More than 20 years ago the researchers of the Children of the Code were aware that unvoiced sounds should be unvoiced.
The following is an extract from an interview of Siegfried Engelmann conducted by David Boulton.
Siegfried Engelmann:
The mistakes the kids made guided us to see that we had something missing. For instance, at first, we had them sound out words traditionally. We never permitted "ch-aa-tah” for chat. Unvoiced sounds were unvoiced -- "ch-a-t."
So now we had precise corrections related to what they had learned earlier. We had a procedure for sounding it out that would reach virtually 100 percent of the kids. So, we could teach even really low performers now to take the first step on the ladder. Then they can follow the entire sequence and they can learn at a rate far faster than would have been anticipated.
See what Dr. Richard Selznick and Dr. David Kilpatrick said on this matter. LINK
That has been my Mantra since 2010. Teach kids the proper pronunciation of phonemes. Timothy Shanahan was in this team of ‘experts’ in Children of the Code and yet he asked me for scientific evidence on this exact matter.
This is the Tier 1 instruction I mentioned in my post. LINK.
The researchers knew that this would reach 100 percent of the kids. If this research was done more than 20 years ago why are approximately 20 percent of kids leaving school as functional illiterates?
No kid should be left behind at the end of grade 1.
If we screen kids who get into grade 1 and do intervention all kids who had learned the wrong sounds of letters will unlearn what they had learned wrongly and begin to read. LINK
3 comments:
Thanks Luqman. My experience has been a bit different from yours. From my work in schools I’ve seen wide agreement that sounds be articulated correctly when teaching kids to sound out words. That doesn’t mean everyone does this or knows this but it’s typically the inexperienced teacher who has not learned the concept and needs coaching on the topic. I got just such coaching during my student teaching year. I think what folks are saying when they talk about fluency, vocabulary, comprehension is that reading is more than just decoding. It’s not an either/or issue but a both/and issue.
Thank you for your comment. Yes, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension are important and it is not an either-or issue.
I am advocating that if kids have learned the wrong sounds (letters with extraneous sounds) they shut down when they are taught the correct sounds of letters without explaining to them the wrong sounds that they have learned and telling them to unlearn those.
Comprehension, vocabulary, and fluency cannot be attained by these curious kids who have shut down at the decoding and blending stage.
Why do schools, that teach SSP right from grade one, have about 20% of kids leaving school as illiterates?
These are the kids who had come into class full of confidence and self-esteem. They come into school having learned the sounds of letters with extraneous sounds from TV shows or from kindergarten.
I have asked teachers to test kids in grades 2 and above who cannot read at grade level. I’ll bet they will pronounce letters with extraneous sounds.
I repeat: it is not either-or but there is no point talking about the second step when the first important step is wrong. Take the first step correctly and then everything will fall in place.
What did Siegfried Engelmann say about 100% success? What did Dr. Richard Selznick say about his patients?
Please let me know if you have further questions or need further elaboration.
Please, let me ask a question. This is for you to ponder.
Was there any kid in your class who left your class at the year-end without being able to read?
If there was, why do you think they left your class without being able to read?
Post a Comment