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The Beginning (which foreshadows the eventual truce)
William S. Gray and others argued for more balanced reading instruction in the early twentieth century. At the time, emphasis was being placed on phonics instruction (Baumann, 1998). -
The Phonics Side of the Debate
The argument for phonics instruction was that the “decline in reading test scores" in the 1900s was caused by the whole language approach to reading instruction and that phonics instructions had been shown in studies to produce better scores (Ryhner, 2008). -
The Whole-language Side of the Debate
The argument for whole language instruction was that the decline in test scores could be explained by poverty instead, as the ethnographic studies conducted suggested, and that “about half the words in the English language cannot be pronounced correctly using commonly taught phonic rules” (Ryhner, 2008). -
The Texts of the Whole Word Approach
“Dick and Jane” readers were published by Scott Foresman, which used the whole word approach (at that time called the “look-say” approach) and words were repeated frequently (Ryhner, 2008). Dr. Seuss's The Cat in the Hat is another example of a text used to teach reading that is based on whole-word theory. -
The Goal of the Whole Word Approach Texts
The “Dick and Jane” readers and books such as The Cat in the Hat tried “to get children to familiarize themselves with a limited set of simple words” while phonics proponents argued that the whole-word approach simply had students memorize words, rather than using “their knowledge of letters and sounds to decode words” that they were unfamiliar with (Lemann, 1997). -
Phonics Approach
Why Johnny Can’t Read: and what you can do abut it: Rudolf Flesch published a book on teaching his grandson by using phonics. Flesch claims that “Once a child has learned this code, he can read” (Flesch, 1955). -
NICHD
The National Institute of Childhood Health and Human Development (NICHD) began funding scientific research focused on a wide range of problems tied to reading and learning disabilities in children. “This $200 million research project continues.” -
The Phonics Vs. Whole Language Debate
Jeanne Chall published Learning to Read: The Great Debate, which was about the debate of phonics versus whole language as a means of teaching reading. “Chall found early code emphasis more effective than using whole words/sentences” (Kim, 2008). -
"The cooperative research program in first-grade reading instruction"
A study by Bond and Dykstra concluded that a combined approach to reading instruction is best and that there is room to improve reading instruction (Pearson, 1997). -
Founders of Whole-Language
“The founders of whole-language, Frank Smith, for many years a professor of psychology at the University of Victoria, in British Columbia, and Kenneth Goodman, a professor of education at the University of Arizona…present whole-language instruction as a joyful, humanistic, intellectually challenging alternative to deadening phoneme drills -- one that turns the classroom from a factory floor into a nurturing environment” (Lemann, 1997). -
Goodman and Goodman Argue for Whole Language
Ken Goodman and Yeta Goodman set the basic principles of whole language method with the article "Learning to Read is Natural." The article presents the idea that children can learn to read and write from exposure to a literate environment, as they do when they learn to speak. The article also argues that students learn best when the reading and writing that they are doing are for authentic purposes (Stahl, 1994). -
Rise of the Whole Language Movement
There was a rise in the 1980s of the whole language approach (Baumann, 1998). -
Heilman wrote Phonics in Proper Perspective
Phonics in Proper Perspective, written by Arthur Heilman, was used as a guide for teaching phonics in early childhood classrooms. -
NIE publication Becoming a Nation of Readers
Becoming a Nation of Readers was a NIE publication that encouraged multidisciplinary approaches (Kim, 2008). -
Stahl and Miller Promote Whole Language Approach
Stahl and Miller’s research study “Whole language and language experience approaches for beginning reading: A quantitative research synthesis”: was a study that promoted the whole language approach and found whole language to be more effective (Stahl, 1994). -
Support for Phonics-based instruction
Susan Neuman supported phonics-based reading instruction. -
Phonics with Whole Language
Dr. Marilyn J. Adams: phonics expert who argued that phonics can work well with the whole language approach to teaching reading. -
Whole-to-Part Phonics Instruction Publication
Margaret Moustafa: published the article “Whole-to-Part Phonics Instruction: Building on What Children Know to Help Them Know More.” Whole-to-Part Phonics Instruction differs from traditional phonics instruction because “it teaches the parts of the words after the story has been read” and it “teaches letter-onset, letter-rime, and letter-syllable correspondences rather than letter-phoneme correspondences.” -
Possible Eventual Resolution to the Wars
Moustafa claimed that Whole-to-Part Phonics Instruction “is an instructional method that may finally resolve “the great debate” that has plagued the history of reading instruction for centuries” (Moustafa, 1999). -
Reading First provisions of NCLB
Reading First provisions of The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001: were included to try “to improve reading instruction in American schools and close the gap in test scores” (Ryhner, 2008). Reading First calls for “the State educational agency” to “assist local educational agencies” in “early intervention and reading remediation materials, programs, and approaches” (NCLB qtd. in Ryhner, 2008). -
Refuting the National Reading Panel Report of 2000
Stephen Krashen: published “False Claims About Phonemic Awareness, Phonics, Skills vs. Whole Language, and Recreational Reading” which refuted four claims made by the National Reading Panel report of 2000. -
Two National Reading Panel Claims Krashen Refuted
Krashen argues that the results of the studies that claim phonemic awareness improves reading ability were not statistically significant enough. Krashen also refutes the claim that ‘"skills"- based approaches are superior to whole language approaches’ through showing a small statistical advantage to the whole language approach of .17 on “tests of reading comprehension” (Krashen, 2003). -
The connection between Cognitive and Linguistic development
What’s Whole in Whole Language: Ken Goodman published What’s Whole in Whole Language, in which he stated that “Language learning is…making sense of the world in the context of how our parents, families, and cultures make sense of it” and that “Cognitive and Linguistic development are totally interdependent” (Goodman, 2006). -
Phonics Versus Whole Language
Phonics Versus Whole Language: Jon Ryhner published the article “Phonics Versus Whole Language” which described the debate between phonics instruction and whole language instruction to teach reading. -
Phonics as Behaviorist
Ryhner explained that phonics instruction is based on the Behaviorist Learning Theory that was inspired by the work of psychologist B.F. Skinner with the rewards system with animals in order to establish learned behaviors. -
Whole Word as Constructivist
Ryhner also explained that the whole language approach is based on Constructivist Learning Theory, which is inspired by the work of psychologist Lev Vygotsky. Constructivist Learning Theory is “based on the idea that children learn by connecting new knowledge to previously learned knowledge” (Ryhner, 2008). -
Balanced Approach
The truce that came out of the Reading Wars is the idea of using a balanced approach to teaching literacy. A balanced approach literacy program uses both the teacher-centered instruction of phonics instruction and the student-centered instruction of whole-language instruction. A balanced approach includes such components as phonics, vocabulary, and a literate environment where students read, discuss, and write about multiple texts (Tompkins, 2010). -
Connor suggests the Reading Wars miss the point
Carol M. Connor states in her article “"Algorithm-Guided Individualized Reading Instruction" that "Much of the controversy regarding the best way to teach children how to read has focused on whether instruction should be code-based, such as phonics, or based on whole language and meaning, but this debate may miss the point." -
Balanced Approach Combined with Individualized Instruction
Although most children develop stronger reading skills when they receive a balance of explicit decoding instruction in combination with meaningful reading activities, even a balanced approach theory assumes that one approach, if it is the right one, will be equally effective for all children. -
Individualized Instruction
"Instead, the efficacy of any particular instructional practice may depend on the skill level of the student. Instructional strategies that help one student may be ineffective when applied to another student with different skills." Connor said, "Instead of viewing the class as an organism, we're trying to get teachers to view the students as individuals."
