Exploring Parental Ethnotheories of Children’s Literacy Acquisition and Development

Abstract Book of the 9th World Conference on Research in Teaching and Education

Year: 2025

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Exploring Parental Ethnotheories of Children’s Literacy Acquisition and Development

Nedra Cossa

ABSTRACT:

This presentation explores the application of the developmental niche first identified by Super and Harkness (1986). The developmental niche is a convergence of perspectives from social anthropology and psychology. This framework will be used to deepen understanding of how culture, particularly within home and family environments, shapes children’s literacy development. By reviewing existing empirical literature, the researcher examines how each component of the developmental niche—settings of care, customs of care, and the psychology of the caretaker—can be meaningfully adapted to analyze children’s literacy experiences across diverse cultural contexts. This framework offers a holistic and culturally responsive lens for interpreting how children learn and use literacy in their everyday lives. In addition to highlighting key findings from the literature, we consider the implications of the developmental niche for both future research and educational practice. Specifically, we discuss how educators might draw on this framework to build more culturally informed partnerships with families and to better support children’s literacy learning in ways that honor their cultural identities and lived experiences.

Keywords: Early Childhood; Literacy; Families; Culture; Teacher Education