READING
Beginning reading
Beginning
in this way, teaching them phonics or the
alphabetic code to enable them to read will
be unsuccessful. Thus a child who thinks
the fi rst sound in “cat” is “miaow” is in for
trouble, and so is his or her teacher.
There are many excellent programmes
for teaching phonological awareness
reading
available to mainstream teachers, for use
either with a whole class or as a small-
group intervention (see “Further reading”).
If pupils are not assessed when they
start school to identify whether they are
phonemically aware, a whole-class phonemic
What are the vital fi rst steps in teaching children to read, and
awareness programme should be used for
at least the fi rst 10 weeks of school, before
how can we ensure that no child falls behind? Yola Center
embarking on an explicit whole-class phonics
reviews the evidence
programme.
Once children are sensitive to the internal
structure of a word, they are ready to be
IT IS UNDENIABLE that most children will reading is not. Provided that there has been taught to decode. In their fi rst school
learn to read, irrespective of the method no genetic or environmental impediment to year, all pupils should be explicitly taught
of instruction. However, it is also clear that learning to speak, all children will acquire to break the alphabetic code, as it is not
a signifi cant number of pupils in regular spoken language. However, children are possible to predict which children are going
classes in mainstream schools will have not programmed to acquire literacy in the to have the phonological diffi culties that
trouble with the literacy process. Indeed, a absence of instruction and, in a sizeable will prevent them from mastering the code
leading literacy researcher, Marianne Wolf, minority of cases, reading will not be learnt implicitly. Furthermore, as each sound or
recently stated that about 40% of children unless it is taught effectively. group of sounds is introduced, it should
are at risk of literacy failure unless teachers Consequently, pupils need to be taught be practised in connected text so that
are aware of the essentials of effective skills at both the meaning level, which phonics tuition is not decontextualised. It
beginning reading tuition. Furthermore, of occurs naturally as part of listening is also important to realise that phonics
that 40%, depending on economic status, comprehension, and at the word level, or decoding is only one element of word
half will get one-to-one remedial attention, which does not. Put simply, reading is the recognition, and that practice in the use of
but half will miss out. Most national and product of decoding (word recognition) analogies and prediction from context and
international surveys of struggling readers and comprehension (both listening and picture cues should be encouraged, once
appear to substantiate this fi gure. reading). This view is supported by the US children have reasonable mastery over
During classroom observations and National Reading Panel. In 2000 it identifi ed sound/symbol correspondence. Crucially, it
through conversations with teachers, I have fi ve essential components of beginning must be remembered that the eventual aim
frequently heard deep frustration expressed reading instruction, including phonological/ of phonics instruction is the ability to read
about this group of “at-risk” or “reluctant” phonemic awareness, phonics, and fl uency words by sight, which means that the sight
readers. Teachers, both experienced and – which can all be classifi ed as word-level of a word immediately activates its spelling,
novice, have often confi ded that their skills – and vocabulary and comprehension, pronunciation and meaning in memory,
pre-service training has not equipped them which come under the rubric of meaning- because it has been read suffi ciently
to assist struggling readers satisfactorily. level skills. By taking each component in often before. Sight word acquisition is
However, the most current research evidence turn and showing how it can be taught in the automatic or fl uent stage of word
can help student and graduate teachers an early literacy programme, we can assist acquisition, because it is effortless and
develop their early literacy classroom teachers in reducing the unacceptably high allows the reader to expend energy only on
procedures. Such information can also level of “at-risk” readers in mainstream the meaning of print.
benefi t policy makers, teachers, parents, schools. Following the fi rst three elements of
and others who are interested in the process effective reading instruction at the word
of children’s reading acquisition and the Phonics and fl uency level (phonemic awareness, explicit phonics
practices that are designed to foster it most Phonological/phonemic awareness is an instruction, and the acquisition of fl uency),
effectively. essential prerequisite of learning to read. we move on to the second term of our simple
The aim of any early literacy programme It is the ability to understand the structure reading equation, comprehension.
should be to engender in every child a love of speech, not only its meaning. Before
of literacy that transcends, but must include, children can learn to read, they must fi rst Comprehension
the ability to decipher print and to gain know that a sentence is made up of discrete Comprehension teaching should occur
meaning from print. The reason that some words demarcated by breaks. Children simultaneously with phonics instruction.
children who have no diffi culty with spoken must also be aware that words themselves Unfortunately, research indicates that
language experience diffi culties with reading can be broken up into smaller parts. They teachers generally test comprehension
is that learning to speak and learning to need to know that cat is not just a furry rather than teach it. Because listening/
read are not identical processes. The critical animal, but consists of three discrete reading comprehension is considered a
difference between the two is that speech sounds or phonemes, c/a/t/. If a child is natural process, very little school time is
is a product of biological evolution, while unaware that words can be subdivided devoted to teaching it. While most reading
6 Better: Evidence-based Education spring 2009
Better Spr09 pp06-07 Beginning.indd 6 20/4/09 09:15:05
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