Early Grade Reading in Ethiopia: Phonological awareness in grade 1 textbook: the case of Koorete Language

Abstract

Studies in elementary schools in Ethiopia showed that children’s reading performance is below their grade level. The mismatch between the teaching materials and the corresponding native language curriculum may have caused this problem in primary education. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the content alignment of the first-grade Koorete textbook with the corresponding mother tongue primary education curriculum in terms of phonological awareness. The study was conducted using a qualitative research approach inspired by a case study design. Data were collected through a content analysis protocol drawn from the native language curriculum for primary education designed by the Ethiopian Ministry of Education (MoE) in 2013 and the literature-based knowledge of components of phonological awareness in the works of the National Reading Panel. The data has been thematically coded to show the percentage occurrence of the skills in question. The result of the study showed that the content of the textbooks is insufficient instructional presentation, incomplete description and omission of key components of phonological awareness. Therefore, this study recommends that early childhood literacy professionals participate in textbook development to integrate key components of phonological awareness into early childhood teaching materials.