A Text-Based Intervention to Promote Literacy: An RCT

Area of Science:

• Child Development
• Public Health
• Educational Technology

Background:

• Early educational disparities impact kindergarten readiness and future success.
• Access to high-quality early education is inequitable.
• The efficacy of text-message-based interventions like TipsByText for families without formal early childhood education access was previously unknown.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of the TipsByText program in improving literacy for children whose caregivers did not have access to early childhood education.
• To assess the impact of the intervention on caregiver involvement.

Main Methods:

• A randomized controlled trial was conducted with caregivers of 3- and 4-year-olds in two public pediatric clinics.
• Intervention group caregivers received TipsByText messages three times weekly for seven months.
• Child literacy was measured using the Phonological Awareness Literacy Screening Tool (PALS-PreK), and caregiver involvement was assessed using the Parent Child Interactivity Scale (PCI).

Main Results:

• The study enrolled 644 families, with included participants having lower socioeconomic status and higher rates of Spanish speaking compared to excluded families.
• Postintervention, the TipsByText intervention showed a significant positive effect on PALS-PreK scores, equivalent to approximately three months of literacy gains.
• The intervention demonstrated greater effects for firstborn children, children in two-parent families, and 4-year-olds. No significant overall effect was found for caregiver involvement (PCI).

Conclusions:

• The health sector can effectively reach underresourced families with young children through clinic-based interventions.
• The TipsByText texting intervention, delivered via pediatric clinics, successfully increased child literacy levels among families lacking access to early childhood education.
• This approach offers a scalable method to address early educational disparities.