Well, if they can’t read, we won’t have to ban books anymore. One way or the other, the indoctrination of kids will stop, am I rite?
My career has been deeply involved with this issue for 20+ years. I'll comment more on this later when I have time.
My son is 3. He can read. And we didn't teach him. I was like, wtf, why can you do this? I read my birthday cards to my parents when I turned 4 and they were wondering the same thing. Looks like he is ahead of me.
First, I'll say that article was a very good broad overview and covered the main issues around reading instruction in the U.S. As the article mentioned, this is not a new battle. We have decades of research that confirms the most effective methods of teaching reading for most students that are learning to read in alphabetic languages. These include direct, explicit, systematic instruction in phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, comprehension and intentional knowledge building about the world (think science, history, social studies). In 2000, the National Reading Panel released their findings from a massive meta-analysis of the most rigorous research studies conducted up to that time, which confirmed the efficacy of these methods. Since then, brain imaging studies have demonstrated why these methods (especially direct, explicit, systematic instruction in phonemic awareness, phonics) are effective. They support a process called "orthographic mapping" in which our brains link letters and sounds to learn to efficiently/fluently read words with comprehension. All fluent readers go through this process, however a very small percentage of the population can achieve orthographic mapping with little or no explicit instruction in phonemic awareness and phonics. Most students need significant structured reading instruction to efficiently become fluent readers and some (like students with dyslexia) need really intensive instruction. The brain imaging research shows that this type of instruction actually changes the way the brains of dyslexic readers process text. Standing in opposition to these research-aligned methods of reading instruction was a movement originally called Whole Langue that later morphed into Balanced Literacy. Whole Language/Balanced Literacy is grounded in a belief that humans learn to read naturally, in much the same way we acquire language- that if you immerse students in quality literature they will learn to read. And that direct, explicit instruction in PA and phonics is unnecessary and can be harmful. This premise is not supported by the research consensus and is really flawed on its face. Text was only invented by humans around 5000 years ago. Our brains have not evolved to learn to process text and read in the same way we learn to speak and understand language, simply through exposure. Unfortunately, Whole Language/Balanced Literacy became widely popular among colleges of education in the U.S. and other English-speaking countries, which has led generations of teachers to graduate their teacher preparation programs unaware of the scientific research on effective reading instruction. The consequences have been catastrophic, especially for students of color, low-income students, and students with reading disabilities. Well, that feels like a wall of text and has really only scratched the surface. I'm happy to discuss this further if people want or have questions.
And the people who can read still can’t define what words mean Like the word ‘woman’ @Space Ghost @SuraGotMadHops @AroundTheWorld
Various educational publishers and PD providers have made a shitload of money off of Balanced Literacy. Teachers College Reading and Writing Workshop out of Columbia University is one of the most popular reading programs in the country. However, the increased attention around reading research has put a big dent in their market share and they have had to revise their curriculum to include systematic phonics instruction. To be fair, publishers of reading programs that align to research also make plenty of money. Nobody's doing this for free. Or I should say almost nobody. There are some open source reading programs aligned with the research.
I'm not being a smart-ass, but are you saying the whole "Hooked on Phonics" thing worked? Why did we switch?
@gifford1967 Did anything like that happen with math? Kids can't math, either. The way it's taught is convoluted, IMO. Lots of kids get it, but when they don't, the strategies to teach them kids devolve back to the old school. There's a lot of money floating around in education. A lot of that money is snatched by people who don't have anything else to do but reinvent the wheel. A lot of 6 figure people who never set foot in a classroom.
Well, I don't have any personal knowledge about that program, though of course I remember the commercials. There are right ways and wrong ways to teach phonics, just like anything else. And phonics isn't enough on it's own, but it is a critical element.
I only have the most surface level knowledge about what's happening around math instruction. But it is my understanding that there are similar conflicts with that as well, like controversy over whether kids really need to learn their times tables, for example.
