Newswise — To what extent do children possess knowledge of letters and their associated sounds? In Norway, there is a notable gender disparity in these skills when children begin school, with girls exhibiting a distinct advantage.
According to Hermundur Sigmundsson, a professor at the Department of Psychology at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), these disparities are observed across various aspects, including recognition of uppercase and lowercase letters, knowledge of letter names, and familiarity with their corresponding sounds.
It is evident that girls surpass boys in their proficiency of letter-sound knowledge, and this advantage persists as girls significantly outperform boys in reading skills even at the age of 15. Given that reading serves as a fundamental skill across numerous subjects, this gender disparity carries significant implications for many boys.
New results published in the journal Acta Psychology show that this discrepancy is not the case for first graders in Iceland.
Girls and boys equally competent in Iceland
According to Sigmundsson, when children begin first grade in Iceland, no gender disparities are observed in their letter-sound knowledge.
Sigmundsson's findings indicate that when children enter first grade in Iceland, there are no gender differences in their reading skills, including both letter-sound knowledge and overall reading abilities.
Sigmundsson's research reveals that in Iceland, more than 56 percent of children had already mastered reading skills, such as decoding certain words, before starting school. Furthermore, Sigmundsson's study found no gender disparities in this aspect as well.
In Norway, the percentage of children who can read words upon entering first grade is only 11 percent. Notably, out of this group, approximately 70 percent are girls.
Early focus on school
According to Sigmundsson, when children in Iceland begin their schooling, the educational emphasis is placed on letters and their corresponding sounds.
Sigmundsson advocates for implementing the approach used in Iceland, where letters and sounds are taught before words, in Norway as well. In contrast to Norway's current practice of encouraging children to look at the entire word in context, Sigmundsson suggests that focusing on letters and sounds can be more beneficial for early literacy development.
The researchers utilized an assessment of letter knowledge developed by Greta Storm Ofteland, a special education teacher from Norway, to evaluate these skills. The findings obtained through this test have been documented in five international articles thus far.
Tested new method
The test results have served as the foundation for the development of a new learning method known as READ or LESTU, which has garnered international recognition for its favorable outcomes. The Icelandic project "Kveikjum neistann!" (Ignite the spark!) implemented and evaluated the new method with first-grade students during the 2021/2022 school year.
According to Sigmundsson, following the initial year of implementation in Iceland, all participants in the project had successfully acquired the ability to read. This achievement serves as a strong foundation for future reading development, which can now concentrate on areas such as reading comprehension, creative writing, and pronunciation.
In the subsequent year, an impressive 98 percent of students had successfully mastered the reading code, indicating that the positive outcome was not an isolated occurrence. The professor has shared insights about this project at various conferences held in the Nordic countries and also participated in a podcast discussion with researchers from New York University to delve deeper into the topic.
Reading skills improve with individualized instruction
A significant aspect of the method involves offering personalized instruction tailored to individual students. The crucial step is to establish a baseline reading level at the beginning of the first school year, followed by follow-up assessments conducted in January and May to monitor progress. This approach ensures that each student receives targeted support based on their specific needs throughout the academic year.
Sigmundsson explains that the objective of the project in Iceland is for 80 to 90 percent of the students to achieve reading proficiency by the end of 2nd grade, which includes the ability to read text and comprehend its meaning. Remarkably, the target was successfully met by the children who began first grade in the autumn of 2021. In the subsequent year, during second grade, 83 percent of these children demonstrated the ability to read and comprehend text. Importantly, no gender gap was observed in these findings.
Iceland not necessarily best
The findings of the project reveal that 56 percent of Iceland's youngest students have successfully grasped the fundamentals of reading, and this achievement can be attributed to the efforts made at home and in kindergarten prior to formal schooling. Unlike in Norway, Icelandic kindergartens prioritize teaching letter sounds, placing a stronger emphasis on this aspect of early literacy education.
But this isn’t necessarily only a good thing, according to Finnish professor Heikki Lyytinen.
According to Sigmundsson, Lyytinen believes that kindergartens should prioritize physical activity, language and vocabulary development, as well as the cultivation of social skills.
In Finnish kindergartens, children are taught the names of the letters but not their corresponding sounds. It is not until they reach the age of 7 and start school that Finnish children learn the letter sounds. Lyytinen suggests that learning the letter names can be approached similarly to how children learn the names of other objects, such as animals.
And the Finns must be doing a lot right.
Finnish approach best as children get older
Although Icelandic students demonstrate strong reading skills early on in their schooling, they have a tendency to gradually lag behind as they progress.
Among the Nordic states, Finland stands out as a leader when it comes to the performance of 15-year-old students. This is evident in the results of the international PISA test (Programme for International Student Assessment), which assesses student performance on a global scale. In contrast, Norway does not rank very high in terms of student achievement at that age.
According to Sigmundsson, Finland achieves the highest scores among the Nordic countries in both reading and science on PISA tests. However, Denmark outperforms Finland in mathematics. Norway ranks fourth across all categories, surpassing Iceland and the Faroe Islands.
Still plenty to work on in Iceland and Norway
Indeed, while Iceland may demonstrate impressive results among its youngest pupils, there appears to be a decline in progress as time goes on. Both Norway and Iceland could benefit from learning from Finland's educational approach if their aim is to improve their performance on PISA tests. Targeted practice and effective follow-up are essential components for achieving better outcomes.
According to Sigmundsson, children in Iceland have a promising start in their education. However, it seems that there is a lack of sufficient follow-up in areas such as reading books, writing, and vocabulary development. It suggests that there may be room for improvement in providing continued support and reinforcement for these skills in Icelandic education.
“It may be that we’re not developing language understanding well enough in Iceland, which it is key for reading skills.”
Reading skills encompass not only the ability to decode text by learning letters and their corresponding sounds but also language comprehension. It is possible that the Icelandic educational system has yet to fully address this latter component. In this regard, there is an opportunity for everyone, including Iceland, to learn and improve in terms of fostering strong language comprehension skills.
The researchers have not yet assessed the vocabulary of Icelandic children, but it is suggested that Finland and Norway might have an advantage in this area during the kindergarten years. To improve results, it is important for researchers to establish a baseline measurement of vocabulary skills before children begin formal schooling. This baseline can serve as a starting point for monitoring and implementing targeted interventions to enhance vocabulary development in Icelandic children.
“We’re now developing a test to measure the vocabulary of 3-year-old children,” says Sigmundsson.
Reference: Helga S. Thórsdóttir, Svava Þ Hjaltalín, Hermundur Sigmundsson, Letter-sound knowledge in Icelandic children at the age 6 years-old, Acta Psychologica, Volume 237, 2023, 103953, ISSN 0001-6918. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actpsy.2023.103953
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