World of Words in Iceland: A validity study of treatment material for multilingualchildren

Abstract

Children who grow up in a multilingual language environment are at risk of acquiring only limited skills in the language used within the broader society and the school system. A strong language foundation is a key prerequisite for literacy and proficiency in Icelandic and one of the biggest influencing factors in children’s learning at all levels of the Icelandic school system. While multilingual children generally reach the language skills of their monolingual peers given ample exposure to quality input in each language (Elín Þöll Þórðardóttir, 2011), recent evidence indicates this is not the case for multilingual children in Iceland. Studies on Icelandic proficiency among children and young adults who speak another language at home reveal significant disparities compared to their monolingual Icelandic-speaking peers (Elín Þöll Þórðardóttir, 2021; Hjördís Hafsteinsdóttir et al., 2022; Sigríður Ólafsdóttir et al., 2022). Providing early intervention for multilingual children’s language skills can contribute to positive results in the later stages of school, increased opportunities and better well-being (Hulme et al., 2025; West et al., 2021). The main objective of the study was to investigate the viability of the World of Words (Neuman et al., 2021) intervention within the Icelandic preschool environment. Further, the social validity in implementation of the intervention among preschool staff was investigated. The intervention materials were translated and culturally adapted by the authors of this paper. World of Words is a research-based vocabulary and comprehension Orðaheimurinn – Fýsileikarannsókn á málörvunarefni fyrir fjöltyngd leikskólabörn 14 support for early literacy that integrates rich vocabulary instruction in science-based topics which was developed for use by preschools with English language learners and special education children in the United States. Intervention materials were translated into Icelandic and culturally adapted for the Icelandic context. A viability study was then carried out where use of the materials was tested in two different contexts within two preschools in Reykjavík. All the children (n=15) that participated were 3–4 years old and multilingual. One preschool implemented the soft-scripted, teaching-guided World of Words intervention as well as books (shared reading) and materials related to the themes of the three topics included in the intervention. This programme was named Orðaheimurinn in Icelandic. The other preschool received only the materials and school staff were encouraged to use the materials and their own teaching methods to deliver teaching around the target vocabulary. The results of diary entries and checklists showed that preschool staff using World of Words spent more time working on vocabulary intervention, making the dosage of the intervention greater for this group. Staff from both preschools considered their interventions to have social validity and said they would continue to use the intervention after the research had concluded. Staff found it useful to be able to access intervention
plans and materials that could be used during language stimulation sessions and believed that it was useful for children who need more language support, regardless of whether they are monolingual or multilingual. It is concluded that use of this teacher- uided intervention approach for language stimulation is appropriate for the Icelandic preschool environment. Staff’s comments and lessons learned about the intervention and its implementation in Iceland from this viability study will be used to inform future studies.