Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Milli Egitim, cilt.54, sa.245, ss.117-215, 2025 (Scopus)
This study aims to explore the perspectives of preschool and primary school teachers who work or have worked with bilingual Turkish children, as well as families with bilingual children, regarding their needs related to early literacy skills in bilingual children. The research was conducted as a case study, one of the qualitative research designs. Participants consist of 40 parents, 40 primary school teachers, and 20 preschool teachers selected through purposive sampling. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with both teachers and parents. The data obtained from these interviews were analyzed descriptively across three identified themes. The findings reveal that the needs of bilingual children in terms of early literacy skills are addressed within the sub-dimensions of goals, content, instructional processes, and assessment elements of the preschool program. Teachers using the program observed certain inadequacies in meeting the needs of bilingual children. At the primary school level, children’s needs are reflected in difficulties with vocabulary, resulting from challenges in learning and using Turkish, as well as in issues with script awareness due to the differences between the Latin and Cyrillic alphabets, letter recognition skills, phonological awareness, and listening comprehension skills. Parents of bilingual children expressed a need for information on early literacy skills, as well as recommendations and support for home-based activities and school-family cooperation activities. In this context, it is suggested that support programs be developed with diverse teaching strategies and materials to aid educators working with bilingual children and families raising bilingual children.