Effects of early literacy environments on the reading attitudes, behaviours and values of veteran teachers

Research has linked early literacy environments to the attitudes, behaviours and instructional values of reading teachers, but most prior research has addressed preservice or early inservice teachers. This mixed-methods, hypothesis-generating, Q methodology-based study explored the relationship between early literacy environments and the subsequent reading experiences, attitudes and behaviours of a purposive sample of veteran literacy educators. By-person factor analysis identified three empirical profiles of shared reading experiences, attitudes and behaviours: Early Readers Supported by Nurturing Early Literacy Environments; Early Readers Not Supported by Nurturing Early Literacy Environments; and Later Readers Not Supported by Nurturing Early Literacy Environments. Conceptual variables found across all models using qualitative analysis included: Nature of Early Literacy Environments, Early and Later Competence and Appreciation of Reading, Attitudes about the Value of Reading, and Instructional Values and Behaviors in Literacy Education. These models suggest further evidence for the importance of early literacy environments (both home and classroom environments) and provide empirically-derived testable hypotheses for future research.