Literacia familiar no período pré e pandêmico de Covid-19

Abstract

Habits of home literacy introduction enhance the reading and writing learning process in preschool children. The act of stimulating children before they enter formal education can improve their performance in the conducive period for oral language, reading and writing skills acquisition and in later years. Thus home literacy shows value for the alphabetization and it is especially useful in present times, after two years of Covid-19 pandemic. The present study aims to investigate the impact of Covid-19 pandemic on family literacy practices and resources in the Brazilian context, comparing pre-pandemic and pandemic periods. It also proposes to investigate the impact of the variables stress and socioeconomic level (NSE) of families on literacy practices during the pandemic. The application of an online questionnaire was performed in 1538 families responsible for 2223 children from 0 to 11 years old, from different regions of the country. The results indicate that there was a change in reading practices and family literacy resources during the Covid-19 pandemic. Comparing the reports from the family members responsible for these practices about pre-pandemic and epidemic periods, there is a decrease in the frequency of reading for children, however, with an increase in their duration. In family literacy resources, available at the residence, it was observed: an increase in the amount of digital books, digital games and board educational games/cards for children and decrease in the amount of books for adults. Stress had an effect on reading practices: those who felt that staying at home during the pandemic was very/extremely stressful read less often for children, but with more reading time. Furthermore, the NSE had an effect on family literacy resources, showing that there was an increase in the amount of board educational games/cards in the homes of the Class A and B NSE Group and a decrease in the quantity of books that adults from Class E possessed from pre-pandemic to pandemic periods. These results indicate that the pandemic had an impact in the environment of family literacy, presenting association with stress perceived by families and socioeconomic level.