Authors: Michelle Brown, Cen Wang, Sharynne McLeod
Here is the abstract
Background: It is widely accepted that book-reading ameliorates later literacy and language development, however researchers examining book-reading and later academic outcomes have reported inconclusive evidence. The present study addressed this gap in the literature by examining the long-term impact for literacy and language mastery from book-reading with young children.
Method: 3547 young children and their caregivers enrolled in the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children participated. Using a series of analyses, the relationship between the number of minutes young children were read to per day and the children’s Grade 5 (10-11 years) literacy and language subtests from the National Assessment Program for Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) was examined.
Results: The number of minutes young children were read to, positively predicted the children’s Grade 5 (10-11 years) NAPLAN literacy and language subtests. The relationship remained significant when controlling for demographic variables and cognitive abilities.
Conclusion: This study provides evidence with a relatively large sample that reading with young children for more than 10 minutes per day can promote literacy and language outcomes nine years later. Implications for teachers, educators, future research, and policy makers are considered with the goal of empowering teachers/educators to continue advocating for book-reading with young children.
