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EdSourceToday OP t1_j9kxbtm wrote

The following words and terms come up frequently during any discussion of this topic.
Phonics instruction teaches the relationships between the letters of written language and the sounds of spoken language, correlating sounds with letters to sound out the word on the page.
Phonemic awareness is the ability to detect, identify and manipulate phonemes, a distinct unit of sound, in spoken words. It is one component of phonological awareness, an umbrella term that includes the awareness of the larger parts of spoken language, such as words and syllables, as well as smaller parts such as phonemes.
Balanced literacy, a variation of the whole-language approach that emphasizes exploring literature organically but includes the explicit instruction of phonics in small doses.
Science of reading is a vast, interdisciplinary body of scientifically based research about reading that includes the five fundamental pillars: phonics (connecting letters to sounds,) phonemic awareness (identifying distinct units of sound,) fluency, vocabulary and comprehension.
Decoding means translating a printed word to speech and identifying unfamiliar words by sounding them out. This is a foundation of phonics instruction.
Three-cueing uses context such as pictures and syntax to guess the meaning of words that a student is stumbling on. It is urged primarily in balanced literacy and has become a focus of controversy.
Structured literacy emphasizes the highly explicit and systematic teaching of all important components of literacy including foundational skills (phonics, spelling) and higher-level literacy skills (reading comprehension). The origins of this phonics-based approach go back to the 1920s, when Samuel T. Orton and Anna Gillingham created a program that was systematic, explicit and highly structured, known as the Orton-Gillingham method, to reach struggling readers.

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Opening_Resort_25 t1_j9or45x wrote

Why is three-cueing controversial?

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themeatbridge t1_j9pjab9 wrote

The short version is that it doesn't actually help kids learn to read. In fact, it teaches them not to read, and try to use other clues to guess what a word might be. Look at the picture, look at the sentence, and think about what word would fit in that space. The trouble with that strategy is that there are usually many words that fit any given spot in a sentence, and focusing on the cues distracts from the word itself.

As a part of a strategy, it's not terrible if a kid looks at the picture for help, but as a standalone strategy, it's counterproductive. It's been debunked for like 40 years.

But selling educational books is a massive business that isn't run by scientists or educators. Between the politics, corruption, and general indifference, it was never profitable to change the approach. So kids have been taught not to read for 40 years.

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slightlyobtrusivemom t1_j9p1bi9 wrote

See here: https://features.apmreports.org/sold-a-story/

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KJ6BWB t1_j9pevt5 wrote

I don't have time to listen to a podcast. Is there a website I can read?

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akaghi t1_j9piggy wrote

It's basically "look at the sentence", "look at the picture", and "look at the first letter" and then guess what the word might be. Sometimes they will even block a word out entirely and have kids guess what the word might be based on context.

It's not effective, as you can imagine.

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slightlyobtrusivemom t1_j9qpr5a wrote

You can download a transcript from the site I posted.

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