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Children’s Perspectives on Family Literacy: Methodological Issues, Findings and Implications for Practice

School of Education, University of Sheffield, UKc.e.nutbrown{at}sheffield.ac.uk

Peter Hannon

School of Education, University of Sheffield, UKp.hannon{at}sheffield.ac.uk

This article reports a study of family literacy practices from the perspectives of five-year-old children drawn from areas of social and economic deprivation in an English city. Methodological and ethical issues of interviewing young children are discussed. An interview survey (N= 71) found literacy activity reported in all homes; fathers involved in literacy with their children; and boys (as well as girls) involved in literacy activity. Findings were compared with those of a further randomly selected sample (N= 77) whose parents had participated in a family literacy programme. The comparison showed a modest, but consistent, increase in child-reported family literacy activity in the programme group, and concludes that the impact of a family literacy programme is discernible through children’s perspectives. Implications for family literacy practices and the need for further research, including measures of children’s literacy achievement and views of parents and the teachers participating in the programme, are identified.

Key Words: children’s perspectives • family literacy • methodology

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