Abstract
Reading is one of the core literacy skills of every individual and early reading for children has a great impact on future learning pathways and the success of school life. The purpose of this study was to investigate the reading readiness of kindergarten students in Myanmar and examine factors affecting reading readiness. A quantitative survey method was used in this study with a total of 222 kindergarten students from seven schools in Yangon and Rakhine selected using the multistage cluster sampling method. The Myanmar Reading Assessment Test (Cronbach’s alpha of 0.925) for kindergarten was used to administer the reading readiness skills of the students. In addition, demographic factors related to students and parents’ involvement in their children’s learning were collected using a self-administered questionnaire. The statistical analysis methods used were descriptive statistics, percentiles, t test, and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA). According to the results, there were five reader groups: below basic (25.7%), basic (6.8%), satisfactory (11.3%), proficient (16.7%), and advanced (39.6%) levels. The results of the statistical analysis concluded that no preschool experiences, lower socioeconomic status, the region in which they live, and unsupportive parents were the main factors affecting reading readiness. Among these factors, preschool experience is the only solution that can be tackled to improve reading readiness than other factors. However, most children in Myanmar cannot yet access preschool programmes adequately. Therefore, the government, NGOs, INGOs, CSOs, CBOs, and other organisations should ensure that every child has the opportunity to attend preschool regardless of geographical barriers.
Keywords: reading readiness, parental support, preschool experiences, socioeconomic status
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