Thirteenth International Conference on Interdisciplinary Social Sciences

Abstract

Early narrative skills are predictive of later academic achievement (Fivush, Haden, and Reese, 2006), and early childhood educators play a central role in fostering these skills. Current research informing teacher training is based on observations of European-American families (e.g. Petersen and McCabe, 1994). European-American parents often engage children in elaborative styles of interactions, which consist of adults asking numerous questions to structure the narrative. However, Latino parents engage in a participatory narrative style, focusing on the social component of the narrative (Melzi, Schick, and Kennedy, 2011). The elaborative style has been found to be highly effective (Fivush et al., 2006). Nevertheless, the participatory style has been found to be more effective than the elaborative style for Latino children in the home environment (Plotka and Wang, 2016). This study assesses the potential effects of participatory styles in early childhood education settings. The results have implications for practice. Given the increase in diverse learners, it is essential that educators incorporate culturally-responsive ways of fostering expressive language skills in young children.