What works to improve early grade literacy in Latin America and the Caribbean? A systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract

| Early grade literacy (EGL) interventions in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) are only effective under certain conditionsChildren across the world are not acquiring basic reading and math skills despite increases in primary school enrollment and attendance.Teacher training and nutrition programs in LAC are not effective in improving EGL overall, but they may be, under certain conditions.Technology in schools can be detrimental to learning outcomes if these programs only focus on technology. | What is this review about?Approximately 250 million children across the world are not acquiring basic reading and math skills, even though about 50% of them have spent at least 4 years in school.Educational policies on EGL in the LAC region have long suffered from a disjuncture between school practice and research.This review examines the effectiveness and fidelity of implementation of various programs implemented in the LAC region that aim to improve EGL outcomes, including teacher training, school feeding, computer-aided instruction, nutrition, and technology-ineducation.What is the aim of this review?This Campbell systematic review summarizes findings from 107 studies to inform policy for EGL in the LAC region. | What studies are included?This review includes four types of EGL studies from the LAC region:(1) Quantitative interventions ( 23 studies)(2) Qualitative interventions (6 studies)(3) Quantitative noninterventions (61 studies) (4) Qualitative noninterventions (14 studies). | What are the main findings of this review?Overall, programs did not have statistically significant effects on EGL outcomes.But there are instances in which programs may have positive or negative effects.For example, teacher training did not show positive effects on EGL outcomes, but a study from Chile showed that teacher training can possibly positively affect EGL outcomes in high-income economies when it is well implemented and complemented by sustained coaching.Similarly, nutrition programs did not improve EGL outcomes.However, a study from Guatemala showed positive effects on EGL, possibly because Guatemala has high rates of stunting and wasting.Although there is no statistically significant effect of technologyin-education programs on EGL outcomes in the LAC region, a study from Peru showed that the distribution of laptops to children can have adverse effects, particularly when not complemented by additional programs.Other studies showed that phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, and comprehension are associated with reading ability.Furthermore, poverty and child labor are negatively correlated with EGL outcomes.This finding supports the result that nutrition programs may be effective in settings with high rates of stunting and wasting.

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