Teacher Perceptions on the Benefits of a Twelve-Week Storytelling Pedagogical Intervention for Fifth Grade Literacy Instruction in Zambia

Storytelling is a fundamental method of traditional education used to preserve and transmit indigenous knowledge, including skills and tacit knowledge, across generations in traditional Zambia societies. This study investigated primary school teachers’ perceptions of the benefits of storytelling-based instructional pedagogy on literacy achievement for fifth-grade students in Nyimba District in Eastern Province of Zambia. Employing a qualitative collective case study design, four fifth-grade teachers were trained to implement a twelve-week storytelling intervention in their classrooms. The participants subsequently underwent structured in-depth post-intervention interviews to gather their perceptions regarding storytelling's impact on literacy among their students. The results supported schema-building and socio-cultural mediation theories, which assert that narrative structures provide a critical framework for literacy instruction, facilitating the integration of new information into existing cognitive models through social interaction. Teachers reported that storytelling offered a holistic, integrated approach to literacy instruction, amplifying foundational skills such as reading, writing, listening, and speaking into a cohesive pedagogical experience. Furthermore, it fostered the development of higher-order cognitive skills and metalinguistic awareness. Storytelling was also noted to promote a collaborative culture, build confidence, and enhance self-expression. The strategy’s applicability across subjects, such as integrated science and social science, along with its local cultural relevance, were identified as key components of storytelling pedagogy. Consequently, it can be argued that storytelling represents a cost-effective and culturally adaptable approach that can be scaled across primary schools with targeted teacher training, careful story selection, follow-up tasks, and incorporation into national literacy policies to improve low literacy rates in Zambia.