The Effect of English Language Proficiency on Phonological Awareness Skills Among Second Graders

JOURNAL REFERENCE

  • Title: The Effect of English Language Proficiency on Phonological Awareness Skills Among Second Graders

  • Author: Mackenzie Thompson, Harding University

  • Journal: Journal of Graduate Education Research, Volume 3, 2022

  • Citation: Thompson, M. (2022). The effect of English language proficiency on phonological awareness skills among second graders. Journal of Graduate Education Research, 3, 15-19.

  • Access Link: https://scholarworks.harding.edu/jger/vol3/iss1/6

ABSTRACT

  • The purpose of the study: To determine the effect of English language proficiency on phonological awareness skills among second graders.

    • Sample Size: 101 second graders from a Northwest Arkansas school.

    • Secondary data was analyzed from the Phonological Awareness Screening Test (PAST).

    • Findings: Significant differences were found in phonological awareness skills, with native English speakers outperforming English language learners (ELLs).

INTRODUCTION

  • Reading Difficulty in U.S. Students:

    • Only 35% of fourth graders were proficient in reading (NAEP, 2019).

    • Notable decline in reading scores since 2017 (Green & Goldstein).

  • Policy Changes in Education:

    • Mississippi showed improved reading scores prompting policy reforms.

  • Achievement Gap:

    • Hispanic and Asian ELLs lag behind native English-speaking peers in reading (Carnoy & Garcia, 2017).

    • Rising number of ELLs in schools (Mitchell, 2018).

READING SKILLS OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS (ELLs)

  • Many ELLs start school with lower reading skills compared to native speakers (Linklater, O’Connor, & Palardy, 2009).

    • Large percentage of ELLs display at-risk levels in oral reading fluency (Yesil-Dagli, 2011).

  • Phonological Awareness:

    • A key predictor of reading success in early grades (Lonigan & Goodrich, 2018; Yesil-Dagli, 2011).

IMPORTANCE OF PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS

  • Definition: Phonological awareness is the ability to hear and manipulate sounds in words (Bottari, 2020).

    • Best predictor of reading ability in early education (Lonigan & Goodrich, 2018).

    • Example: Kindergarten students with high phonological awareness perform well on later reading exams (Pynell, 2012).

  • Correlation with ELL reading:

    • Lower skills lead to difficulties in both native and second languages (Bing et al., 2015; Kalia et al., 2018).

    • Distinction between L1 (native language) and L2 (learned language) phonological skills.

PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS IN L1 VS L2

  • Cross-transfer of skills:

    • Students can transfer phonological awareness skills from L1 to L2 (Kalia et al., 2018).

    • Good L1 skills should theoretically imply strong L2 skills (Yeung & Ganotice, 2014).

  • L1-L2 Distance:

    • Defined as phonological units available in a native language compared to a second language (Saeigh-Haddad, 2019).

    • Example: Sounds unique to English may not be present in students’ L1, affecting their reading and spelling ability.

TRAINING IN PHONOLOGICAL AWARENESS

  • Benefits of Training:

    • Important for ELL reading skill development (Bing et al., 2015; Zoski & Erickson, 2017).

  • Training has shown improvements in reading benchmarks (Li & Chen, 2016).

    • Example: Taiwanese children improved after phonological awareness training.

OTHER SKILLS IMPACTING ELL READING ABILITY

  • Factors affecting reading include:

    • Vocabulary skills

    • Oral language ability

    • Background knowledge (Lonigan & Goodrich, 2018).

    • Early introduction to English correlates to better reading skills.

  • Letter naming fluency, vocabulary, and phonological awareness predict oral reading fluency (Yesil-Dagli, 2011).

PURPOSE OF STUDY

  • Focus: To assess whether English language proficiency affects phonological awareness in second graders.

  • Definitions:

    • English language proficiency: Distinguished as ELL or non-ELL students.

    • Phonological awareness refers to the ability to manipulate sounds in words.

  • Significance:

    • Findings can inform school administrators and intervention strategies for ELLs.

HYPOTHESES

  • Hypothesis: English language proficiency affects phonological awareness in second graders.

METHOD

Participants

  • Sample Size: 101 second-grade students (56% males, 44% females).

    • 75.4% qualified for free/reduced lunch.

    • 56.4% were ELLs, 43.6% were non-ELLs.

Instrumentation

  • Primary tool: Phonological Awareness Screening Test (PAST) by Kilpatrick (2018).

    • Consists of 10 sections (D to M) with 52 questions.

  • Scoring: Includes correct answers within 2 seconds (automatic responses) and correct responses after 2 seconds, with a maximum score of 52.

    • Validity and Reliability: Strong concurrent validity and acceptable test-retest reliability (r = 0.82).

Procedure

  • Casual, comparative, nonexperimental design.

  • IRB approval obtained.

  • Data from one school in Northwest Arkansas analyzed using independent samples t-test.

RESULTS

  • Independent Samples t-test:

    • Significant difference found: t(99) = 5.31, p < .0001.

    • Mean PAST scores:

    • Native English speakers: m = 41.30, sd = 10.57

    • ELLs: m = 30.21, sd = 10.26

  • Conclusion: English language proficiency has a significant impact on phonological awareness skills.

DISCUSSION

Findings

  • Conclusion: Statistically significant differences were found in phonological awareness skills between native and non-native English speakers.

Limitations

  • Geographic limitation: Results from just one school in Northwest Arkansas, affecting generalizability.

  • Potential uncontrolled variables: Gender, socioeconomic status, teaching methods, etc.

IMPLICATIONS

  • Findings highlight the necessity of phonological awareness training for ELL students to overcome reading challenges.

  • Current educational practice may not adequately support phonological awareness for ELLs.

FUTURE RESEARCH

  • Need for additional studies utilizing the PAST for ELL intervention assessments.

  • Exploration of phonological awareness differences among various ELL groups based on language backgrounds to tailor interventions effectively.

REFERENCES

  • Comprehensive references documenting studies and claims made throughout the article in APA formatting.