Home literacy environment and early language and literacy development in six East-Asian and Pacific Island Countries

Abstract

The link between home literacy environment (HLE) and children’s language and literacy development has been well documented. However, little is known about the role of HLE in early language and literacy development across different national contexts and countries. Against this background, this study examines the association between HLE and children’s language and literacy skills in six East-Asian and Pacific Island countries and explores the extent to which the effects of HLE may vary across countries.

The sample included 8300 children (4147 girls) aged three to five from Cambodia (n = 1500), China (n = 1784), Mongolia (n = 1247), Papua New Guinea (n = 1795), Timor-Leste (n = 1188) and Vanuatu (n = 786), and their parents or caregivers. Children were administered in individual sessions the language and emergent literacy domain (16 items; α = .94) of the East Asia Pacific –Early Child Development Scales (Rao et al., 2014). Children were assessed on their receptive language, expressive language, pre-reading skills and pre-writing skills. Parents or other caregivers were interviewed individually and were asked to report on their involvement in home literacy activities with their children (e.g., reading books, telling stories, singing songs and naming, counting or drawing). These items were summed to form an index of HLE. Hierarchical linear modeling was used to examine the association between HLE and early language and literacy skills. Results indicated that HLE predicted children’s early language and literacy skills across all countries (β = 0.25, p < .001), while controlling for children’s age, gender, maternal education and paternal education. The effect of HLE on early language and literacy development varied across countries (Cambodia: β = 0.38, p < .05; China: β = 0.20, p < .05; Mongolia: β = 0.52, p < .001; Papua New Guinea: β = 0.23, p > .05; Timor-Leste: β = 0.57, p < .001; and Vanuatu: β = 0.02, p > .05). Findings highlight the importance of parental involvement in home literacy practices in supporting early language and literacy development. This study adds to the limited body of research that examines cross-national variation in the effects of HLE on early language and literacy skills. Implications of these findings will be discussed.