EMERGENT LITERACY

Emergent literacy is believed to be a gradual developmental process that happens early in the child’s life (Lonigan et al., 2000, Whitehurst & Lonigan, 1998). It is believed to be the basis for which children’s traditional abilities of reading and writing are built (Justice, Chow, Capellini, Flanigan and Colton 2003). In other words, emergent literacy involves children’s exposure to reading and writing environments before attending formal literacy instruction at school.

Emergent literacy is said to consist of skills, knowledge and attitudes that are presumed to be developmental for conventional forms of reading and writing (Lonigan et al., 2000; Whitehurst & Lonigan 1998; Roberts, Jurgens & Burchinal 2005). Availability and exposure to literacy tools such as book reading at home have a positive effect on emergent literacy development (Roberts, Jurgens & Burchinal 2005; Purcell-Gates 2001). This suggests that emergent literacy comprises of important components for word decoding abilities that do not end at school. These components are oral language, phonological processing abilities, and print knowledge (Lonigan et al. 2000; Gove & Watterberg 2011). This indicates that reading and writing are mediated, scaffolded and acquired in a non-threatening, informal and natural manner through interacting with knowledgeable family members and literacy materials (Justice et al., 2003).

Emergent literacy assumes that reading, writing and oral language develop concurrently and independently when children are exposed to literate social environments in which literacy is a component at home and at school (Whitehurst & Lonigan 1998). In other words, the social interaction with adults promotes the development of emergent literacy that also provides opportunities for exploration of written language when learners are exposed to print material, especially at school (Teale 1987).

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Literacy is an important skill and practice throughout the learner’s school years. A good literacy foundation involves, among other things, exposure to print material at an early age. It is also viewed as a precursor for good academic life and learners who receive less practice in reading are likely to lack important skills that could help them to develop better reading comprehension skills (Lonigan, Burgess, & Anthony 2000; Gove & Watterberg 2011). Lack of reading practice could affect young learners negatively as they cannot absorb printed information, follow written instructions or communicate well in writing (Gove & Watterberg 2011). Therefore, exposure to reading and writing practices earlier in life could eliminate or minimize literacy difficulties that might arise when children enter school (Gove & Watterberg 2011).

Block (2006) perceives emergent literacy as a strategy young children use to construct their own literacy in personally useful and meaningful ways and as part of developmental, personal, social and cultural learning processes. Block’s definition of emergent literacy suggests that young learners acquire literacy by using it to construct meaningful ways of dealing with life demands in a social context. Block (2006) mentions two variables that help to develop emergent literacy in young learners, namely, pretending to read and bedtime reading. Pretending to read is a process that happens in and out of school when young learners are exposed to print material whereby they pretend to read under the guidance of a knowledgeable adult. Bedtime reading implies exposing children to literacy practices in a non-threatening manner, in the company of their family. This exposure and modelling of literacy in social setting stimulates the use of language and learning, at the same time (Block 2006). The knowledgeable adult could be the teacher, a parent or a sibling that is more advanced in reading than the learner.

Bedtime reading by parents and the time they spend with their children at home can improve young learners’ literacy abilities (Evans, Shaw & Bell 2000). This practice happens at home to expose learners to the value of reading and it develops the learners’ vocabulary and knowledge that would help them later in academic life. According to Robert, Jurgens & Burchinal (2005) a difference in terms of knowledge and literacy development was observed between children from low socio-economic and middle socio-economic backgrounds. Children from disadvantaged communities received less reading support from their parents than children from middle socio- economic backgrounds and, as a result, lagged behind their counterparts in terms of reading abilities.

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Prinsloo & Block (1999) extend the view of emergent literacy to imply not only exposure to print material but also to include how print material provides access to enjoyment and love of books. Children develop skills and positive experiences that enable them to engage with print material by asking questions, and have those questions answered by adults. Michalowitz (1999) and Koon (2008) agree that the children view the book for information, while reading for enjoyment. Many scholars believe that there is a relationship between play and the development of emergent writing (Prinsloo & Block 1999; Michalowitz 1999; Neuman & Rokos 1990; (RNCS) (DoE 2002 and Block 2006). According to Block (2006) play involves pretending that something represents an object and that precedes the understanding of written language. In other words, when children play, their imagination allows them to think about the rules of the game and the act of playing leads to development. Block (2006) goes on to make an example of using story telling where the knowledgeable other models writing, by writing down what the young learner is narrating. So, the relevance of pretend-read activities at home during early years develop curiosity among the young children and open more opportunities for them to be exposed to print material early in their lives.

Similarly, Fleer & Raban (2007) recognise that young learners’ literacy develops in everyday activities that are accompanied by talk, with lots of new vocabulary words. According to Fleer & Raban (2007) “literacy is more than knowing letters and reading some words” but the development of knowledge generators and learners that are able to analyse the text and reflect on it. It is also about an understanding that making mistakes is a natural part of learning and that literacy learning is a process. This implies that young learners show their understanding of literacy by being aware of the different kinds of print or visual materials available at their homes, as well as by actively participating in talk with adults.

Purcell-Gates (2001) also emphasizes the role of talk or oral language in emergent literacy, and she is of the view that oral language is a precursor for written language. She believes that exposure to written language mediates oral language development which children use in pretend- to-read activities at school and at home. Purcell-Gates’s notion of emergent literacy rests on the belief that emergent literacy should be concerned with the emerging conceptual and procedural knowledge of written language, including the reading and writing of that particular language. She further states that language needs to be retained as a key variant to emergent literacy

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knowledge, but it is important to support its written form than oral. One of Purcell- Gates’s recommendations when dealing with emergent literacy is that a focus on developing written form of language provides measures for intervention early in a learner’s school life. So, according to Purcell- Gates (2001) exposure to written material early in children’s life, irrespective of their sociocultural background, could help children to learn to read and develop their pretend- to-read ability when they are constantly read to at school or at home. Purcell- Gates, therefore, confirms that language is an important component to literacy and a focus on reading and written language development could provide improvements in instructional or intervention measures early in a child’s academic life.

Purcell- Gates further mentions that language is embedded in culture, and culture is not constant but changes all the time. Therefore, Purcell-Gates recommends that during formal schooling, it is the teacher’s explicit instructional practices that could introduce children to written text literacy activities. Such activities bring different qualities of written features of language to develop literacy abilities. In other words, the teacher has an influence on learners’ literacy development, especially in the Foundation Phase because the (FP) teacher lays the literacy foundational skills that the learner will use to learn in other school subjects in subsequent grades. So, it is the teacher’s responsibility to introduce young learners to the practices of reading and writing at school.