Teachers’ Use of Phonics Approach and Learners’ Reading Achievements among Grade one Learners in Meru County, Kenya

This study sought to explore whether there is a relationship between teachers’ use of the phonics approach and learners’ reading achievements among Grade 1 learners in Meru County, Kenya. Gough and Tunmer’s Simple View of Reading and Adams’ Alphabetic Principle Theory guided the study. A mixed methods design involving causal-comparative and quasi-experimental approaches was used. The study targeted 61,870 learners, from which a sample of 406 learners from 234 schools was selected. Data collection involved semi-structured interviews, lesson observations, and learner assessments adapted from the Hasbrouck Quick Phonics Screener and EGRA tools. Quantitative data were analysed using SPSS Version 28, with descriptive statistics, regression analysis, and paired t-tests, while qualitative data were analysed thematically. The study findings established that the mean scores for the pretest scores were significantly lower (m=38.57, STD=9.48) compared to the post test scores (m=52.68, STD=14.24) with P=0.000<0.05) which implied that the use of phonics strategies significantly boosted performance. Sample t-test revealed that there existed a high positive correlation between teachers’ use of phonics approach and reading achievements among learners in grade one in Meru County (B = 0.891), and the p-value was significant (p = 0.000 <0.05). Thus, there was enough evidence to reject the null hypothesis and adopt the alternate hypothesis that there is a significant relationship between teachers’ use of phonics instruction approach and reading achievements among learners in grade one in Meru County. The study concludes that, teacher related dynamics such as use of the phonics approach in teaching reading skills is a critical pillar towards learners reading achievements. Based on the positive impact of phonics instruction on reading achievement, it is recommended that phonics-based teaching strategies be integrated into the curriculum as the primary method for teaching reading in grade one. Schools should ensure that teachers have access to resources, training, and ongoing support to effectively implement phonics-based instruction.