Reading Ability Development in Children: Key Factors and the Role of the Teachers’ Reading Instruction Competence

In modern society, reading ability is deemed the bedrock of student learning and lifelong education. Reading is crucial for information acquisition, intellectual development, and social development of the individual. Research shows that reading ability is not innate but rather the result of an ongoing educational process, in which early reading education plays a critical role (Shu & Li, 2014). Hulme and Snowling (2011) emphasized that a primary objective of early education is to teach the child how to read accurately and fluently with optimal comprehension of reading materials as reading is the paramount instrument for knowledge development in formal schooling. The reading skills developed in childhood and the low grades in the primary school have long-term effects on future learning outcomes (Mwoma, 2017). Hence, both parents and schools place a high value on child reading education.