Research on Reading
Pretty much all educators can agree on how essential reading skills are to student success, self-esteem, and cultural literacy. Where there has not been agreement, is how to best teach reading, which strategies are more effective than others, and, of course, the continuing battle between the “whole word” vs phonics approach to reading. Countless reading programs have been developed and disseminated with the promise that they have discovered the fail-proof methodology to effective reading instruction. We, classroom educators, seem to know intuitively that these promises rarely hold water when it comes to our own experience in implementing these programs.
That is why a study released in 2018 by international researchers, Castles, Rastle, and Nation, has been so critical. The research results come after decades-long studies which reveal important insights to teachers on how to best teach reading.
One of these insights debunks the belief that reading comes naturally to many children. Reading requires the learner to connect abstract symbols to specified sounds which then needs to be strung together to create meaning. This is far from a “natural occurrence” for most learners in your classroom. This insight indicates that teachers need to provide specific and direct instruction to decoding the letters and symbols.
Another finding supports what we, as teachers, would seem to know instinctively, which is that students require the right kind of practice if they are to achieve sufficient fluency. The “right kind” of practice here, means that not only must sufficient time be provided to read grade level material but it also means that the practice should focus exclusively on authentic words and not on decoding nonsense words phonetically, which does not result in authentic reading.
Another important take away from the study is that the more bandwidth that needs to be utilized for decoding by the student, leaves less for comprehension purposes. The more automatic the reading, the more enjoyable and understandable the reading, as well. Students should, therefore, be given reading with enough challenge to stretch the learner but not too much of a leap that the decoding becomes cumbersome and the content incomprehensible. Both decoding skills and comprehension skills need to be properly taught. It’s not one or the other but rather a combination of both, that produces the best readers. Teachers, therefore, need to teach and model anticipating where the text is going, using context clues to enhance comprehension and new vocabulary, and asking the right questions to add depth and knowledge.
I would be curious if your experiences support these findings, and if you would add any other strategies that you feel are essential to reading instruction. Please share your ideas!
