Cite this entry as:
Nkhata, B., Mkandawire, S. B., Nachiyunde, K., Phiri-Nalube, P., Kaani, B., Mulenga, I. M.,
Phiri, C., Chileshe, B., Sichula, N., Sikayomya, P., Munachaka, J., Banda, D., Mulauzi, F., Serenje-Chipindi, J., & Chipindi, F. M. (2019). Exploring selected theories applicable to educational disciplines and social sciences research. International Journal of Humanities, Social Sciences and Education. 6(12), pp.97-116. The article is available at https://www.researchgate.net/publication/338127893_Exploring_Selected_Theories_Applicable_to_Educational_Disciplines_and_Social_Sciences_Research
What is a Theory?
A theory is an idealized representation of reality that help us explain some natural phenomena. It is an idea or thought pattern about a particular subject matter and how it should be perceived. Campbell & Zazkis (2002) contended that theories are like toothbrushes where everyone has their own and no one wants to use anyone else’s theory. Read the following theories or views or ideas from http://www.public.asu.edu/~petergo/courses/eng556/556.html
3.2. Theories of Literacy Development
Theories of literacy development explain the development of literacy and provide instructional guidance to promote early literacy growth (Bowser, 2012). In the context of this study, theories on literacy, and particularly reading, were selected and discussed for the interest of the readers.
3.2.1.Simple View of Reading (Interpretive Tradition)
The simple view of reading theory assumes that, the essence of reading is to comprehend the text (Snowling and Hulme, 2005). Hoover and Gough (1990) proposed the simple view of reading (SVR), a theoretical framework to explain reading acquisition in beginning readers. The theory posits that listening, comprehension and decoding skills underpin reading comprehension. There is a multiplicative positive reciprocal relationship between the reader‟s oral vocabulary and decoding or word recognition in facilitating reading comprehension. Thus, reading comprehension (RC) is equal to decoding (DC) multiplied by listening comprehension (LC); [RC = DC X LC]. According to Nation (2005), learners cannot be expected to be good text comprehenders without adequate word recognition skills and similarly, reading comprehension will fail if learners lack the linguistic comprehension…put simply, both decoding and linguistic comprehension are necessary and neither skill on their own is sufficient, if successful reading comprehension is to follow. This theory is applied in research and education to partly explain why learners exhibit significant reading difficulties in both second language and first language instruction. This is because reading instructions are many times tailored for decoding the language, a medium for which majority of the learners have little or no listening comprehension aptitude as it is only encountered in the classroom. Learner‟s decoding knowledge does little to improve language text comprehension. Similarly, theirwell-developed oral vocabulary fails to positively impact reading comprehension in pupils‟ familiar languages. In most African countries, since most learners get into school with good listening comprehension skills in their mother tongue, reading instructions should focus on enhancing decoding skills for comprehension to develop well.
3.2.2.The Dual Route Theory of Reading (Critical Tradition)
The dual route theories of reading are assumptions or hypotheses about the cognitive building of the information processing system that learners use for spellings and reading (Ziegler and Goswami, 2005). The dual route theories mean that written language processing is accomplished by two distinct but interactive procedures that are referred to as the lexical and non-lexical routes (Rapcsak, Henry, Teague, Carnahan, and Beeson, 2007). Beginning readers‟ ability to read is a function of the orthographic transparency – consistency in letter-sound associations of the language under consideration, and inadvertently impacts their developmental trajectories (Aro, 2006; Seymour, Aro
and Erskine, 2003). According to Share (2008), the English orthography has idiosyncratic spelling sound correspondences with words ranging from those exhibiting phonetically regular spellings (for example, go, hat) to more irregular constructions (for example, choir, pseudo). Joshi, Treiman, Carreker, and Moats (2008) stated that while decoding words obeying the spelling-sound correspondence rules may be easy, reading irregularly-spelled words (choir, pseudo) and discriminating between homophones (head-heard, cite-sight, sail-sale) requires additional knowledge for unconventional clusters. Therefore, to explain how beginning readers manage to decode words that conform to conventional spellings and those that do not, Coltheart (1978) suggested the dual route theory of loud word reading. This theory is premised on the assumption that proficient reading relies on two information processing pathways which are invoked based on the orthographic transparency of the word being decoded. Due to the idiosyncrasies of, say, the English orthography, skilled readers internalise orthographic representations of frequently encountered irregularly-spelled words for subsequent lexical retrieval, whereas regularly spelled words are decoded phonetically at the sub-lexical level by relying on the readers‟ letter-sound correspondence knowledge. Man is and Bailey (2008: 150) stated that, “The dual-route model proposes that skilled readers use the lexical
procedure to pronounce familiar words, including words that violate typical spelling sound correspondence rules… the sub-lexical procedure is used to pronounce familiar and unfamiliar regular words, and to pronounce nonsense words.”
Conversely, fluent reading is achieved by successfully switching between the lexical and sub-lexical routes depending on the orthographic depth of the word being read. Authorities in the field hailed the dual route theory as an influential model in explaining sight word recognition (Lukatela and Turkey, 1998) and ranked it highly as being among “the most prolific theories in modern cognitive psychology” (Share, 2008: 557). Findings from cross-language studies on reading development reveal achievement gaps seemingly induced by diversity in orthographic transparency among alphabetic writing systems (Seymour etal., 2003); with children immersed in transparent orthographies (for example, Finnish and Spanish) achieving reading ceiling in decoding within the first year of formal learning compared to English novices who have struggles until their third year of study. This theory can be applied in research to help explain why some words may be difficult to read than others for children and adults, due to differences in phoneme grapheme correspondence visa-vis sight and nonsighted words.
3.2.3.Psycholinguistic Grain Size Theory (Critical Tradition)
Although the dual route theory of reading has received positive reviews and used as a reliable framework in theorising word recognition, reading development, dyslexia, and spelling proficiency, it is not without its critics weaknesses. Prominent among its many weaknesses is that orthographic transparency cannot be viewed as a lexical versus sub-lexical dichotomy because of the range of sizes, complexity, and predictability of orthographic granules that writing systems present (Aro and Wimmer, 2003; Share, 2008). Therefore, Ziegler and Goswami (2005) proposed the psycholinguistic grain size theory (PGST), a theoretical framework intended to explain how novices read “straightforward and unambiguous mapping between the two domains” (p. 3) – that is the lexical versus sublexical domains. Instead of exclusively relying on the two routes, this framework postulates that orthographic units lie on the continuum of grain-sized elements stretching from small to large grain sizes [i.e., letters (a, l, m, z), graphemes (ph,ch,psy), rimes (all in ball, aw in claw), syllable (gr, asp),to words (choir, quartet)], which pose decoding challenges (Goswami, 2003). Thus, depending on orthographic transparency, readers constantly keep switching between small and large grain sizes (Aro and Wimmer, 2003).
According to the PGST framework, to manipulate spelling-to-sound mappings successfully, beginner readers have to overcome three challenges related to a) availability of the knowledge of the connections between orthographic units and phonological units prior to reading, b) degree of consistency in orthographic units with multiple pronunciations and phonological units with multiple spellings, and c) the increase in granularity of orthographic units required to access phonological systems has corresponding incremental effect on the number of units. This is because “there are more words than there are syllables, more syllables than there are rimes, more rimes than there are graphemes, and more graphemes than there are letters” (Ziegler and Goswami, 2005: 3), each presenting varying degrees of availability, consistency, and granularity.Varieties in grain sizes have significant implications on the developmental trajectories of reading among bilinguals (Aro and Wimmer, 2003; Seymour etal., 2003), especially for children learning inorthographically contrasting writing systems, such as English and any Zambian language. In Zambia, children are confronted with varying challenges of availability, consistency, and granularity when
acquiring reading skills in either a local or the English language. However, the problems may be acute in the English language because availability is obscured by inconsistencies in its phonological system, the large grain sizes exponentially increases the number of units that novices must learn. On the other hand, due to the transparency of Zambian language orthographies, novices only grapple with availability challenges at the beginning of instructions, but its consistency and the small grain sizes makes the acquisition of reading skills bearable once the alphabetic principle is mastered (Kaani,2014). In fact, the PGST framework may provide a plausible explanation for researchers in drawing discrepancies observed in reading achievement between local languages and English (Nkamba and Kanyika, 2000; Chikalanga, 1991; Serpell, 1978), and may be a panacea to the problems negatively affecting literacy programmes in most African countries if harnessed appropriately in developing
remedial interventions.
3.2.4.Translanguaging Theory (Interpretive)
Translanguaging is a theory which support bilingual or multilingual speakers to use their languages simultaneously as part of a communication process. The scope of translanguaging is premised on the following assumptions; (a) for multilingual speakers, languages are viewed as part of their repertoire or assets that they can access and use in their communication; (b) languages are not detached and separated but form an integrated system for people to use; (c) multilingual competence emerges out of local practices where multiple languages are negotiated for communication; (d) competence doesn‟t consist of separate competencies for each language, but a multicompetence that functions symbiotically for the different languages in one‟s repertoire; and, (e) proficiency for multilinguals is focused on repertoire building using available languages known to them by developing abilities in the different functions served by different languages rather than total mastery of each and every language
independently (Canagarajah, 2011:1).
The translanguaging theory was developed by Cen Williams in 1994 and popularised by scholars such as Colin Baker (Baker, 2006), Creese and Blackledge (2010); García (2009), and García and Wei (2014). Martínez (2015: 177) noted that, “the term „translanguaging‟ derives from Colin Baker‟s translation of the Welsh term trawsieithu that originally referred to the pedagogical practice of students writing in one language and then reading in another”. Using available languages in multilingual classes to facilitate learning is what (García and Wei, 2014:39) described as using languages for educational purposes that “creates a social space that goes beyond linguistic structures”. The translanguaging theory is applied in educational research interchangeably with other terms such
as code switching, bilingualism, multilingualism and language shift to help in understanding language use in bilingual and multilingual classes, learners and teachers‟ beliefs and ideologies about language teaching and learning, impact of language policy on minority groups and other related topics. The Translanguaging theory promote language in complementation and not in competition where the weaknesses of one language is supplemented by another.
3.2.5.Emergent Literacy Theory
The emergent literacy theory states that there are aspects of literacy behaviours, skills, ideas, knowledge, and attitudes which children informally acquire before they formally get into classroom which facilitates the acquisition of conventional reading and writing skills. Emergent readers demonstrate literacy related skills, knowledge, and attitudes which are precursors to conventional reading and writing skills (Mkandawire, 2018). Emergent literacy theorists believe that children‟s listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills which children experience in the home set up are all interrelated and that they are strengthened by literacy rich home environments (Kaunda, 2019). Components of a literacy rich home environment that promote literacy in children include; having books and print materials available in the home with caregiver‟s reading, allowing children to scribble by providing platforms. Emergent literacy theorists believe that literacy development starts in the
maternity ward (birth) to when children can read and write, and in some cases, it is ongoing. The theory was developed by Marie Clay in 1967. Emergent literacy theory is applicable in research to help understand a variety of literacy behaviours associated with children such as forms of emergent literacy taken to school, teaching and learning materials for children, designing activities liked by children and learner catered teaching strategies in early grades.
3.2.6.Stage Models of Reading Theory
This theory states that by knowing the level or stage where learners are in, teachers can plan better for the educational needs of the learner. Stage models theorists such as Frith (1985), Ehri (1991), and Gough, Joel and Griffith (1992), believe that children‟s reading is in stages of word identification and that learners increase the number of strategies used during reading as their reading skills develop. Lower staged reading strategies remain available to a reader as they incorporate more difficult reading skills in later stages. There are four stages of Word Identification: Pre-Alphabetic, Partial Alphabetic, Full Alphabetic and Consolidated Alphabetic (Morrow and Tracy, 2012).
The Pre-Alphabetic Stage (Logographic Stage) is where learners use visual cues as primary method of word identification, might memorize words by their shape or “look”, use of environmental print and logos, and word Identification is not yet related to letter – sound knowledge. Class activities rely on contextual information such as colouring, print fonts and logos. Partial Alphabetic Stage, per Godwin etal. (2013), uses “phonetic cue reading” where a word may be associated with a letter it starts with followed by two or more letters. The Full Alphabetic Stage is where learners rely more on letter – sound knowledge. A learner tries to process all the letters in a word and may become tied to letter-byletter reading which slows down the reading process. Class activities for Literacy here includes: Puzzles, Word Card Games, Magnetic Letters, Alphabet Books. Magazine Search, Letter Bingo and
Word Sort: Beginning, Middle, and End Sound. The consolidated Alphabetic Stage is automatic knowledge of letter – sound relationships. Students read letter patterns within words and they use word family knowledge to aid the reading process. Activities for Literacy include word Wheels, Word Family Sorts, Poetry, and Flip Books (Gunning, 2010). The stage models of reading are applied in research to help understand which aspects are learned early by early grade learners followed by which skills, can also help in classroom activities associated with each stage of a learner, and the progress learners are making in class.
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