Discusses two philosophies of reading instruction--the measurably stated objective philosophy and the idea-centered reading curriculum philosophy. Suggests that, whatever philosophy is used to teach reading, teachers need to guide each student to achieve optimally in reading and that individual differences in reading achievement need adequate…

Uses a tongue-in-cheek approach and enumerates 12 culprits that historically have created havoc among children in their quest to learn to read and understand the English language, including word attack skills, graphemic-phonemic relationships, compound words, homographs, semantic analysis, and more. (SR)

Suggests that children often get confusing or conflicting instruction that possibly exacerbates initial problems. Reviews approaches to teaching children with reading problems. Concludes that effective phonics instruction for children with reading problems is both novel and systematic. Recommends a two-pronged solution: provide one clear and…

Shares a letter the author (a professor emeritus of Language Arts education) wrote to her state assembly member in California in response to legislation, based on a very limited definition of reading, that imposed the use of phonics on school districts. Notes that the letter can serve as a model for other educators to respond to their legislator.…

Disagrees with an earlier article in this journal about the dispute among reading-instruction specialists as to how phonics is best taught. Argues for direct and systematic phonics instruction. Presents a response to Groff, agreeing that children need explicit phonics instruction but arguing that an instructional approach that acknowledges the…

Arguments about how to teach initial reading are once more in the news. Proponents of "synthetic phonics" argue that there is only one effective way to teach a child to read. In this anniversary issue, it is worth taking a step back from the polarisation of the "synthetic" versus "analytic" phonics debate, to consider the evidence base for reading…

Large differences exist among individuals in their ability to process speech sounds within syllables and words, and this ability is crucial for reading and spelling alphabetically beyond a very elementary level. The conception that speech is made up of segments (phonemes) is natural to those who read and spell alphabetically, but arguably: (1)…

Noting that "every pupil response" (EPR) techniques allow for all students in a group to respond to each question asked by a teacher, this paper explains how EPR techniques may be incorporated in a reading lesson to help students develop decoding ability. The paper offers a justification for using these directed teaching strategies based on…

Argues that the phoneme is a meaning-bearing unit--not a sound--and must be used in conjunction with semantic and syntactic information. (AEW)

Attempts to justify the place of real books in the beginning reading curriculum, and to suggest teaching strategies for the development of a multi-cue approach to reading. (RS)

The article provides a brief review of the literature regarding current practices for teaching reading to adults and children. Much of the methodology that has proven effective with school-aged poor readers, such as the teaching of phonics in a direct instruction manner, may be quite appropriate for use at the adult level. (Author/DB)

Learning content and ideas while learning to read should be integrated, not separate, elements. Individualized reading emphasizes that students engage in holistic reading instruction. First, a student selects a library book from among several genres. After completing the reading of the book, the student has a conference with the classroom teacher.…

Most educators agree that an approach balanced between phonics and whole language is the best method of teaching beginning readers. Marie Carbo (1996) discusses the importance of focusing on a balanced approach to reading, because different students have different learning styles. Children who learn best with phonics instruction have analytic and…

Shared reading involves reading aloud, making a variety of print materials available, and promoting positive attitudes toward literacy. Shared reading experience simulates the bedtime reading experience. It is a happy, secure situation that invites participation by children. Shared reading materials often use enlarged print which allows every…

This paper contends that the most difficult task facing state policymakers is to understand that the strong feelings on both sides of the reading debate may not be truly reflective of the choices before them--it is not a choice between teaching reading through phonics or whole language. The paper states that a good whole language program must…