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Article Title: Family Literacy Perceptions And Early English Literacy Skills In Pre-Primary Grade One Children In Gasabo District, Rwanda
by Emmex Mugabo, Assoc. Prof. Michael Tusiime and Prof. Wenceslas Nzabalirwa

Abstract:
The Rwandan government has reached remarkable success in education since 1994; sound educational planning processes, and children�s access to education. However, early literacy skills in the foundational early childhood years should be further boosted to promote standard of education in Rwanda . For the age range of 0-3, more can be done in education of parents to promote their comprehension of how to support their children�s early cognitive development. Rwandan children come from their homes to nursery schools with oral skills in Kinyarwanda (mother tongue) but without any skills in the English language. Moreover, English is taught at all levels of education, including pre-primary schools. This study aimed at establishing family literacy perceptions and how they are related with children�s early literacy development in pre-primary grade one children in the Gasabo district. A descriptive survey design was used to collect both qualitative and quantitative data. 380 respondents constituted the sample size: 6 teachers, 187 children and 187 caregivers of sampled children. Stratified random sampling and purposive sampling techniques were employed. A close-ended questionnaire for caregivers, an interview guide for teachers, and a tool for children�s dynamic indicators of early English literacy skills were used to collect data. The qualitative data from the teachers� interviews were analyzed differently from quantitative data from caregivers� responses and children�s early literacy development activities. Results from teachers� interviews revealed a significant role of both teachers and children caregivers in promoting children�s early literacy skills. The chi-square test results revealed association between family literacy perceptions and children�s early English literacy skills development. The caregiver positive literacy perceptions were linked with higher early literacy achievements of children and negative caregiver literacy perceptions were linked with lower early literacy achievements of children at grade one pre-primary school.

Keywords: Pre-Primary, Family Literacy, Framework, Pre-Primary Grade One Children, Gasabo District

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