly engaged or motivated. Clearly, there is a need for intervention to bring about greater motivation and consequently a more satisfactory environment for the acquisition of basic reading and writing skills.