Some Missing Links? Charles L. Mifsud Literacy for All Seminar, 15 th November 2012

Points to consider The importance of early intervention by establishing baseline levels. Strenghtening of aspects of initial and continuing professional development of teachers in literacy. Why are so few interventions really effective?

Early intervention The strong influence of the home background as established in our baseline studies. Literacy and Mathematics baseline studies can serve as the basis for early intervention. Incontrovertible evidence of the utmost importance of the first years: the quality of parent-child interactions, shared storybook reading, phonological awareness... The language comprehension ability of 14-month-old toddlers predicts their subsequent expressive and receptive vocabulary. Language processing speed and receptive vocabulary size at 25 months are predictive of vocabulary when children are 8 years old. Increased evidence which supports a role for pediatric primary care intervention programmes to reduce poverty related disparities in early child development and school readiness. Preventive developmental services for at risk children like ROR (Reach Out and Read). Collaboration between health and education services: pediatric settings and early childhood development and education specialists.

Strengthening of teacher education Importance of subject-specific knowledge about literacy (the processes involved in reading and writing), literacy-specific literacy-specific teaching strategies (word identification and comprehension), appropriate assessment techniques for diagnosing and addressing reading problems. No single teaching strategy works for all learners. Within the limitations of our initial TE programmes we have elements of these in our ECE, Primary and Secondary programmes (at least for English and Maltese and in the other languages) However this is quite limited and restricted to the language subjects. Broadening of scope of this training and extending it further into CPD, and not only for basic skills tutors.

Why are so few interventions really effective? An uncomfortable question: Why do our efforts frequently result in limited success? What we know for sure: - Powerful continuities between early language learning and later academic success. - Factors such as poverty place children at elevated risk of failing to acquire language skills associated with later reading. - The disturbing but incontrovertible fact that while many interventions have resulted in some growth in language abilities, many have not had lasting effects.

Lasting effects To have substantial and sustained impact on children’s language learning in ways that translate into improved reading comprehension, a broad-based approach may be necessary: Phonological awareness, decoding, spelling, reading comprehension and semantic knowledge. The importance of the environment. Language development and reading ability are largely determined by environmental factors. Literacy-rich environment, especially specific classroom behaviours like teachers’ use of language, especially sophisticated vocabulary that fosters learning. However we need to identify in which ways language learning affects not only language acquisition but also associated competencies. These lasting effects may stem not only from vocabulary learning but also from the fact that children who experience enriched interactions with their teachers form closer relationships and are more inclined to connect with their teachers.

Enhanced attention regulation, information learning, self- regulatory abilities in group settings. Interventions in which children are pulled out of the classroom and work with teachers one-to-one or in a small group setting have, in general, shown more promising results than large-scale efforts. For example shared book reading is typically implemented one-to-one or in a small- group setting, often by parents. Focus and intensity of the intervention may be a key element in fostering language growth. Training of teachers to employ interactive book reading techniques with an emphasis on vocabulary. Significant positive effects on both expressive and receptive vocabulary. Sufficient resources need to be in place. Fine-grained evidence of progress.