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| Effective Reading Instruction | | | | Let's look at a well known phrase that someone |
| The Great Debate | | | | invented: "When two vowels go walking the first |
| � | | | | does the talking. You say the letter name of the |
| In the 1950"s children were taught the whole | | | | first vowel." This so called useful mnemonic |
| word method. They were expected to."see the | | | | confuses children because it only works about |
| word, say the word," and put the whole word in | | | | 40% of the time. Look at words like: launch, |
| memory It was an educational disaster, and | | | | crowd, head, touch, and group. If this rule worked |
| prompted a strong phonics backlash, inspiring the | | | | with these words you would say; lainch, crode, |
| book, "Why Johnny Can't Read," Phonics | | | | heed, toach, and groap. |
| programs were soon produced and taught in the | | | | � |
| schools. | | | | Also consider this about phonics instruction, if you |
| � | | | | teach the /ou/ sound as in the word out, what |
| We are still in the debate of the "50's. Many | | | | about words like touch, cousin, couple, and |
| professionals support phonics as the best method, | | | | country? And, what about "soup, soul, and |
| but some disagree. Publishers are designing reading | | | | cough"? It even gets more confusing. If /ou/ |
| programs based on either the phonics or the | | | | works for out, why not for "cow"? Also, if"ea" |
| whole word method, or a combination of both. | | | | represents /ee/ in treat, why is it /e/ in bread? |
| � | | | | Sounding out words can get pretty confusing. |
| Studies now show that modern phonics programs | | | | � |
| are also ineffective in many ways. English is one | | | | To date, studies show that 43% of children in the |
| of the most difficult languages to learn to read | | | | schools in the United States fall below grade level |
| because it is made up of 5 different languages. | | | | in reading. This figure is appalling and in epidemic |
| Because of this, there are many exceptions to | | | | proportions. The American eduction system is in a |
| phonics rules. Also, the English alphabet code is | | | | state of crisis. |
| difficult to see, and must be explicitly taught. | | | | � |
| Effective reading instruction is not about teaching | | | | Parents, concerned about their children who are |
| phonics rules but about teaching students to see | | | | struggling readers are investing in reading tutoring |
| how the English alphabet code works. | | | | programs. But many of the well known learning |
| � | | | | centers have problems too. Many learning centers |
| Teachers can't teach what they don't know. If | | | | use a Reading Mastery Program. This is a phonics |
| you ask the average elementary teacher how | | | | program, but has distinct differences from other |
| many sounds there are in the English language | | | | phonics programs. It is based on a coded text. |
| most will tell you 26, but there are 43/44. There | | | | When the child graduates to regular text that isn't |
| is disagreement on whether or not "wh" is a | | | | coded they no longer have the special cues to |
| separate sound from "w."There are only a few | | | | rely on, and they have not been taught a true |
| Universities in the English speaking world where | | | | understanding of how the code works. At the end |
| the English alphabet code is taught. As a result, | | | | of 100 lessons the child knows little or nothing |
| most teachers don't teach the code properly. | | | | about how the English alphabet code works. |
| � | | | | � |
| One example is that teachers teach the code | | | | � |
| backwards. Children are taught the letters of the | | | | The Answer to Reading Problems |
| alphabet first, and that letters have sounds, as if | | | | � |
| they are objects that possess sounds, But letters | | | | We have examined problems in some popular |
| don't possess sounds, nor do they say sounds | | | | reading programs. Now let's look at what has |
| (which is commonly taught). Letters are | | | | been scientifically shown to be effective |
| representations of sounds. Science has shown | | | | instruction. This is what to look for in a good |
| that effective reading instruction starts with the | | | | reading program: |
| sounds first, and then teaches the written | | | | 1. |
| representation of sounds (letters). | | | | Instruction is sound driven, teaching the sounds in |
| � | | | | words as the basis for the code. |
| Most struggling readers mix up the letter names | | | | 2. |
| with the sounds letters represent, and they | | | | Instruction includes a sound awareness |
| combine the two. Studies show that when reading | | | | component. |
| instruction consistently draws attention to sounds | | | | 3. |
| and how they are represented in print (sound to | | | | Includes instruction in sound to letter first, and |
| letter) students don't fall into this confusion. | | | | then letter to sound correspondence (decoding |
| � | | | | and encoding). |
| Another problem with most phonics programs is | | | | � |
| that they teach a schizophrenic writing system, | | | | Letter sound relationships and awareness of the |
| mixing up the number of sounds in speech that | | | | sounds in the English language are not enough for |
| the letters stand for. For example, blends are | | | | children to understand the alphabet code. They |
| taught as one sound, instead of 2-3 sounds, | | | | also need to: |
| examples tr, st, etc. are two sounds, not one. | | | | � |
| And, str, spr, etc. are three sounds, not one. | | | | 1.have the ability to break down words into units |
| � | | | | of sound. For example, the word "sit" has three |
| Phonics programs teach "word families" or | | | | sounds /s/ i/ /t/, |
| "analogies." In this system, words are broken | | | | 2.have the understanding that these sounds occur |
| down into two parts, i.e. onset and rimes, The | | | | in all words. |
| first sound of the word is broken off. This is | | | | 3. |
| known as the onset, and the remaining group of | | | | Have the understanding of which letter symbol |
| letters is known as the rime. ex. "J " in the word | | | | represents which sound. |
| jump is the onset, "ump" is the rime. | | | | 4. |
| � | | | | Have the understanding that the relationship |
| The onset and rime are incorrectly taught as two | | | | between each sound and letter is consistent |
| sounds. The / j / is one sound, but "ump" | | | | across all positions in a word. For example, the |
| represents three sounds /u/ /m/ /p/. There are | | | | letter b represents /b/ in big (the first sound in |
| four sounds in the word jump, not two as many | | | | the word), and also in rub (the last sound in the |
| phonics programs teach. This instruction makes it | | | | word). Remember that students must be explicitly |
| impossible for children to figure out the unit of | | | | taught. What is obvious to us is not obvious to |
| speech upon which the English alphabet system is | | | | struggling readers. |
| based. | | | | � |
| � | | | | Good reading programs will also include spelling |
| Samuel Johnson, who wrote "The Dictionary of | | | | instruction. All alphabet systems are based on the |
| the English Language" warned that we should | | | | sound unit, using symbols to represent units of |
| never teach children phonics rules because they | | | | sounds in speech. Spelling and reading are |
| can't understand them. For example, when children | | | | reversible and should be taught simultaneously. |
| are taught that there are long and short vowels | | | | Encoding (spelling) and decoding (reading) are two |
| they think that this is referring to the physical size | | | | aspects of the same alphabet code. |
| of the letters. | | | | |