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Connections Between Reading Identities and Social Status in Early Childhood
Author(s) -
Wagner Christopher J.
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
tesol quarterly
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.737
H-Index - 91
eISSN - 1545-7249
pISSN - 0039-8322
DOI - 10.1002/tesq.529
Subject(s) - reading (process) , psychology , developmental psychology , naturalistic observation , context (archaeology) , social environment , early childhood , social psychology , sociology , linguistics , social science , geography , philosophy , archaeology
This study examines the relationship between early reading identities and social status in school contexts. Reading identities, or the ways that a child constructs the self as a reader across contexts and time, have been posited to be closely linked with social status. This single‐case study examines the reading identities and social status of one 4‐year‐old, multilingual child attending prekindergarten in a public school in a large northeastern U.S. city. Data include child‐centered interviews, naturalistic observations, a teacher interview, and a family questionnaire. Findings provide insights into how one child’s ability to gain recognition of his reading identities was context dependent and distinct from his social status in the classroom, and point to more complexity in how the early reading identities of multilingual children are connected to their social contexts.