Comparison of Picture-story Comprehension of Preschool Children in Same-age Class and Mixed-age Class Setting
Abstract
The study presents comparison of picture-story comprehension skills in preschool education in mixed-age group and same-age group class setting. In the fi rst part it explains story comprehension according to cognitive development and speech development.
On the basis of knowledge of the appropriate methods for supporting comprehension development it outlines a question of peer's infl uence on comprehension development. The main goal of the pilot study was to fi ndwhat are differencies among children form mixed-age and same-age group settings.
The study compared results of test of comprehension taken in group of 4-5 y.o. children in the same urban kindergarten, one group from class with same-age setting and the second one with mixed-age setting. All chidren were in the kindergarten for the fi rst year and came from the same socio-economic background, their teachers use the same methods for supporting story comprehension.
Test of comprehension of picture story was used, focused on measure of story-telling ability, story sequence, causality, vocabulary and reading direction. We also used questionnaire for parents to exam family's backgrounds; approach to reading and books, education of parents and child's position among siblings.
Conclusions did not approve strong relevance between class setting and child's development of story comprehension, even though children from mixed-age group class reached much higher score in vocabulary, storytelling ability and understaning main idea, while picture comprehension, causality and reading direction were on the approximately same level. However family reading habits, education of parents and child's position in family are almost the same, therefore it is not possible to say, that differences in results are due to family infl uence.
Although the study worked with small sample and it is not possible to generalize, it brings an interesting inspiration for future research - to examine class settings infl uence and also how preschool teachers develop story comprehension in preschool education.