Are 'Leading Educationalists' Too Smart to be Dumb about Reading Instruction?

Abstract

The question is evoked by an “Open Letter” written by “a coalition of leading educationalists organized by the UK Literacy Association.” The UK Government has committed to an initiative to eliminate illiteracy by the end of Year/Grade 2. As part of the initiative it has mandated a “Phonics Screening Check” be administered to all children in England, at the end of Yr 1, to identify those in need of further instruction. Those children who fail to pass the Check at the end of Yr 1 are required to retake the test at the end of Yr 2.

The Letter pertains to the Screening Check. The views expressed by the coalition have been embraced by several prominent authors of children’s books and are consistent with the views of like-minded leading associations and individuals in the US.

This article parses the Letter and comments on the particulars expressed.

Keywords: educational policy, reading instruction, educational testing, literacy instruction