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Early Literacy Programs in NSW Public Libraries
State Library of NSW & Macquarie University
Partnership Research Project
Dr. Emilia Djonov & A/Prof. Jane Torr
Institute of Early ChildhoodMacquarie University
Kate O’Grady & Cameron MorleyPublic Library Services Team
State Library of NSW
NSW public libraries as ‘active connectors’
Strengths• Free public access to resources and services, including
a range of early literacy programs• Strong community connections and understanding of
local context• Council, statewide and national library networks
Challenges• Diverse audiences• Attendance rates and regularity (with implications for
in-house vs. outreach initiatives)• Variety of experience and expertise among library staff
ALIA Early Literacy Group (2011, Sept. 26) Early Literacy Framework and Strategy for Australian Public Libraries (1st draft).
Optimal support public libraries can provide for early literacy
• Early literacy features in every library plan• PD offered to other agencies• Library invited to other agencies' PD sessions• Promoting resources and making them widely available• Outreach for the disadvantaged, hard-to-reach or non-users of libraries• Active development of programs for both babies and toddlers and
preschoolers (e.g. baby bounce/rhyme and story time)• Supporting parents in becoming effective 'first teachers'• Participating in academic and other research• Collaborating with other libraries locally and nationally to develop
resources and programs• Active involvement in reading and literacy debates• Participating in the provision of early literacy incentives as a public
library membership 'bonus'ALIA Early Literacy Group (2011, Sept. 26) Early Literacy Framework and Strategy for Australian Public Libraries (1st draft). (p. 10)
Project Aims
Context-sensitive model for benchmarking and designing effective early literacy
programs in NSW public libraries
Close observation and analysis
of early literacy
sessions in 24 NSW libraries
Review of research on early literacy
Statewide survey of
early literacy programs &
their settings
How could this project support library staff?
What is (early) literacy? Literacy is the capacity, confidence and disposition to use language in all its forms. Literacy incorporates a range of modes of communication including music, movement, dance, story telling, visual arts, media and drama, as well as talking, listening, viewing, reading and writing. Contemporary texts include electronic and print based media. In an increasingly technological world, the ability to critically analyse texts is a key component of literacy. Children benefit from opportunities to explore their world using technologies and to develop confidence in using digital media. […]Experiences in early childhood settings build on the range of experiences with language, literacy and numeracy that children have within their families and communities.Positive attitudes and competencies in literacy and numeracy are essential for children's successful learning. The foundations for these competencies are built in early childhood. (p.37)
Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR) (2009). Belonging, being, becoming: The Early Years Learning Framework for Australia. Barton, ACT: Commonwealth of Australia. Retrieved from: http://foi.deewr.gov.au/system/files/doc/other/belonging_being_and_becoming_the_early_years_learning_framework_for_australia.pdf
Knowledge, skills and attitudes related to literacy outcomes
• Phonological awareness• Vocabulary: quantity and quality• Concepts of print• Letter knowledge• Book knowledge (including understanding of story
structure)• World knowledge and socio-cultural values• Motivation to read and write
Role of adults and interactions in supporting emergent literacy
“…it is not the reading of stories on its own that leads children towards the reflective, disembedded thinking that is so necessary for success in school, but the total interaction in which the story is embedded. […] even when [children] can perform the decoding and encoding for themselves, they continue to need help in interpreting the stories they hear and read and in shaping those that they create for themselves. The manner in which the adult – first parent and then teacher – fulfils this latter role is almost as important as the story itself.”
Wells, Gordon C. (1985) Pre-school literacy-related activities and success in school. In D. R. Olson, N. Torrance and A. Hildyard (eds.) Literacy, Language and Learning: The Nature and Consequences of Reading and Writing. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. (p.253)
Literacy and oral language
“… a critical component of classroom environment is the quality of its language interactions. Through high-quality classroom conversations, children acquire new concepts at the same time as they become more competent language users.”
McGee, L.M. & Richgels, D.J. 2003. Designing Early Literacy Programs. London: The Guildford Press. (pp.67-68)
Oral language, literacy & learning
• Naming/labelling (vocabulary)• Comparing, describing and defining• Classifying and generalising• Talking about past and future events• Expressing different points of view• Hypothesising, reasoning and explaining
DECONTEXTUALISED LANGUAGE
Contextual Factors
• socio-economic status• parental education• attitudes towards literacy• socio-cultural and linguistic background• gender• …
Project methodology
• Statewide public library survey: multiple choice and short answer questionnaire, designed with assistance from librarians
• Review of research on early literacy
• Close observation and analysis of early literacy programs in 24 NSW public libraries representative of the diversity of settings and programs across NSWo video recording of sessionso interviews with library staff engaged in those sessionso voluntary questionnaire for parents and families
Project outcomes• identifying core literacy competencies that all young
children should be given opportunities to develop and specific practices that support early literacy development
• criteria for benchmarking early literacy programs across the state according to these core literacy competencies and practices
• guidelines for developing effective early literacy programs across different public library settings in NSW that identify the key elements of such programs
• a set of professional development resources for library staff involved in the design of early literacy programs
Overall: a framework for recognising and designing effective early
literacy programs across NSW public libraries improved recognition of NSW public libraries' contribution to
supporting children and their families in achieving better literacy outcomes
