Psychological Stress and its Relationship with Reading and Writing Difficulties among Students in the Foundational Stage of Basic Education

This study aimed to examine the relationship between psychological stress and early reading and writing skills among foundation stage students in Oman and to determine the predictive power of stress on overall literacy performance. A quantitative descriptive correlational design was employed. The sample consisted of 78 students (aged 6–10 years) selected through stratified random sampling from 11 schools during the second semester of the 2024/2025 academic year. The study utilized the Children’s Psychological Stress Scale (CPSS) and the Early Literacy Skills Instrument (ELSI), both demonstrating satisfactory psychometric properties in terms of validity and reliability. Results revealed statistically significant moderate negative correlations between psychological stress and reading (r = −0.41), writing (r = −0.44), and the composite literacy index (r = −0.46), all at p < .001. Simple linear regression analysis indicated that psychological stress accounted for 21.2% of the variance in overall literacy performance. An increase of one unit in stress level corresponded to a 5.78-point decrease in the composite literacy score. The findings highlight psychological stress as a significant risk factor for early language achievement and underscore the importance of integrating emotional support within early literacy programs. Keywords: Psychological Stress; Reading and Writing Skills; Early Literacy Difficulties; Foundational Stage of Basic Education; School-Related Emotional Challenges.