Term
Fall 2017
Capstone
Thesis
Degree Name
MAT
Primary Advisor/Dissertation Chair
Patty Born Selly
Secondary Advisor/Reader One
Sarah Clyne
Peer-Reviewer/Reader Two
Hannah Riddle de Rojas
Abstract
This study measured the effects of a music-based Spanish instructional intervention on the Spanish vocabulary acquisition of four- and five-year-old students of varying language backgrounds who were enrolled together in a dual immersion preschool program. Research by Christ & Wang (2010), Schwartz (2014) and others concludes that young, pre-reading children with underdeveloped vocabulary can encounter difficulties achieving literacy. Thus, this project set out to determine the effectiveness of one specific vocabulary teaching strategy, in an effort to aid teachers in choosing effective instructional methods. Twenty participants were divided into two groups, including a control group receiving a nonmusical instructional intervention and an experimental group receiving a musical instructional intervention. Participants were given a pre-intervention test and a post-intervention test, and the change in scores was analyzed. Receptive vocabulary and expressive vocabulary was measured. It was found that participants with a bilingual language background, as compared to their single language counterparts, performed significantly better on the expressive vocabulary task, regardless of the style of instructional intervention.
Research Methodology
Action Research
Keywords
Early Childhood, Foreign Language, Literacy, Music
Recommended Citation
Ehalt-Bove, Natalie, "What Effect Does A Spanish Vocabulary-Through-Music Instructional Intervention Have On The Development Of Early Literacy Skills Of Preschool Students In A Bilingual Setting?" (2017). School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations. 4391.
https://digitalcommons.hamline.edu/hse_all/4391