Abby patiently listens while Annie Letheman reads aloud to her sister Ruby.
Abby is a Golden Retriever who is, oddly enough, helping the children learn to read.
According to Camille Rousseau, a doctoral student in UBC Okanagan鈥檚 School of Education, said her research has found that students spend significantly more time reading and showed more persistence when a dog鈥攔egardless of breed or age鈥攊s in the room as opposed to when they read without them.
Rousseau鈥檚 findings came from a study of the behaviour of 17 children from Grades 1 to 3 who read with and without a dog present.
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The study was conducted with Christine Tardif-Williams, a professor at Brock University鈥檚 department of child and youth studies.
鈥淥ur study focused on whether a child would be motivated to continue reading longer and persevere through moderately challenging passages when they are accompanied by a dog,鈥� said Rousseau.
The students in the study were chosen on their ability to read independently. Before the study, each child was tested to determine their reading range and to ensure they would be assigned appropriate story excerpts.
According to Rousseau, during the study鈥檚 sessions participants would read aloud to either an observer, the dog handler and their pet or without the dog.
Rousseau found the children read for longer and were more determined when a dog was with them.
鈥淚n addition, the children reported feeling more interested and more competent,鈥� she said.
With the recent rise in popularity of therapy dog reading programs in schools, libraries and community organizations, Rousseau stated their research could help to develop 鈥榞old-standard鈥� canine-assisted intervention strategies for struggling young readers.
She hopes the study increases organizations鈥� understanding of how children鈥檚 reading could be enhanced by furry friends.
Rousseau is continuing her research on how canine-assisted therapy can influence students in other educational contexts through UBC鈥檚 therapy dog program鈥擝uilding Academic Retention through K9鈥檚 (BARK).
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@Jen_zee
jen.zielinski@bpdigital.ca
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