What research really says about "explicit and structured" phonics
Sent to the West Australian (Dec. 28)
"New reading rules for kids," (Dec. 27) states that " ...international research has found that explicit and structured teaching of phonics - the relationship between letters and sounds - is the most effective way to teach reading."
Not so. What research says is that the impact of explicit and structured phonics is strong only on tests in which children read lists of words in isolation; it is minuscule on tests in which children have to understand what they read.
By far, the best predictor of how well children read for meaning is the amount of self-selected,
By far, the best predictor of how well children read for meaning is the amount of self-selected,