This article is a rejoinder to J.S. Bowers (2020), 'Reconsidering the evidence that systematic phonics is more effective than alternative methods of reading instruction', "Educational Psychology Review" (https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-019-09515-y). There is strong agreement among reading scientists that learning the phonological…

Reading by third grade is a hot topic. Dozens of state legislatures have passed laws aimed at improving early reading, many of them mandating retention if the job is not done by the end of grade 3. Everyone from philanthropists to publishers, from parents to the press, have fixed on it. And setting aside too many people's assumptions to the…

In this article, Vicki Jacobs argues that as the nation strives to improve the literacy achievement of U.S. adolescents, educators must reframe the current "crisis" as a critical point on a continuum of historical efforts to address the particular challenges of postprimary-grade reading. Specifically, Jacobs examines the definition of adolescent…

Laments the past misuse and misunderstanding of phonics. Introduces the term "new phonics" to describe the sophisticated, research-based phonics being used in the basal reading scheme, "Language in Action." (JL)

Examines whether empirical research in beginning reading instruction supports the major tenets of the psycholinguistic approach to beginning reading. (Author/MP)

A phonics advocate maintains that claims for results with the method called "assisted reading" or sentence reading are higher than can be expected. (MKM)

In the author's experience, a significant source of reading difficulty for many beginning and struggling readers are misconceptions about print concepts so basic teachers assume their students are aware of them. Many children fail to grasp implicit principles of print such as the following: the reader cannot make up the words, the order of letters…

Contends that the acquisition of fluent reading competency involves beginning readers' tacit recognition that they must learn to compensate for the absence of prosodic cues in the written signal by making use of the cues that are preserved. (HOD)

Irreverently examines Rudolph Flesch's theories for teaching a child to read "properly." Alternatives to Flesch's method are also given. (HTH)

Teachers aware of the value of each child's language can do much to prevent initial reading difficulties among those who speak nonstandard dialects. (DD)

This position paper on teaching children to read explains with several examples exactly what "quagmires" are and how they hamper children as they learn the elements of reading basics. The paper takes a multidisciplinary approach to attacking stumbling blocks to learning most often experienced by child learners. To explain the concept of quagmire,…

Deplores beginning reading instruction stressing drill in isolated skills that interrupts the natural reading process. Suggests the use of imitative reading, such as having preschool children "memorize" a book they have heard aloud several times, as a successful teaching strategy. (HTH)

Describes a child's gradual discovery and awareness of the meaning of print and her beginning reading experiences. (HTH)

Contends that Jean Piaget's theories may be helpful in three areas of reading instruction: (1) when reading instruction should begin and how it should proceed, (2) the effect of the mature reader's cognitive development on comprehension, and (3) how the theories can help to refine reading theory. (FL)

Argues that the National Reading Panel is too narrow in its presentation of scientifically valid reading research. Presents a sample of practices that enjoy support but were ignored by the panel and qualitative research that was out of bounds because of the methodological guidelines of the panel. Concludes that most of the cutting edge of the…