Lýsing
Peer Assisted Learning Strategies (PALS) IcelandThe proportion of students who do not acquire sufficient foundational reading skills in Icelandic primary schools is a rising cause for concern. In addition, a high percentage of students receive special education or support throughout their entire compulsory schooling in Iceland compared to other countries.
There are not currently regulations regarding which instructional methods should be used for teaching reading in Iceland, and teachers have few structured approaches to choose from. The only evidence-based and systematically structured methods available for teaching foundational reading skills in Icelandic are Kindergarten PALS (K-PALS) and First Grade PALS. Peer-Assisted Learning Strategies, PALS, is an evidence-based class-wide peer-mediated program that has been developed for use in Kindergarten (K-PALS) and 1st grade (1st grade PALS) to teach early reading skills, including phonological awareness, letter sound fluency, decoding, word recognition, and oral reading fluency. K-PALS and G-PALS were translated and adapted to Icelandic in 2013, and the Icelandic version is currently provided via open access.
Auður Soffíu Björgvinsdóttir, adjunct lecturer at the School of Education at the University of Iceland, will present findings from a recent quasi-randomized control study that evaluated the effects of using K-PALS and First Grade-PALS on the reading skills of children in 1st and 2nd grade. The study examined the impact of the instruction on the reading development of children at risk for reading difficulties as well as children learning Icelandic as an additional language. Initial results indicate that students in the PALS group grew significantly more across the years than those in the control group on all measures of early reading. These findings are important in identifying ways to better meet the needs of this growing population of students both in Iceland and internationally.
| Tímabil | 25 jún. 2025 |
|---|---|
| Haldið að | Nottingham Trent University, Bretland |
| Viðurkenning | Alþjóðlegt |