Through Chapter 13 (Research on Learning and Teaching Phonics), I have gained a whole new approach about phonics. Although reading is attaining understanding and not reading word by word or letter by letter, I still felt that phonics played an important role in the younger grades. I always questioned how they knew what their sight words said/were without using phonics. It is all beginning to make clear sense.
I think teaching phonics could be ‘integrated’ into the different components of a comprehensive literacy program (Read-alouds, shared reading, guided reading, sustained reading, individual reading conferences, and literature groups). Teachers who insist on teaching phonics in isolation could easily teach it through one of the aforementioned reading categories.
After seeing some of the examples in chapter 13, especially the one on page 311 (see example), I do not think teaching phonics is effective. If anything, I think that the importance of phonics weighed so heavily on this particular child’s education that it actually hurt their reading and understanding of the text as a whole. As a teacher, especially in the primary grade levels, I would choose to not focus so much on phonics, as I see the ability to read and gain understanding when students use onset and rimes and the ‘chunking’ strategy. Moustafa’s study suggests that ‘children draw upon chunks of known words to read unknown print words. That is, they read new print words by drawing upon the parts of words they already know in print’. In addition, other researchers have found, ‘…that emergent readers find it easier to sound out words in onset-rime chunks than to break the words into separate phonemes and then blend these phonemes to make a word’. According to the research and also the new knowledge I have gained from this reading, I am not an advocate of teaching phonics. As a teacher, you must be able to recognize what is and what is not working for particular students and be willing to use all the strategies you know for the betterment of the students.
Katie,
ReplyDeleteAfter reading chapter 13, I am in complete agreement with you that teaching phonics in isolation is an ineffective practice. I found it especially fascinating to read the "major distortions in the summary of the NPR report" on pages 317-321 of the text. It is interesting how research can be twisted to say one thing, but really prove quite the opposite. After reading that and the findings of much of the research Weaver included, it is hard to find justification for teaching phonics in isolation. I definitely think that shared reading and guided reading groups are great places to integrate phonics instruction in a more meaningful way based on introducing skills you see that students may be struggling with.
Katie,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that for the most part, isolated, systematic phonics instruction is not necessary. I think if a phonics “segment” is part of literacy instruction, it should be within a shared or guided reading type lesson. I think the idea of phonics instruction merely brings a child’s attention to the fact that these symbols we call letters represent sounds. Once this concept has been understood, it is time to forgo the direct instruction.
Katie, I think you bring forth some interesting points about phonics instruction. I do agree with you that phonics instruction could be taught in isolation in the categories you mentioned. And, many teachers (like myself) have limited experience with phonics instruction, so using a program to teach it to the whole class seems easy and sometimes effective. The trouble with whole-class instruction is that there are students who don’t need that type of scaffolding because they are incredibly proficient readers. They get bored easily, and I feel bad for making them sit through it. But, I also think that phonics instruction is beneficial for students who really need that assistance in learning the language. I have seen students in second grade who barely knew how to read, and it was my job and interest to do what I could for them. I had to start somewhere. Thus, I would conduct one-on-one instruction time with that student or incorporate phonics into a guided reading time on a daily basis.
ReplyDeleteKatie,
ReplyDeleteI agree that phonics shouldn't be taught in isolation. Children have a hard time making connections from the isolated sounds to when they come across those same sounds in a book. I think our mini-lessons are where we can bring forth phonics instruction to then work on within a book during guided reading. I have gained a whole new perspective on phonics instruction after reading Weaver's text and look forward to learning more through chapter 14 in the coming week.