Reading Development Proposal The importance of students learning to read is to help them develop the understanding needed to be successful in school and later in life. Learning to read takes place as a result of multiple cognitive and language complexities, that must be developed in order for students to master accurate and fluent reading abilities. Skills that involve language and phonological development when learned early in education formulates reading comprehension in students. However, it is these two concepts that form the controversy that surrounds the idea regarding the best method to develop reading skills in students. Recognizing the importance of instruction techniques, the focus of educators is in determining whether successful reading development is phonetics based or whole language based when developing reading skills (Mahdavi & Tensfeldt, 2013).
Phonetics Skills and Reading Development
Constant exposure to words is a definite method that will help students better understand how reading well works. In order for students to learn to read accurately there has to be a focus on phonetic concepts (Mahdavi & Tensfeldt, 2013). It must be understood that the words that students hear are derived from smaller sounds called phonemes, which are typically not heard as the words are actually spoken. The ability to decode or break down those words based on the letter-sound connection is important in establishing rapid and fluent reading abilities (Mahdavi & Tensfeldt,
Phonics is imperative to learning to read because it allows for the reader to distinguish these associations in letters and words that they read to captivate comprehension (Walbank & Bisby, 2016). At the preschool-grade, knowledge of the alphabetic principles should be extensive and in-depth, however, too much focus can lead to over application of this skills having words read but not comprehended. The directional approach for teaching phonics should be precise, articulated well with graphemes organised in a logical and systematic way allowing plenty of time to recite the new skills received inherited obtained attained gained acquired (Learning Point Associates, 2004). Likewise, with phonological awareness the expertise of listening to the sounds in phonemes and words, phonics helps complete the process of sounding out to decode what has been read to eventually move onto the primary goal of learning to read being comprehension (Fellows & Oakley, 2014). Another approach is to teach phonics is the analytical technique in which the teacher guides students to observe phonemes and graphemes by scrutinising full words to bring forth another critical thinking skill required to understand what the text means (Ewing & Maher, 2014). This essential component combined with
Phonemic awareness is a vital role in literacy instruction. Many schools and districts adopt a commercially published basal reading program and it becomes the cornerstone of their instruction ( (David Chard, n.d.). We also know that through investigation and research it has shown us that word-recognition instruction and instruction in oral language skills related to word recognition were inadequately represented. (David Chard, n.d.) The same researchers have found that the reading passages that students are reading didn’t relate to the words they were learning. In order for students to read at grade level or above a supplemental program should be implemented. I have found that at my school we are lacking a phonics program that will reach different students abilities and make them successful in reading. My goal for this paper is to show my district that using a supplemental phonics program aside from our basal phonics program will prove beneficial to strategic readers who fall below grade level.
Reading is a means of language acquisition, of communication, and of sharing information which is essential in being a productive member of society. If and when a student missed an opportunity to learn the skills necessary for reading, it’s has a profound impact on their lives. As educators we realize that teaching all children to read requires that every child receive excellent reading instruction. We are also aware that children, who are struggling with reading must receive
Bobrow discusses the importance of phonemic awareness. Bobrow states that phonemic awareness is important for reading achievement and learning how to read. According to Bobrow, students need to be able to “grasp printed words”(para.3) and know how words “work together”
Within the field of education, a continuous debate about the most effective manner in which to provide reading instruction has been on-going since the Johnson Administration’s War on Poverty Report of the 1960s. The primary focus of that debate is whether a skills-based approach or a meaning – based approach was most effective for teaching beginning reading skills (phonemic and phonological awareness), comprehension, and enrichment. (Frey, et.al, 2005) The silks-based or direct instruction approach to reading instruction focuses on explicit and systematic instruction of letter-sound correspondence, phonological and phonemic awareness, and their relationship to reading and comprehension. The meaning- based or balanced
Although for awhile, phonics had lost some of its popularity, research has proven its usefulness when teaching children to read. Without explicit instructions in phonemic awareness and phonics a student is in danger of learning issues. The Headsprout Reading Basics program can prevent these issues from occurring through explicit instruction in phonemic awareness,
When phonological awareness is worked on skills of attention, perception and visual amplitude are developed that allow to acquire greater fluency for reading.
A doctor once said ‘the more that you read, the more things you will know. The more you learn, the more places you’ll go’. That doctor was, of course, Dr Suess in his book 1978 book, I Can Read with My Eyes Shut!. Reading is the orchestration of many skills. It is much more than simply decoding words. The National Reading Panel Report (A Closer Look, 2004, p. 1) summarised a child’s reading process and teachers’ effective reading instruction into five essential components. These five critical elements are phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. Each element is individually important; however, each cannot occur independently of one an other. The most effective way to teach these elements is through a balanced
1. KM will improve reading fluency by demonstrating improved decoding skills and automatic recognition of high frequency words through sentence level.
Phonemic awareness is defined as the ability to distinguish sounds; a skill that allows you to listen for, count sounds, and identify distinct sounds. Letter naming isn’t included in phonemic awareness. Phonemic awareness can be taught explicitly or indirectly through games, manipulatives activities, chanting, reading and sing along songs, or poems. Phonemic awareness is more than just recognizing sounds. It also includes the capability to hold on to those sounds, and blend them effectively into words, and take them apart again. Phonemic awareness is important for reading development because it’s the foundation you must overcome in order to get to the next stage of reading, and writing. Research of the NRP (National Reading Panel) says that during the kindergarten year, 18 hours of total of phonemic instruction- just 30 minutes week, six minutes a day- provided maximum advantage.
Nonetheless, as a child strengthens their oral language concept through print, and phonemic awareness more reliable predictions of reading abilities in the future can be made. “Phonological awareness is the understanding of different ways that oral language can be divided into smaller components and manipulated” (Chard &
Instructional processes for reading instruction have been argued about throughout time, though it has since been studied and determined that success in reading relates to acquisition of phonological awareness and word knowledge (National Reading Panel, 2000, p. 2-1). Word knowledge is the association of sounds and meaning, later transcribed to a symbolic system used to decode reading. Though without phonemes, the written language becomes ‘arbitrary’ (Yopp & Yoop, 2000, p. 131). Whilst these features are detrimental to language and literacy learning in
quite poor it would be harder to see if the scheme would be helping a
All these skills are very important to develop proficient decoding before children begin to master more advanced skills such as, fluency, comprehension, vocabulary. And the phonic instruction gives necessary foundations for reading success, but alone does not teach children to read. That is why it must be a part of the balanced approach.
Reading is believed to be an easy task, something we all learning and develop through the years as we grow, however, is it really that simple? To reading and understanding are both essential when a student begins to read. It is a complex action that requires a multitude of different actions/components, all working at the same time, to become a successful reader. The components that are pertinent to reading are: comprehension, oral language, phonological awareness, phonics, fluency and vocabulary. Without these components, reading may very well be irrelevant because it does not make sense to read and not understand what is being transmitted/relayed. According to the National Reading Panel (NRP), “a combination of techniques is effective for