Predicting reading comprehension in Creole Papiamento and Dutch in a post-colonial context

Abstract In postcolonial contexts, children usually learn to read in a language other than their main socialization language, usually a creole. To understand how this affects reading acquisition we examined the early Creole Papiamento (L1) and Dutch (L2) reading skills of 128 Caribbean children. We investigated the impact of instructional order, first Papiamento then Dutch (Papiamento-first group), and vice versa (Dutch-first group), and cognitive and linguistic predictors on grade 2 reading comprehension. The study also explored linguistic interdependence. Results showed a significant positive effect of instructional order on Dutch reading comprehension for the Dutch-first group, but no differences between groups on Papiamento reading comprehension. Both linguistic and cognitive precursors predicted reading comprehension in Papiamento and Dutch. We found that reading comprehension in Papiamento and Dutch is interdependent, influenced by instruction language, especially in the Dutch-first group. This underlines the crucial role of L1 in shaping reading comprehension in both L1 and L2.