R Ewing,J Callow and K Rushton,Language and literacy development in early childhood

Language and Literacy Development in Early Childhood offers a concise orientation to important aspects of language and literacy learning in the early years for ‘early childhood educators and caregivers, parents and family members’ (p. 2). As an introductory text for this wide readership, the book is a worthwhile addition to the field because the particular choice of topics, their scope and organisation, shows some refreshing variation from several existing textbooks. As a guide for further study, the authors’ valuable perspectives on language and literacy development in the early years provide useful references for additional readings and resources.

The authors’ stated intent is to develop understandings that will help educators and parents provide ‘the best opportunities for language and literacy development’ for all children (p. 1). Central to their book is the work of Heath (1983), Bernstein (1990) and Williams (1998). Each of these researchers demonstrated how children from more marginalised social and cultural groups were disadvantaged because their home language and literacy uses differed from those at school. While dated, these studies are worth describing in a text of this nature because the understandings they established continue to inform research and pedagogical approaches that seek to redress disadvantage (e.g. Martin and Rose, 2008). The authors use these studies to argue for the provision of culturally relevant experiences for young children so that their home language and culture are valued, with the inclusion of scaffolding for children’s school language and literacy experiences.

Ewing, Callow and Rushton establish their specific perspectives both through the topics they include as whole chapters and those they omit. They devote an entire chapter to each of the following topics: the role of play (Chapter 3), the significance of developing Aboriginal perspectives (Chapter 6) and the centrality of story (Chapter 9). In doing so, the authors foreground the value they place on the contributions of these aspects to literacy development and make a welcome contribution to the current educational context.

Play, oral language and literacy development

For some years, early childhood literacy practices have been influenced by persistent and significant pressures on parents and educators to concentrate on a skills-based approach to literacy development at the expense of play opportunities (Howes, 2011). Children from low socio-economic groupings are particularly at risk from this, despite evidence that suggests that play experiences support their literacy development (Casey et al., 2012). While some texts only mention play within chapters on reading skills, Ewing, Callow and Rushton have a dedicated chapter, aligning themselves with an approach to literacy in which play-based learning is not replaced by more formal skill-based activities.

The discussion in Chapter 3 focuses on play as a valuable foundation for literacy learning. The authors acknowledge that there are different types of play, yet only discuss imaginary play. They describe a variety of play scenarios, demonstrating that play is a complex activity, alluding to ‘a body of research evidence (that) unequivocally demonstrates that play is indeed integral to the development of a child both affectively and intellectually’ (p. 27). Unfortunately, the authors do not provide details of contemporary research on the socio-emotional, linguistic and intellectual benefits of play. Ewing, Callow and Rushton present a positive evaluation of play and describe a variety of play examples, but they provide limited details about the rich research that informs their perspectives.

The importance of family and culture in Indigenous perspectives

The focus on the importance of family and culture in language and literacy development is a major theme throughout the text. It is introduced in Chapter 2 and developed in Chapter 6 as the authors discuss the need to design and deliver appropriate language and literacy experiences for Aboriginal children. This topic does not always claim a dedicated chapter in Australian language and literacy texts, despite its importance in the Australian context. Ewing, Callow and Rushton align with Australian educational policy documents when advocating for ‘early childhood educators to develop a rich understanding of and respect for Aboriginal cultures and languages and how this might be shared with young children’ (p. 76). The chapter devotes a significant amount of space to the practice of one Indigenous educator – Helen Empacher. Her approach demonstrates the use of culturally relevant texts and the involvement of family and community members in literacy experiences, including the collaborative development of texts. The principles illustrated here may well be of relevance to countries where Indigenous students are failing to thrive in educational contexts. The chapter provides a valuable, annotated list of texts that have been created by and for Aboriginal children but could have included more detail from Rushton’s research on pedagogies for engaging Aboriginal students in successful literacy experiences (Rushton, 2015).

Narrative and children’s literature

Chapters on children’s literature, especially picture books, are a normative feature of contemporary texts on language and literacy development and this text presents many ideas that are also mentioned elsewhere, e.g. the importance of reading aloud to children (Chapter 7), the possibilities of literature discussions with emergent readers (Chapter 8) and the role of visual literacy in reading picture books (Chapter 10). However, a distinctive aspect of this text is the content in Chapter 9 that puts narrative and story-telling at centre stage. This chapter makes helpful links between aspects of oral language and play, adult and child story-making, and oral language and writing. There are some practical suggestions, including hints for adult story-tellers, games to promote talk about stories and a description of the role of drawing to support story-writing. As with other topics discussed in this review, the chapter would be enhanced by the inclusion of current research findings to support the authors’ perspectives.

Theories of reading development and assessment of reading

The text under review differs from other texts by virtue of the range of topics that do not receive detailed attention from the authors. Ewing, Callow and Rushton give a brief analysis of reading theories (pp. 116–119), mentioning many of the key theorists who have influenced current practice, and discuss the technical aspects of emergent literacy in Chapter 8. The authors mainly focus on key ways of promoting literacy development rather than elaborating on the various component skills of a reading programme. In the current climate, where systematic curriculum delivery, commitment to evidenced-based practices and accountability for student outcomes are prevalent concepts, the final chapter appropriately addresses issues of assessment. It provides a useful overview of important concepts associated with language and literacy assessment and contextualises these for Australian educators by articulating links to Australian policy documents.

Language development, oral language and theory of language

One of the key features of this book is the emphasis the authors place on oral language. In espousing the belief that oral language is crucial to children as they learn language, learn through language and learn about language (p. 7), the authors draw heavily, but not exclusively, on Halliday’s (1975) theory of language and protolanguage. In Chapter 2, the authors further highlight the importance of parent–infant interaction for language development when they describe the research on infant interactions with adults in the first days of life (Trevarthen and Delafield-Butt, 2014), which also emphasises that children learn language as they extend their capacity to share meanings with others.

Ewing, Callow and Rushton also draw on the research of those who have applied Halliday’s theory of language to literacy teaching. Their discussions are well supported with realistic scenarios. For example, the discussion on the scaffolding required to help a child tell news illustrates the concepts of field, tenor and mode and how these concepts relate to the learning a child needs to achieve in order to manage in a classroom context. A limitation of this chapter is that the book does not provide an overview of its theoretical basis, so that without prior knowledge of Halliday’s theory, the reader would have some difficulty in realising the comprehensive framework underpinning the discussion.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Ewing, Callow and Rushton have written a text which promotes several significant understandings for those working with young children and wanting to encourage their language and literacy development. While more emphasis on the details from recent research would add depth and rigour to each chapter, the authors’ perspectives are insightful. In particular, they establish a standpoint that puts oral language, play and story in centre stage more overtly than many other texts. They provide suggestions for further reading and resources, including some worthwhile lists of children’s picture books and literature that are culturally relevant for at least some Aboriginal children. In addition, they include both vignettes and practitioner insights which are valuable to illustrate their arguments.