EARLY LITERACY FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF TEACHERS AND PRE-SCHOOL TEACHERS

Abstract

Attitudes "for" and "against" literacy of children before they start formal education is often a subject of scientific debates and speculations of the general public. This topic becomes even more important along with the socio-cultural and socio-economic theories of the child’s development, which interpret a complex process of literacy as a developmental phenomenon which beginnings are contained in the first few years of the child’s life - so called ‘emerging literacy’. The researches show that literacy is facilitated in many aspects for children who grow up in a supportive socio-cultural environment, or undergone the preparation through appropriate preschool curricula. Most European countries start with preparation for systematic literacy of children when they are five age. In such circumstances, there is justification for the interest in exploring the attitudes of practitioners, which are expected to do the most when it comes to early literacy of children in our country. At the beginning of the past school year, there was organized a research in several elementary schools and preschool institutions in Serbia, on a sample consisted of 46 teachers and 48 pre-school teachers. Surveying 94 practitioners it was found that half of the teachers and a quarter of pre-school teachers have a positive attitude towards early literacy. Pre-school teachers with less experience and a lower degree were more explicit in their negative standpoint, in comparison to the more experienced pre-school teachers with higher education degree, and teachers as well. According to practitioners, the main arguments against early literacy are immaturity of children and (un)qualification of preschool teachers. However, almost all the teachers and pre-school teachers have agreed that the "children's interest in reading and writing should not be suppressed and delayed". Although the practitioners are virtually unanimous in their belief that it is essential for the literacy of children to have cooperation of their family, preschool institution, and school, half of the teachers respondents have stated that they are not aware of the objectives and tasks of the curriculum which is being implemented in the preparatory groups in kindergartens and schools. The final part of to paper provides guidelines for the enhanced cooperation of schools and pre-school institutions in order to support individualized early literacy.