An examination of changes in pre-service teachers' perceptions and knowledge of emergent literacy during an early literacy course

Prior to enrolling in teacher education programs, pre-service teachers possess perceptions of teaching based on their former experiences at home and at school. The purpose of this study was to examine modifications in pre-service teachers' perceptions and knowledge of emergent literacy during their enrollment in an early literacy teacher preparation course. Three research questions were posed for this study: (a) How does the early literacy course modify pre-service teachers' perceptions of emergent literacy? (b) How does the early literacy course modify pre-service teachers' knowledge of emergent literacy? and (c) How do pre-service teachers describe the impact of field experience on modifying their perceptions of emergent literacy?;A mixed method design was used in this study. To collect data for the quantitative portion of the study, The Teacher Perceptions and Knowledge Questionnaire instrument (Stern Center, 2002) was utilized. Participants' perceptions and knowledge of emergent literacy were analyzed based on the results from the questionnaire instrument. To collect data for the qualitative portion of the study, the researcher used open-ended survey questions to analyze participants' descriptions of the impact the early literacy course may have had on their perceptions of emergent literacy. Multiple themes appeared throughout the participants' narrative responses.;A total of 106 participants completed the study. Results from the study include mean differences from the pre and post quantitative data from the instrument. Results also include descriptive data from the narrative responses that explain how the early literacy course impacted participants' perceptions.