Evaluating the effectiveness of an Ubulele-Persona Doll Emotional Literacy Programme for preschoolers from Alexandra Township.

Abstract

This study investigated the effectiveness of an emotional intervention programme designed to improve the level of emotional literacy in a sample of preschool children. Thirty-five participants from two different preschools in Alexandra Township participated in the study, where one school operated as the experimental group and one as the control group. All participants completed the pretesting of the DANVA2 that measured salient components of emotional literacy. Two teachers from the experimental group attended a six-week Ububele-Persona Doll training programme at Ububele Psychotherapy Resource Centre and Educational Trust (Ububele). After using the Ububele-Persona Dolls in the classroom once a week for twelve weeks, all the participants completed the post-testing of the DANVA2. The programme was shown to significantly affect the level of emotional literacy of those children exposed to the intervention. At the conclusion of the research project, teachers from the control group were provided with free Ububele-Persona Doll training.