Book

Description

Research on school readiness plays an important value on early identification and timely intervention of potential development risks. Although the home environment has been related to several developmental outcomes among children in prior research, evidence on how the specific domains of the home environment relate to children’s school readiness level is scarce. This study aims to reveal the school readiness of Grade 1 children in Hosanna, Central Ethiopia, and examines the effects of the home environment and some selected demographic variables on children’s school readiness level. A random sample of 146 children attending the first grade of primary school and their parents/caregivers participated in the study. The Early Childhood HOME Inventory (EC-HOME) and the Child Direct Assessment (DA) Tool were used to measure the quality and quantity of stimulation and support available to a child in the home environment and to assess the school readiness status of the children, respectively. Descriptive statistics, independent samples t-test, and multiple linear regressions were employed to analyse the data. Results revealed that there was a deficit in stimulation and support available to a child in the home environment particularly in the Academic Stimulation and the Learning Materials aspects of the EC-HOME. Caregivers were relatively better in terms of emotional and verbal responsiveness and the way they discipline the child. The overall school readiness level of the sample children was low. The home environment and age of the child were the robust predictors of children’s school readiness level. In conclusion, the deficit in stimulation and support available to children in the home environment posed a risk to their school readiness. Implications for parent education and support programs that strengthen the quality of the home environment and interactions between parents and their children are discussed.