The Hype About Phonological Awareness: Clearing the Path to Real Reading

 

This morning I came across two tweets that highlight the ongoing confusion in literacy instruction.

 

Waveofthefuture (@Sustain_VA) wrote:

 

“Phonics can be a tool for the simplest words and should be used in the beginning. But English is not a phonetic language unfortunately so it’s a very limited tool. Don’t believe me? Try to read your own tweets using basic phonics as if you didn’t already know those words.”

 

And Robert Pondiscio (@rpondiscio) tweet:

 

“In my view, US educators should adopt the British approach: children learn letters, letter names, and letter sounds and then start learning to read, beginning with pronouncing simple words aloud. The time that is freed up by skipping phonemic awareness instruction can be used for learning other things.”

 

These two perspectives capture the tension at the heart of reading instruction today. One dismisses phonics as “too limited,” while the other argues for a practical approach: teach letters, names, and sounds, then move directly into reading simple words.

 

The Myth of Phonological Awareness

Since 2010, I have consistently argued that phonological awareness deficit is not the cause of dyslexia. That theory—promoted for more than 35 years—was debunked around 2017. The big boys then repackaged the new must have skill as  phonemic awareness (PA).

 

Teachers worldwide are now pressured to spend undue amounts of time drilling PA exercises. But let’s be honest: none of us adults were ever taught phonological awareness in school, and yet we learned to read. Doesn’t that fact alone expose the hollowness of this hype?

 

Every hour spent on PA is an hour not spent on actual reading instruction. The result? Children are delayed, confused, and too often mislabeled as “dyslexic” when in fact they were simply mis-taught.

 

The Simplicity of Letters and Sounds

From my experience teaching children across languages—English, Malay, and Pinyin—the essentials are straightforward:

 

Teach letter names and letter sounds clearly.

 

Avoid extraneous sounds when introducing letters (a mistake that confuses children).

 

Sound out simple words using letter sounds to get children reading quickly.

 

This is not complicated. Children don’t need abstract drills in phonological awareness. They need direct teaching of the tools that let them decode words.

 

The Dolch Word Advantage

Alongside phonics, rote memorisation of Dolch sight words provides a foundation for fluency. These high-frequency words appear in almost all text children encounter. Once memorised, they give children confidence and momentum in reading.

 

It’s a simple, practical step that accelerates progress. Combined with letter sounds, Dolch words help children move from decoding to fluent reading without unnecessary detours.

 

The Most Important Principle

The single most important matter is this: do not teach kids letters with extraneous sounds. That error has caused untold confusion for beginning readers.

 

If we want to reform literacy instruction, we must stop chasing debunked theories and return to evidence-based practice. Teach children letters, sounds, and sight words (Dolch Words). Get them reading. Leave phonological awareness where it belongs—in the dustbin of disproven ideas.

 

📖 For a detailed explanation of these methods, my book lays out the step-by-step approach. It is written to help parents, teachers, and policymakers see clearly what works and what doesn’t.