EFFECTS
OF
LIVE AND RECORDED STORY TELLING
ON RETELLING PERFORMANCE
OF
PRESCHOOL CHILDREN
FROM LOW SOCIOECONOMIC BACKGROUNDS1
DAVID
E.
CAMPBELL
AND TONI
A.
CAMPBELL
University
of
Houston
Two modes of story telling, live reading and recorded reading, were compared
to test the hypothesis that live reading results in better retention.
Thirty-
four preschool children
from
low socioeconomic backgrounds were randomly
assigned to the two conditions. Each child heard a story presented by the
teacher
or
a recording and then retold the story in his or her own words. Chil-
dren in the live group used significantly more words and more correct themes in
retelling
(p
<
.01)
than did those in the recording group.
Implications
for
research and teaching are discussed.
The array of instructional materials available to elementary school teachers
is large and complex. An expanding variety of records and tapes is currently avail-
able for instructional use. For example, the Peabody Language Development
Kit (American Guidance Service, 1968) contains several lessons which require
children to listen to records and then repeat stories. Another instructional package,
Developing Understanding of Self and Others (D.U.S.O.
;
American Guidance
Service, 1970) is designed to develop a young child’s self-concept. This kit includes
activities such as showing pictures while playing recorded stories and then asking
children to make responses based on the stories. Bowmar Company has
a
number
of
picture book/record combinations available in such areas as prereading and
self-concept development. Use of these records for instruction may free the teacher
from some reading and story-telling tasks, since the child can use the record alone.
However, the relative effectiveness of the two modes of presentation] teacher and
record, is unknown. The purpose of this study is to compare these two presentation
modes with a particular set of materials.
Anecdotal information from several sources leads one to suspect that records
are less effective than live teachers at presenting verbal information in classroom
settings. A volunteer worker who has done extensive work reading stories to chil-
dren
5
to
7
years old reported that when recordings were substituted for live readings,
the children appeared more restless and less attentive (Willems, Note
1).
A col-
league reports a similar experience with older children
(10-13
years old). When a
persuasive appeal to improve dental hygiene was presented by
a
live actor, the
children appeared to attend more closely than when the appeal was presented by
a film (Rozelle, Note
2).
Such reports suggest that recorded presentations may be
less effective in transmitting information than live presentations. Thus, a more
systematic evaluation of the recorded mode of presentation is indicated.
Recordings are frequently used in instructing low socioeconomic children
in prekindergarten classes.
It
is
suggested here that a preschool child will retain
more information from a story told live than from
a
recording. Retention
is
mea-
sured by counting the number of themes and number of words used by the child
in retelling the story. Specifically,
it
is hypothesized that children hearing a story
~
*The authors wish to thank James
L.
Alexander and Edwin
P.
Willems for comments on an
Requasta for reprints should be sent to David E. Campbell, Dept.
of
Psychology, University
earlier draft and Joseph
P.
Carbonari
for
assistance with the data analysis.
of
Kansas, Lawrence,
Kansas
66045.