It is argued that a more comprehensive, systematic understanding of the nature of the alphabet, its three identities (letters/graphemes, letters/nomenemes, sounds/phonemes), and their specific functions in the teaching of various language skills and subskills should be an integral part of the language arts curriculum and instructional plan,…

This paper reviews recent research on English spelling and the alphabet, and examines the alphabet in terms of symbols, letter-names, and sounds. English is considerably less phonetic than most Western languages, with many symbols having more than one sound. This factor makes spelling difficult for learners of English as a Second Language (ESL) or…

Reports a study that traces patterns of constancy and change in spelling errors as children's word knowledge advances during the elementary years. Reveals clear patterns of coherent change and underscores the persistent difficulty of certain features characteristic of English orthography. (MG)

Discusses a research study designed to determine whether rules drawn from the Stanford spelling study, "Phoneme-Grapheme Correspondence as Cues to Spelling Improvement, are applicable across regional dialect lines. (RD)

The premise of this paper is that English orthography has formed a system that represents more than phonetic values, but also represents semantic, etymological, and preferential values. The paper notes that English is a fairly regular and complex system in which both sound and meaning share leading roles in determining spelling. Studies are…

Children's spelling errors were examined to determine the relationships between linguistic cues used (phonetic, graphemic, and morphophonemic), grade level, reading proficiency, and spelling proficiency. The standardized reading and spelling test scores of 180 second, third, and fourth grade students were used to randomly select 22 good…

A recent study was conducted at Stanford University to determine the degree of correspondence between phonemes and graphemes in English. In past attempts to achieve universal literacy, language reformers have proposed a revised alphabet of one grapheme for each phoneme, a change which anti-reformers have insisted would be costly. Modern linguists,…

There are compelling reasons for integrating phonics into the adult English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) curriculum. The adult ESL student has the analytical capability to understand phoneme-grapheme relationships and can be taught to use any transferable native-language literacy skills in English spelling. In this essay, the potential of phonics…

The emphasis of this book is on theory and research in spelling. It also includes practical information for the classroom teacher by noting teaching principles and generalizations that can guide spelling instruction. The book contains 12 chapters dealing with the following topics: (1) developmental concepts of word; (2) what a word is; (3)…

Relates the English language spelling system to sound and examines whether spellers make use of the information available in that relationship when spelling words. Describes how certain phonological features of a dialect spoken along the northeast coast of Newfoundland influence spelling errors among fourth graders. (SB)