The influence of literature on young children's concept formation

Abstract

This dissertation is an attempt to look into and analyse the influence of literature on the minds of young Kenyan primary school children aged between five and twelve years. Specifically it is concerned with how children's world view is, has been, or can be shaped and influenced by ideas derived from literature. The children interviewed are from different social and economic backgrounds, and attend different calibres of schools within the Kenyan educational system. They are representative of the differences within the whole Kenyan system, comprising a privileged, affluent minority, and a majority of economically and socially underprivileged men and women. The social set up is seen as a major determinant of the literature existing in the different communities in which the children live.