The development of emergent literacy in Serbian kindergartens: Basic resources and related practices

Abstract

This study explores the basic resources available in kindergartens and practices of kindergarten teachers that literature recognizes as supportive for the development of emergent literacy in 3-5 year-old children. 374 kindergarten teachers from 10 different districts at the territory of the city of Belgrade filled in a questionnaire on the frequency of storybook reading, the number and types of books available to children and their use of electronic media (e.g. television programmes, cartoons) in their everyday practices with children. The results indicate that current educational programmes in Serbia do not explicitly support the development of emergent literacy in 3-5 year-old children. Although teacher initiated reading is embedded in daily kindergarten activities, our kindergartens hardly fulfill the necessary conditions with respect to print rich environment (1-3 books on the average, compared to the minimum of 5). TV sets are present in 85% of kindergartens, with 45% directly available to children in their rooms. Although children mainly watch TV 1-3 times per week, it is used mostly for entertainment, with only 34% of teachers using it as an educational tool in the interaction with children. Future directions of research on practices and beliefs related to emergent literacy, both in kindergartens and at home, are discussed.

Keywords

• emergent literacy
• kindergarten teachers' practices
• kindergarten resources