Disparities in Reading and Writing Proficiency: A Comparative Study of First Grade Pupils at Bahi Abed Primary School, Relizane

Abstract

The significance of preschool is increasing due to the great effect it has on the child’s life span. It contributes to the holistic development of children and readies them for the next phase of formal schooling. It focuses mainly on developing language and literacy skills through a series of activities that ensure the acquisition of pre-reading and pre-writing skills before they delve into the learning process of these skills. Having such early experiences cannot be gained in the first grade at a primary school if the child has not had the opportunity to attend preschool in public institutions or private sectors. Therefore, before starting academic schooling, there will be two groups of children: on the one hand, a well-equipped and prepared group, and on the other, an unprepared group. In case these two groups encounter each other in first grade, there will be an obvious divergence in the classroom in terms of reading and writing skills. Hence, this research aims at examining the disparities in these skills among the two groups in first grade at Bahi Abed Primary School, Relizane, and studying the potential effects that each group has over the other’s academic progress. To answer the research questions, three qualitative data instruments were used in this study, including interviews with teachers, observation, and writing assessments that were conducted and evaluated on pupils .The results revealed a variety of reading and writing differences between the categories mentioned above, in which the prepared group had fluent and smooth reading along with organized, legible, and well-formed writing, whereas the second group exhibited a reduced level of competence compared to the other group in these skills. Concerning the effects, there were both positive and negative impacts on each other’s academic development.