Recently published article on improvements in literacy skills among students with and without SEN

Recently published article on improvements in literacy skills among students with and without SEN

Linked to the REVERS-ED project, an article titled “Perceived Improvement of Literacy Skills of Students with and Without Special Educational Needs Through Dialogic Literary Gatherings” has been recently published in the journal Disabilities. This study, conducted by Esther Roca-Campos, Harkaitz Zubiri-Esnaola, Susana León-Jiménez, and Adriana Aubert, analyzes the perceived improvement in literacy skills of second-grade primary education students, both with and without Special Educational Needs (SEN), following the implementation of Dialogic Literary Gatherings (DLG) during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The study was carried out in a school in Valencia, Spain, and included 110 seven-year-old students, 11 of whom had various SEN, such as difficulties in reading, writing, mathematics, oral language, and attention, including one student with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Through an inclusive approach, where all students participated in the DLG, significant improvements were observed in reading comprehension, vocabulary, reasoning, and motivation. Students with SEN, especially those with difficulties in reading and attention, showed notable progress, while students without SEN also demonstrated significant advances in communication and reading skills.

The study’s results were contextualized with international standards, highlighting the effectiveness of the DLG in improving academic performance and combating social inequalities in an inclusive environment. This article provides scientific evidence that the DLG is a successful educational intervention that can help reverse educational inequalities in Europe, aligning with the objectives of the REVERS-ED project.

The article has been published under an open-access license, allowing for its free distribution and use, in the prestigious journal Disabilities (SJR-Q2). This publication represents a significant advancement in educational research and offers a solid foundation for future interventions aimed at improving literacy skills and promoting educational inclusion.

In summary, this article demonstrates that when successful educational actions are implemented in schools, academic results improve, independently of the socio- economic situation or characteristics of students. From REVERS-ED we are investigating and collecting longitudinal evidence of those successful actions so educational inequalities can be transformed.