Picture-Elicited Narratives of Estonian Children at the Kindergarten-School Transition as a Measure of Language Competence
Date
2011-03-21
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Abstract
Doktoriväitekiri koosneb neljast artiklist ning kokkuvõtvast ülevaateartiklist. Üldine eesmärk oli koostada kooliteed alustavate 6−7-aastaste eesti laste jutustamisoskuste hindamise vahend logopeedidele ja eripedagoogidele ning testida selle sobivust alakõne ja lugemisraskuste riskiga laste eristamisel. Jutustamisoskuse hindamise vahend koosnes kolmest viieosalisest pildiseeriast ja kahele pildiseeriale vastavast tekstist. Pildiseeriatel kujutatud ning tekstides väljendatud sündmustik vastas jutugrammatika mudelile (Story Grammar Model), osutades mudeli sisukomponentidele: (1) taust, (2) käivitav sündmus, (3) sisemine vastus ehk tegelase reaktsioon käivitavale sündmusele, (4) sisemine plaan ehk tegelase plaan olukorra või probleemi lahendamiseks, (5) tegevus, (6) tagajärg, (7) tegelas(t)e reaktsioon. Iga laps jutustas kolm narratiivi: vahendamata narratiiv eelneva mudelita, vahendatud narratiiv ehk ümberjutustus, vahendamata narratiiv eelneva mudeliga. Analüüsiti narratiivide mikrostruktuuri, mis moodustub teksti väiksematest üksustest (sõnadest, lausungitest ja lausungitevahelistest seostest), ning makrostruktuuri ehk teksti üldist sisulist ülesehitust. Mikrostruktuuri tasandil analüüsiti jutustuste ja lausungite keskmist pikkust sõnades ning grammatikavigade esinemissagedust. Makrostruktuuri tasandil uuriti jutugrammatika komponentide olemasolu ja infoüksuste hulka jutustustes ning narratiivide komplekssust.
Doktoritöö täpsemad eesmärgid olid (1) kirjeldada kooliteed alustavate eesti laste narratiive makro- ja mikrostruktuuri tasandil; (2) selgitada, mil viisil jutustatud narratiivid (vahendamata narratiiv ilma eelneva mudelita, vahendatud narratiiv, vahendamata narratiiv eelneva mudeliga) eristavad alakõnet eakohasest arengust kõige paremini; (3) selgitada, mil viisil jutustatud narratiivid ennustavad loetu mõistmist esimese klassi lõpus kõige paremini. Selgus, et enamik uuritud lapsi koostas narratiive, mis sisaldasid vähemalt kolme struktuurilt kõige olulisemat jutugrammatika komponenti – käivitavat sündmust, tegevust ning tagajärge. Tulemus on sarnane teistes euroopaliku kultuuriga maades leituga. Doktoritöö tulemused näitavad, et laste jutustused on sobivaks vahendiks laste keelepädevuse hindamisel ühe alternatiivse võimalusena teiste hindamisvahendite hulgas. Alakõnega laste eristamiseks on soovitav kasutada vahendatud narratiive ja vahendamata narratiive eelneva mudeliga, ning analüüsida laste jutustamisoskusi nii narratiivi mikro- kui ka makrostruktuuri tasandil. Laste lugemisoskuse prognoosimiseks on soovitav kasutada ümberjutustust ning analüüsida laste jutustamisoskusi narratiivi makrostruktuuri tasandil.
The dissertation comprises four original publications and an introduction. The general aim was to develop and test an assessment tool of narrative production skills of Estonian school beginners which might be used by speech-language therapists and special education teachers for screening children with language impairment (LI) and at risk for reading difficulties. The instrument consisted of three original picture sequences and two narrative texts that were designed according to the Story Grammar model, depicting the following events: (1) setting, (2) initiating event, (3) internal response, (4) internal plan, (5) attempt, (6) consequence, and (7) reaction. Each child produced three narratives: self-generated narrative without previous model story, retold narrative, and self-generated narrative with previous model story. The stories were examined for microstructure and macrostructure measures. Narrative microstructure was analyzed for story length, mean length of utterances and grammatical errors. The macrostructure was analyzed for the presence of Story Grammar components, quantity of story information units, and narrative complexity. The specific aims of the dissertation were (1) to describe Estonian children’s picture-elicited oral fictional narratives at macrostructural and microstructural levels at the beginning of elementary school, (2) to find out which type of narrative, elicited with three different methods, enables evaluators to best differentiate children with LI, and (3) to find out which type of narrative, elicited with the three different methods, best predicts reading comprehension in the first grade. The results indicated that large majority of the children produced narratives that included at least three structurally most important Story Grammar components: the initiating event, the attempt, and the consequence. The finding is similar to those carried out in other European-based cultures. The results also support the use of children’s narratives for assessment of their language competence besides other assessment tools. For differentiating children with LI, the finding refers to the advantage of story retelling over story generation tasks as well as story generation with previous model story over story generation without such model story in assessment of narrative skills. For clinical purposes, narratives should be examined both for microstructural and macrostructural levels. When identifying children who are at risk for reading difficulties, the use of retold stories’ macrostructural measures is recommended.
The dissertation comprises four original publications and an introduction. The general aim was to develop and test an assessment tool of narrative production skills of Estonian school beginners which might be used by speech-language therapists and special education teachers for screening children with language impairment (LI) and at risk for reading difficulties. The instrument consisted of three original picture sequences and two narrative texts that were designed according to the Story Grammar model, depicting the following events: (1) setting, (2) initiating event, (3) internal response, (4) internal plan, (5) attempt, (6) consequence, and (7) reaction. Each child produced three narratives: self-generated narrative without previous model story, retold narrative, and self-generated narrative with previous model story. The stories were examined for microstructure and macrostructure measures. Narrative microstructure was analyzed for story length, mean length of utterances and grammatical errors. The macrostructure was analyzed for the presence of Story Grammar components, quantity of story information units, and narrative complexity. The specific aims of the dissertation were (1) to describe Estonian children’s picture-elicited oral fictional narratives at macrostructural and microstructural levels at the beginning of elementary school, (2) to find out which type of narrative, elicited with three different methods, enables evaluators to best differentiate children with LI, and (3) to find out which type of narrative, elicited with the three different methods, best predicts reading comprehension in the first grade. The results indicated that large majority of the children produced narratives that included at least three structurally most important Story Grammar components: the initiating event, the attempt, and the consequence. The finding is similar to those carried out in other European-based cultures. The results also support the use of children’s narratives for assessment of their language competence besides other assessment tools. For differentiating children with LI, the finding refers to the advantage of story retelling over story generation tasks as well as story generation with previous model story over story generation without such model story in assessment of narrative skills. For clinical purposes, narratives should be examined both for microstructural and macrostructural levels. When identifying children who are at risk for reading difficulties, the use of retold stories’ macrostructural measures is recommended.
Description
Väitekirja elektroonilne versioon ei sisalda publikatsioone.
Keywords
dissertatsioonid, pedagoogika, algharidus, narratiiv, jutustamine, logopeedia, eripedagoogika