Enhancing Preschoolers’ Language Development Through Dialogic Reading: An Experimental Study

Abstract

This study examined the efficacy of a four-week dialogic reading (DR) intervention on the receptive and expressive language abilities of preschool children aged 4–5 years from low-income homes. A pretest-posttest control group experimental design was utilized. There were 60 kids in kindegarten, Lahore, who were randomly put into an experimental group (n = 30) and a control group (n = 30). Data were collected utilizing the Test of Early Language Development – Third Edition (TEDİL-3) and a Personal Information Form. The researcher read eight picture books aloud to the experimental group twice a week for four weeks using dialogic reading techniques. These techniques encourage children to take part by asking open-ended questions, giving prompts, and expanding on what they say. In the control group, the classroom instructor read the same eight picture books aloud in a typical, monologic approach, meaning that the teacher read the text with little interaction other than the tale. The pretest findings showed that the groups had the same level of receptive and expressive language skills before the intervention. Posttest analysis demonstrated substantial enhancements in both receptive and expressive language scores for the experimental group relative to the control group, demonstrating that dialogic reading was more efficacious in promoting language development within this sample. These results are consistent with prior studies highlighting the significance of interactive, dialogue-driven reading in improving children's linguistic skills, particularly for those from socioeconomically disadvantaged homes. The study emphasizes the significance of integrating organized, interactive reading practices into early childhood education to optimize language development. Suggestions include giving teachers training in dialogic reading skills, adding these techniques to preschool curricula, and doing more study to find out how these techniques work over time and in different cultural and socioeconomic settings.