Abstract
Objectives. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of selected social interaction indicators within pupil's family on early literacy development through the first grade.
Sample and methods. Longitudinal panel study with randomly selected 25 public elementary schools in the Central Bohemia and Prague.
Dataset composed of 376 first-graders during the 2013/14 school year. One Minute Reading test was repeatedly given to children at the beginning and at the end of the first grade along with a semi-structured interview.
Hypotheses. Effects of sociocultural milieu particularly reading interaction within family on the child's reading ability at the beginning of the school year and on its change by the end of the year were assessed.
Statistical analysis. Differences in reading test scores have been examined by regression analyses for the first wave as well as for residualized change score by the second wave.
Results. At the beginning of the first school year, parental education, visiting kindergarten, (negatively), single motherhood, and active learning to read with parents at preschool years have significant effects, while actual parent-child reading and communication about books are unimportant.
The growth dynamics of early literacy level during the first school year is tremendous; children are four times effective readers at the end of first grade. But effects of home literacy interactions as well as other characteristics of the family on residualized change score after 8 months have vanished due to school instructions.
Study limitation. Measures of social interaction within the family have been obtained only from pupils testimonies.
The research question is yet viewed only on the first two waves of longitudinal study. It is a relatively short period of time to explain the differences in growth curves of reading skills by sociocultural factors.
These limits should be overcome with the third wave of panel survey among second graders.