Decoding vs reading

 

On 2.10.21 I had a zoom meeting with a twitter/ email friend from the US.

 

He was agreeable with most of the things I said but said that my definition of decoding/reading was wrong. He said that decoding included comprehension.

 

This was the same argument put forward by our Pamela Snow about a year ago before blocking me. Why would she block me if she could stand her ground and discuss with me?

 

My friend on zoom must have been influenced by her.

 

Let us look at what decoding is from the internet.

Decoding is a key skill for learning to read that involves taking apart the sounds in words (segmenting) and blending sounds together. ... Decoding is essential to reading. It allows kids to figure out most words they've heard but have never seen in print, as well as sound out words they're not familiar with.

The ability to decode is the foundation upon which all other reading instruction—fluency, vocabulary, reading comprehension, etc… are built.

In other word you can 'decode' a word without knowing its meaning, so decoding it will not by magic release its meaning.

 

Children should be taught to decode. For decoding a child needs to be taught the pronunciation of consonants without extraneous sounds. Once a child is capable of decoding then we work on vocabulary, comprehension and fluency.

 

Firstly, teach a child to walk and only then should she attempt to jump, run, skip etc. You cannot teach her to skip before she knows how to walk.

Why have kids been unable to read for decades? It is simply because they have been taught consonants with extraneous sounds which creates a confusion and they thereby shut down/ disengage from learning to read.