This article reviews the literature and presents data from a study that examined the effects of professional development in scientifically based reading instruction on teacher knowledge and student reading outcomes. The experimental group consisted of four first- and second-grade teachers and their students (n = 33). Three control teachers and…

Reports that the rule governing the words in the title category are so unreliable as to be useless. (Author/FL)

This article examines recent research and developments relating to the role of phonemic awareness and phonics in early literacy education and the relevance of these findings for school counsellors and teachers. It defines and reviews the role of phonemic awareness and phonics in theoretical models of reading processes, including whole-language,…

Presents research and opinion on the pros and cons of teaching phonics in the middle school. (SJL)

Reviews research findings that suggest the importance of systematic phonics instruction in beginning reading. Cites arguments against phonics teaching and indicates that they appear unsupportable since they are incompatible with research findings and since they make unwarrantedly negative accusations about the kind of teaching that must be used in…

A review of research which concludes that there is no cause and effect relationship between speech errors and spelling errors, that there is a relationship between Black English and certain spelling errors, and that there is conflicting evidence on the use of intensive phonics in spelling programs. (DD)

This interview with reading expert Jeanne Chall focuses on criticism by Bruno Bettelheim of basal readers and phonics for beginning readers. (GC)

Reviews the distinction between phonic generalizations and letter-sound correspondences and the research examining their usefulness. Discusses implications from that research regarding the teaching of letter-to-sound relationships to secondary school students. (FL)

Word boxes and word sorts are two word study phonics approaches that involve teaching phonemic awareness, making letter-sound associations, and teaching spelling through the use of well-established behavioral principles. The current study examines the effectiveness of word boxes and word sorts. Findings revealed that word boxes and word sort…

In state legislatures and school boards around the country, the approach and the quality of reading instruction are under attack because of a decline in reading scores. The best reading instruction draws on the strengths of different philosophies. School boards should encourage schools to teach both phonics and the whole-language approach. (MLF)

This article evaluates the "Report of the National Reading Panel: Teaching Children to Read: An Evidence-Based Assessment of the Scientific Research Literature on Reading and Its Implications for Reading Instruction: Reports of the Subgroups" (National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, 2000). The author also examines the…

To design effective remedial phonics instruction, it is necessary to examine both learner characteristics and task requirements. The paper integrates research related to information processing and psycholinguistics to formulate questions which can be used to evaluate techniques and materials used with a learning disabled population. Information…

This topical bibliography and commentary provides an overview of current thinking on the role of phonics in reading instruction. It discusses the value of phonics, phonics and phonemic awareness, the need for explicit instruction, principles in phonics instruction, and recommended instructional procedures. It concludes that findings from research…

Many articles exist dealing with reading instruction and the current debate between phonics and whole language reading programs. A review of the literature indicates that most journal articles are in favor of teaching phonics along with other methods. There are many different opinions about whether phonics helps students learn to read, if it is a…

An intense debate exists around the most beneficial and successful method for teaching young children how to read. On the one side is sight-reading or the look-say method which promotes learning to read by immediate recognition of words learned through "memorization." In contrast to the sight method, the phonics method aims at teaching…