Dr Naomi Fisher recently reminded us that schools were not designed with child development in mind. Chris Benson added that the rush into formal education is largely an English-speaking phenomenon, noting that his own children thrived in a system where formal schooling began later.
I asked Chris a direct question: What do you suggest we do to reduce the percentage of children leaving schools as functional illiterates? His reply was that this is a societal issue, not one schools alone can fix. ‘Do you have a response?’ he asked.
Here is my response:
For over a decade, I have been saying the same thing at the top of my voice: teach children letter sounds without extraneous sounds. Exclude the “uh” that so many teachers add.
When children are taught buh-a-tuh for “bat” or cuh-a-tuh for “cat,” confusion sets in. Many bright, curious children shut down, disengage, and are later labeled dyslexic or slow learners. This is not a matter of “different pathways” or “individual differences.” It is a matter of clarity in instruction.
You may then ask: But what about schools that use Jolly Phonics from day one? Why do they still produce functional illiterates? That is a crucial question, and one we will explore further.
From my work with over 80 children and through my blog Dyslexia Friend, I have consistently documented that:
Extraneous sounds are the single biggest source of early reading confusion.
Dolch words — the high-frequency words that make up 60% of print — are neglected, even though rote memorization of these words is essential for automaticity.
Instructional clarity, not phonological awareness deficits or English opacity, is the real barrier.
This is going to be an eye-opening discussion. Already, several educators have weighed in on Chris Benson’s comment, and I believe the conversation will shed light on why functional illiteracy persists despite decades of phonics dominance.
The question we must keep asking is simple: If we know what causes confusion, why are we still teaching in ways that perpetuate it?
And beyond schools, another urgent question arises: Why are programmes such as Baby TV allowed to air “Charlie and the Alphabet,” which is truly detrimental? Why is YouTube permitting countless videos that teach letter sounds wrongly? LINK
Toddlers across more than 100 countries are exposed to these errors before they even step into a classroom. By the time they reach kindergarten, they have already internalized the wrong sounds. Teachers themselves often absorb these faulty models, reinforcing the cycle.
This is not a minor issue. It is the embodiment of what Edward Thorndike (1913) warned: what is learnt in the initial stage is critical. And as Claude Bernard (1813–1878) observed: “It is what we know already that often prevents us from learning.”
When wrong sounds are taught early — whether by teachers, kindergartens, or mass‑media — they become entrenched prior knowledge. Later corrections are resisted, and children disengage. This is why functional illiteracy persists despite decades of reform.
As Naomi Fisher rightly points out, schools were not designed with child development in mind. And as Chris Benson reminds us, literacy is a societal issue, not one schools alone can fix.
But society including Naomi and Benson must now ask:
Why are global broadcasters allowed to spread confusion to toddlers?
Why are platforms like YouTube not held accountable for hosting videos that teach wrong sounds?
Why are regulators silent while millions of children absorb errors that will block their learning for years to come?
If we are serious about reducing functional illiteracy, we cannot ignore the role of mass‑media. Policymakers, education ministries, and regulators must act to ensure that what children hear in their earliest years is correct, clear, and consistent.
The challenge is clear: Until we stop wrong sounds at the source — in kindergartens, classrooms, and global media — functional illiteracy will remain entrenched.
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