Local game-based instruction and literacy development among Tanzanian English learners: A pre-post correlational study

Abstract

Purpose. This study examined the relationships between reading and writing skills and the predictive role of reading subskills in writing performance before and after a local games-based literacy intervention. The study focused on primary school pupils with low baseline literacy levels and adopted a post-method pedagogical perspective.

Methodology. A quasi-experimental pre-test–post-test design involving two experimental schools and one control school was employed in the study. Pupils utilised a local games-based English instructions for five-months. Pre- and post-test data were analysed with Pearson correlations and multiple regression to examine reading–writing relationships and predictors of writing performance.

Results. Prior to the intervention, reading and writing skills were highly interdependent across multiple subskills. After the intervention, a distinguished transformation emerged. The correlations between reading and writing measures weakened, while relationships within the writing domain strengthened. Moreover, the reading comprehension emerged as the sole significant predictor of all writing outcomes, with the variance explained by reading subskills decreasing substantially for letter writing (from 63.1% to 19.9%) and word writing (from 47.5% to 12.7%). In contrast, text writing remained strongly associated with reading comprehension.

Conclusions. Local games-based instruction enhanced autonomy in foundational writing skills while maintaining the role of comprehension in complex tasks. The study supports culturally responsive, game-based pedagogies, aligned with post-method principles, as a way to transform reading–writing relationships in resource-limited contexts.