Self-regulation in Low SES 4-year-old Preschoolers Predicts Picture Vocabulary and Phonological Awareness Jia Borror1, Sarah Ransdell2, Jenna Binaco3, April Feeser1, and Mya Moran3
Abstract
The aim of this research was to examine whether or not early literacy skills are anchored by self-regulation and social emotional learning (SEL) in preschool children. It was hypothesized that children who are better self-regulators would have higher cognitive performance than those who are not. Four assessments were administered: Social Behavior Checklist (SBC), the Preschool Self-Regulation Assessment (PSRA), the Phoneme Elision subtest of the Comprehensive Test of Phonological Processing (CTOPP), and the PPVT-5, a norm-referenced instrument to evaluate receptive vocabulary. Results revealed cognitive and social development by all measures are predicted by age, especially vocabulary. Children who are only older by months are more likely to be less disruptive in class, have better self-regulation strategies, more phonological awareness, and higher receptive vocabulary than younger children in the same class.