Promoting Emergent Literacy Skills (JVIB, 2018, p. 542-550)
- How might the cultural background or socioeconomic status of families impact their ability to implement the suggested strategies for promoting emergent literacy in toddlers with visual impairments?
I will start this off by saying I identify as someone coming from a different cultural background than the majority of people I work with. I have worked with a variety of cultures around the world. I have friends and family from all walks of life. Therefore, I view this question from a different standpoint.
I think cultural background and socioeconomic statuses of families may provide some challenges, but it is also an opportunity to think outside of the box. It is important to remember that the cultural background being portrayed as uneducated, unaware, or not involved by society does not necessarily reflect the truth. Also, society portrays lower socioeconomic status as incapable of providing for their child or being uneducated. I feel people must address their feelings and expectations before speaking and working with families that fall into these categories. Knowing what society says affects the families because most of them are aware of what is expected of them. This right here can tie into the low/high expectations. Do families receive options for promoting emergent literacy in toddlers with visual impairments through various strategies? Are families criticized based on what they aren’t doing and how “wrong” it is? Are families welcomed and embraced for who they are, not what someone wants them to be?
So cultural background and socioeconomic status may provide an opportunity for creative ways to implement the suggested strategies for promoting emergent literacy in toddlers with visual impairments. I understand that families, across all socioeconomic ranges, may have tight schedules, but we can show them YouTube videos or other programs that they can play in the car or on the bus while traveling between destinations. We can encourage families to speak to their children using age-appropriate words and provide support or praise when they do. By incorporating self-talk or a literacy component like the “clean up” song or “What’s the Weather?” song, we can show families how to adapt routines. We can show how to grow their child’s syntactic utterances.
Encouraging families to get a library card and sign up for story time is important. If the family gets books, the child can turn pages and manipulate the book. We can encourage the families to sing nursery rhymes and fun children’s songs. We can show the family free resources to get books and even teach or help them fill out the application. Despite socioeconomic and cultural background, families can still share some of the more hands-on activities because it does not mean they are unwilling to or lack knowledge. In fact, some might be interested in doing what is “harder” or more “complexed”. It is important to show everyone, regardless of their cultural background or socioeconomic status, what they are capable of. We should provide them with ways to adapt their environment if they desire to do so. The instructor should keep an open mind and share everything the families can do. I believe that if we provide proper support, which focuses on their abilities instead of their limitations, it will make a difference.