Teachers' use of play literacy strategies on children’s literacy development in selected early childhood education centers of Kammengo-Mpigi District

Abstract

This qualitative case study explored teachers‘ use of play literacy strategies—such as rich-print environments, phonemic awareness activities, and wordplay—to support early literacy development (including phonemic/phonological awareness, vocabulary, and narrative skills) among 3–6-year-old children in two early childhood education centres in Kammengo Sub- County, Mpigi District, Uganda. Guided by Vygotsky‘s sociocultural theory, the research employed purposive sampling, with face-to-face in-depth interviews conducted with two headteachers, two head caregivers, and four caregivers, alongside non-participant classroom observations. Findings indicated that caregivers valued play literacy strategies and utilised resources like old charts, flashcards, picture cards, rhyming games, songs, storytelling, role-play, and locally-made musical instruments. However, implementation was inconsistent and hindered by limited training, a shortage of diverse print materials, absence of writing centres, and scarce wordplay resources. Despite these obstacles, the strategies used fostered active engagement, social interaction, oral language development, and core literacy skills. The study concludes that while play literacy strategies hold considerable potential to promote early literacy when guided by knowledgeable caregivers, their impact remains limited by resource shortages and inadequate training. To align practice with Uganda‘s play-based ECD policy, systematic professional development, the provision of diverse print-rich materials, and ongoing pedagogical support are essential. Enhancing caregiver capacity will enable more comprehensive application of play literacy strategies, thereby improving children‘s phonemic awareness, vocabulary, and narrative skills for sustained literacy growth.

Keywords: Play literacy strategies, Early literacy skills, Rich-print environment, Phonemic awareness, Wordplay, Early childhood education.