The Literacy Brain

Why Teach Spelling?

Spelling knowledge is a gateway to higher student achievement in literacy. Individuals begin learning how to spell, as they begin manipulating sounds. Individuals begin to encode words as they begin writing symbols that represent sounds. Individuals are not initially wired to encode words they must be taught how the sounds are represented in print – for any language.

Spelling instruction enables students to become better skilled at decoding and encoding written words, which usually increases student reading fluency. Students also increase their lexicon, building depth and width of knowledge about different subjects. Students also increase their ability to write and use higher level words within their writing. Students also build or strengthen their synthesizing skills and become more self-assured.

Spelling instruction should encompass several different components that are known to increase student retention of how individual words are spelled. These different components assist students in completing “word studies” of how words are encoded. Spelling instruction should increase in complexity as students grow academically—moving in a systematic, sequential manner. Spelling instruction should include the following components:

• Phonology – “the study of spoken sounds (phonemes)—rules of how sounds are encoded, such as why these sounds follow this pattern to form this sound(s). Individuals should have phoneme awareness skills before learning how to read. This is the ability to hear, identify, and manipulated individuals sounds in spoken words. Phoneme awareness is part of phonological awareness. Phonological awareness is the ability to process and manipulate letter sounds, rhyming words, and segmenting of sounds within words. The study of phonology usually increases student ability to spell, pronounce, and comprehend written words” (Ray, 2019).

• Morphology – the study of the smallest units of meaning. Word analysis helps students understand how the smallest units of meaning dictate a word meaning. The word meaning determines spelling pattern. Morphology increases student lexicon and comprehension abilities of both oral and written language.

• Syllabification or syllable knowledge – how words are divided into different chunks or parts. There are six major syllable types in the English language. Understanding how words are divided into syllables usually increases student decoding and encoding skills. Syllable knowledge also increases the accuracy of language pronunciation and comprehension.

Orthography – the rules of how letters form written words. The internal structure of a word in print. Encoding words requires knowledge of how the letters and letter patterns of a word dictate its sound and meaning. In some cases, the same sound within words is generated by different letters, for example the long /ā/ sound is generated using these different letters or combination of letters:

-eigh (weigh)
ai (rain)
a – e (cake)
a
ei (vein)
-ay (stay)

Another example is the letter k that uses different single or combination of letters to create the /k/ sound, for example:

c (cut)
ck (back, chick)
k (kick)
ke (bake)

Orthography Mapping – “the mental process we use to store words for immediate, effortless, retrieval. It requires phoneme proficiency and letter-sound proficiency, as well as the ability to unconsciously or consciously make connections between the oral sound in spoken words and the letters in written words.” (Redding, 2023, slide 6). Instruction in orthography usually leads to faster retrieval of how words are spelled, which typically increases student reading fluency rates. Students memorize the letter layout of words and store them to be retrieved for later use—sight words.

Etymology – the study of word origins. English is deprived of many different languages that may have different rules of how letters are ordered within a word to create the same sounds. For example, words of the German or Latin language use different letters to form the same sounds of different origin. Some languages are more transparent than other languages. English is less transparent than other languages.

Students often resist being taught purposeful lessons about how to accurately encode letters into the “right” word. Students usually show less resistance to spelling instruction when it is embedded within other lessons.

Spelling should be taught systematically and explicitly. Students begin learning how to spelling written words through oral language. Students increase their knowledge of how to spell words when they begin bridging their oral language to written letters or combination of letters.

References

Redding, N. (2023). The importance of spelling instruction. Presentation International Dyslexia Conference (IDA).

Ray, J (2019). Structured literacy teacher, instructional knowledge. The Literacy Brain. https://theliteracybrain.com/category/structure-literacy-instruction/page/2/

Rosenberg, D. (2023). The forgotten skills needed for literacy success: spelling and handwriting. Presentation International Dyslexia Conference (IDA), Wilson Language Training.

Key Components to Diagnosing Dyslexia

Diagnosing Dyslexia is usually tricky! There are common deficits of individuals who have developmental dyslexia that give educators a better idea of who may be dyslexic. These clues may be used to better meet the instructional needs of these types of students. All students benefit from the same type of instruction-structured literacy. Students of inclusion classes or classes that encompass students of different first languages benefit from the same type of instruction, as well.

Not every dyslexic student will show the same outward signs. Students will often develop ways to mask their lack of processing skills for literacy and/or math. Student personalities and their environment effect the amount of outward masking students will develop to hide their lack adequate processing connections.

Many states are now conducting dyslexic screenings 1-3 times a year (often included in universal screenings) to assist in identifying students who are struggling to acquire reading skills and/or may be dyslexic. Teachers also play a vital role in unmasking dyslexic students through their observations. Teachers usually work with students in a small group setting during the primary and elementary grades. Small instruction groups make it easier to observe key flags that usually identify students with dyslexia. Writing tasks or data will assist in exposing current student spelling abilities. Students with dyslexia will often spell the same word different within the same sample of writing.

Students of “classic/heritable” dyslexia usually have orthography and phonology deficits. Some of the characteristics of these deficits include:

“Phonological Issues

Sequencing of sound (bran for barn)
Omission of addition of sounds (jup for jump)
Confusion with similar sounds phonemes (f and th)
Limited knowledge of spelling rules (chik for chick)

Orthographic Issues

Sequencing of nonphonetic patterns (cloud for could)
Confusion with graphemes that look similar (e.g., b/d, p/q)
Transposition of letters (e.g., gril instead of girl)
Overgeneralization of rules
Overreliance on auditory features (e.g., becuz for because)” (Redding, 2023, slide 38)

The earlier a student with the characteristics of dyslexia receives intervention services or structured literacy instruction, the more likely they are to be at their expected level for reading.

Gillingham and Stillman’s (1956) Phonics Instructional Theory, Part II

This is Part 2 of a two-part blog on the phonics instructional theory of Anna Gillingham and Bessie Stillman (1956). The first part was published on this platform (The Literacy Brain) on July 5, 2023. There are eight linkages or steps to their theory of teaching phonics. I wrote about the history of their theory and linkages one and two in Blog 1. Gillingham and Stillman suggest that these steps should be used as initial instruction during Grades 1 and 2 and remedial instruction in Grade 3.

Gillingham and Stillman’s (1956) instructional method involves the close association of components that form a language triangle. These components are visual, auditory, and kinesthetic. These components work together to record information in the brain.

An additional note about linkage two, which is about how to properly write graphemes. Gillingham and Stillman (1956) emphasized the importance of proper penmanship. They stated that “no symbol is really serviceable for easy writing until it can be formed without visual supervision” (p. 41). Tracing letters may take place for several weeks before students begin to write them on their own. Writing letters incorrectly lends to poor writing and spelling.

The third step asks the teacher to show the student a grapheme (visual) of a letter and asks the student to name (auditory) the grapheme. Occasionally, the teacher moves (kinesthetic) the student’s hand to form the letter. The student is not supposed to watch the process, but name (auditory) the letter that his hand was guided to form. The teacher asks the student, what sound (auditory) does this letter make? Student needs to know both the visual and kinesthetic feel of a letter.

During the fourth linkage, the teacher asks the student to write (auditory/kinesthetic) the grapheme (auditory/visual) for a spoken sound, like d for /d/.

In step five, the teacher shows (visual) the student the grapheme from Step 3 and asked them to stated what it says (its sound) (auditory). The teacher moves (kinesthetic) the student’s hand to form the letter, while the student looks away and says (auditory) the sound of the letter that his hand was guided to form. The teacher asks the student, what sound (auditory) does this letter make?

In step six, the teacher states (auditory) a grapheme. Then the student states the phoneme of the teacher stated letter or groups of letters. This is an exercise of auditory recall, along with the connection of auditory and kinesthetic.

In step seven, the teacher says (auditory) a phoneme and the student states (auditory) the name of the grapheme. This is similar to Linkage 6 in how the brain is processing the information.

In linkage eight, the teacher states a phoneme (auditory) and the student writes (kinesthetic) down the grapheme (visual) of the phoneme. Students should practice this step with and without looking at their paper. The student should name the letter(s) as they write the symbol(s) for the sound.

Gillingham and Stillman (1956) suggest that linkages of 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6 are less important than linkages 5, 7 and 8. They stated that the latter steps of their phonics instructional theory require daily practice. They also discussed that teacher observation will assist them to provide or repeat other necessary instructional steps. Students are building connections between the graphemes and phonemes during the steps of the instructional process. In step five, students are translating the written symbol(s) in to the symbol’s phoneme. In linkage seven, students are listening to a sound and naming the written symbol(s) for the sound heard. This is done orally. In linkage eight student are translating from an oral sound to a written symbol or letter. Students who struggle with any of these tasks (linkages 1-7) usually have a language deficit.

References

Gillingham, A, & Stillman, B. (1956). Remedial training for children with specific disability in reading, spelling, and penmanship. Cambridge: Education Publication Service, Inc.

The Necessary Components of Learning How to Spelling

Writing is often hard for students. Writing in general requires a higher level of cognitive skills. Writing requires students to synthesize known information. This is easier to accomplish orally. Individuals often speak (especially young children) at a higher cognitive level than they can write. Oral language is usually developed naturally through one’s environment, whereas writing words on paper requires instruction. Students often orally convey their thoughts in fragments, whereas most thoughts on paper must be put into complete sentences. One piece of the writing pie is correctly spelling or encoding words on paper. Students will often use lower-level words that they might be able to spell correctly. Students who struggle in spelling words correctly usually avoid writing words on paper. This is when creative instruction needs to be brought in play.

English is not a transparent language; it has stable rules and many exceptions to those stable rules. In transparent languages like, Finish or Italian the graphemes and phonemes are more consistent, with little expectations of the graphemes changing sounds within words. English is derived from multiple languages. Most American English words are derived from Latin, Greek, and Anglo-Saxon languages. These languages have stable rules that can be learned through studying letter-sound correspondences, syllable patterns and morpheme patterns. When a student knows where the word is derived from and the “rules” of that language assist in spelling the word accurately. Webster brought more constancy in how we spell American English, while he creating the first instructional spelling books in the early 1800s.

Spelling requires students to know about phonology, orthography, and morphology to correctly encode a word. Phonology is the study of the sounds of letters that develop words. Students need to know the one-on-one grapheme-phoneme correspondences of the 26 letters in the English alphabet. During the study of phonology students begin learning how each letter may change its sound depending upon where the letter is placed in a word. Students should know these norms by Grade 2. They will use this information throughout their lifetime.

Orthography is the “rules” of how words are spelled within a language. The rules dictate if a letter will remain a one-on-one correspondence or change based on other letters within a word. Orthography is the visual representation or graphemes that represent words spoken orally. Students should have background knowledge of the “norms” of how letter placement creates the sounds of words. Orthographic knowledge increases student lexicon, which increases student reading fluency.

Morphology is the study of the meaning of the smaller parts of words, such as re- meaning again and -ing meaning an action. These different parts usually dictate its meaning. Students need to know the meaning of how something is spelled as American English has many words that are spelled differently, but sound the same (homophones).

Phonology, orthography, and morphology should be taught simultaneously. Phonemic awareness or oral language ability is the prerequisite in which these vital elements of learning how to decode and encode words is built upon. Some students will need to review some or all of the parts of phonemic awareness to effectively learn how to decode and encode words. Decoding is an easier skill for most students to grasp and use, than encoding words. Each of these components of learning how to spell words correctly increases with complexity as students mature. Teaching lessons about semantics along with lessons of morphology, usually increases student ability to effectively spell words that convey a more accurate meaning. These components are part of the Structured Literacy Method of effectively teaching students how to read and write.

References

Redding, Nancy. (2023). The Importance of Spelling Instruction. Presentation International Dyslexia Conference (IDA).

Rosenberg, Dee. (2023). The Forgotten Skills Needed for Literacy Success: Spelling and Handwriting. Presentation International Dyslexia Conference (IDA), Wilson Language Training.

Teaching Phonics Gives Students a Navigational Tool of Written Words

Would you allow a child to jump into the deep end of a pool without having instruction in how to swim? Some children might be able to surface and survive, most would need assistance to navigate the deep waters. Why put any child through the anxiety or possible drowning? Students should be taught how to swim systematically to avoid a possible drowning. This should be the same for students navigating or learning how to read written words.

Instruction should begin at the basics or foundation to give students the tools to rescue themselves as they navigate the deepening waters of written verbiage. Instruction should be systematic moving students from basic to complex. Students use their knowledge of phonemic awareness to learn how to encode and decode written words. Phonemic awareness is the knowledge of how to manipulate sounds to develop words and sentences. Students examine the sounds of oral language and how the arrangement of letters within words represent unique sounds to convey meaning. Oral language knowledge provides the initial layer of the foundation for reading written language.

Phonics instruction relies on student oral communication skills in particularly their ability to synthesize, comprehend, and mimic spoken sounds. Oral language usually develops naturally through an individual’s environment. They learn to mimic sounds of spoken language within their environment. Toddlers usually babble or play with individual sounds before they produce words and practice voicing a few words at time before moving to a full sentence. Written language is not a natural occurrence gained through their environment; it is a learned experience. The skill is best learned through an explicit, systematic format.

Phonics is the study of words, in particular the individual sounds that make a particular word and the symbols that represent those sounds of that word. The order of the letters dictates the individual sounds of a word. English Language has approximately 44 sounds that are used to develop written words. These sounds of are comprised of only 26 letters. Phonics instruction usually begins during the pre-school years of formal education. Not all students will gain the skills taught on the same timeline. Skipping this instruction is similar to throwing students into the deep end of the pool.

Written words composed into sentences have set doctrine that allows for comprehension. Words are read in a set pattern, from left to right. How the letters are arranged in a word dictate the pronunciation and meaning of the word. Explicit instruction teaches students this doctrine without confusion. Typically, students who are learning to read think concretely (black and white). Abstract thinking usually doesn’t begin to make an appearance until around age 7, when most students are already reading full sentences. Students who are learning how to read also benefit from visual or pictures of a new concept. Systematic instruction of written words helps students to learn new skills from basic to complex, such as learning about individual vowel sounds before learning about vowel digraphs.

Phonics instruction shouldn’t end in Grade 1, but continue until student(s) are able to automatically decode and encode words.

Why Reflection?

Reflection is part of professional development. The learning is imbedded and personalized to the educator’s current instructional situation. This is a natural opportunity for teachers to learn from their instructional experiences. This a way for educators to naturally improve their craft, specialty, or expertise. Educators might focus on one piece of an instructional lesson that may be included in several or one instructional lesson to reflect on. Educators should be continually learning how to improve their development and delivery of an instructional lesson.

Each educator may have a different way of reflecting on an instructional lesson. Many individuals complete this task naturally in relation to their personal activities. Some need a routine to ensure that reflection takes place. Some need to write notes about their analysis. Some might use a positive, negative t-chart about a lesson. Some educators may have a journal dedicated to write their analysis—reflection of instructional lessons and possible options for future lessons. These notes may also be used as anecdotal data. Some will analyze and jot notes as we move through the lesson. Some will wait until the end of the lesson. Others need to wait for a quiet uninterrupted moment to analyze aspects of a lesson. The actual reflection may take place during a quiet walk or it might take place in quiet moment during the instructional day. There are no set rules to follow, only that you take a few minutes to ponder about an event that has taken place.

During reflection teachers might ask the following questions. Did the lesson bring the intended outcome? What did I notice about students throughout the lesson? How may I increase student agency during this type of lesson? Why did this student struggle? What were the hiccups or bumps during the lesson? How might I improve the lesson next time?

Through questioning your conclusion might reveal:

a new instructional method that went surprisingly smooth
a small or large piece that may need to be addressed, like altering how long students should read-to-self
this group of students struggles to work in small groups
this group of students needs more background knowledge or practice

Each group of students is unique and may have different needs to soak in the information being presented.

Each carefully planned instructional lesson will have some positive and negative outcomes. At times the positive outcomes may show through and at other times the negative aspects will shine brighter. The goal would be to create a lesson that will produce more positive vibes. Students tend to embrace and participate in an activity that they enjoy (intrinsic motivation). For example, an instructional lesson about how to properly use commas is often dry, laborious, boring. Maybe the lesson would be better embraced if students wrote the sentences that need commas? What if this lesson was taught within an interesting science lesson? What if students were allowed to develop those sentences in small groups? What if the students were allowed to present their findings? What if they were able to work in pairs?

Reflection is a vital component in the process of developing instructional lessons. Reflection is a “mini” analysis of a past event. Reflection helps teachers evaluate what took place during an instructional lesson. Reflection also helps educators to wonder about which direction they might take next in developing an instructional lesson. Reflection also assists educators to organize and bring clarity to their thoughts or evaluation of instruction. This is especially true when they choose to write about the reflection. The process of writing usually deepens their analysis of the topic.

Gathering and Using Student and Instructional Data

Giving assessments, tests, exams, quizzes, etc of any kind is a WASTE OF TIME if educators do not analyze and use the outcome or data to improve student instruction and learning. Students usually have no want to take tests of any kind, as taking assessments usually leads to unnecessary anxiety and stress. There should be a valid reason for gathering the data—not so that it looks nice on paper or sits in a drawer. Each educator may rely on particular type of assessment more than others. Some types of assessment are mandated by law at state or federal levels. Some types of assessments are established by the district, others by an individual school, and others by the classroom teacher. Each piece of data helps to develop a “picture” of a student learning and achievement abilities and of teaching instructional practices. Multiple forms of data should be gathered over 5-to-6-week period to develop a solid picture of student ability. Time should be spent to ponder the outcomes and how this data may improve student mastery of information.

There are different types of data that may be gathered to assist educators in developing and delivering worthy lessons.

Observation data is usually gathered and recorded as anecdotal notes. Teachers might use charts to ensure information is gathered about a certain topic or action. Some teachers may also use a notebook to record on-going notes. These observations may be used to increase the validity of assessment data, to make changes to instruction, or to make a diagnostic diagnosis.
Curriculum-based measurements (CBM) are assessments that are derived from adopted or classroom curriculum. CBMs are written in different formats to gather different types of data related to the topic studied. CBMs often have a variety of questions, such as multiply choice, true/false, essay, or matching questions. CBMs might be written by non-educators, classroom teachers, or educators.
Summative assessments measure the amount of information that a student has retained in relation to the information taught in a lesson or group of lessons about a particular subject. Summative assessments are often used at the end of a unit.
A portfolio assessment is a group of specified assignments, usually related to a certain topic, study or skill focus. This type of assessment has the ability to show different types of skills that may not be visible on other types of assessments that may need to be measured for student success.
Formative assessments provide on-going feedback to instructors about how they might improve their instruction of information. This type of assessment also informs teachers of student learning abilities and achievement. Formative assessments are also used to show students weaknesses and strengths in relation to topic assessed.
Diagnostic assessments are used to evaluate individual student abilities in order to identify strengths and deficits of a particular academic domain (Ray, 2017, p.13). These types of assessments are used more to determine student deficits that may lead to a learning diagnosis, like processing of information issues.
Progress monitoring verifies how much a student has grown in relation to a particular topic or skill. The monitoring also gives instructors knowledge about the effectiveness of this particular instruction and possible directions for future instructional lessons of this nature. Progress monitoring typically takes place every two weeks. Progress monitoring is used primarily for students receiving intervention instruction.
Standardized assessments or measurements assess student academic level in relation to other students of the same age or grade level. Often these measurements are developed using a “bank” of questions that are randomly chosen for a particular test. There are different types of standardized assessments that are used for different purposes, such as diagnostic and teacher or district accountability. These measurements are norm or criterion-referenced.

Each type of assessment provides clues about student academic success and teacher instruction. The assessment outcomes should be analyzed through the lens of the intended outcome or purpose of assessment.

References

Ray, J. (2017). Tiered 2 interventions for students in grades 1-3 identified as at risk in reading. (Doctoral dissertation, Walden University). Retrieved from https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/3826/

Gillingham and Stillman’s (1956) Theory of Teaching Reading-Phonics

During the 1950s, there was much debate over which reading instructional methods were the most effective for teaching students how to read. The debate remains the same today, phonics or whole word. Gillingham and Stillman’s theory (1956) of teaching students how to read suggests that all students should be taught literacy using her phonics instructional method. They state that students should receive this type of instruction as preventive measure in Grades 1 and 2. Teaching students how to read was not emphasized until Grade 1 in the 1950s. Today educators begin teaching students how to read in pre-kindergarten/kindergarten. They also stated that this method should be used for remedial instruction beginning in Grade 3. In the 1950s most students were not identified as behind until Grade 3. Today we can begin to identify students as young as pre-kindergarten. If all students were taught to read beginning in pre-kindergarten/kindergarten using a phonological instructional method less students would need to be remediated.

Gillingham began her work in the field of dyslexia or with students struggling to learn how to read under the direction of Dr. Orton a pathologist who studied individuals with brain issues. Students who struggled at learning how to read were referred to Dr. Orton for evaluation. These students were often of higher IQ, with normal sight, and functioned “normally” other than not being able to learn how to read. Most of Gillingham’s work centered on how to effectively teach this type of student how to read. Stillman was a classroom teacher that worked with Gillingham to formulate how to teach students struggling to learn how to read. She also discovered that all students benefited from being taught using her phonics instructional method.

Gillingham and Stillman (1956) believed that remedial students did not learn reading skills through the normal route of instruction. Gillingham and Stillman found that students who were placed in remedial classes often had normal or higher levels of intelligence but were struggling with the acquisition of reading skills. Gillingham and Stillman noted that remedial students often have “normal sensory acuity, both visual and auditory” (p. 20). They argued that remedial students need to be taught by a trained remediation teacher who can present alternative methods in learning how to read. When the same students are taught using the phonics method, for example, the results are vastly different. Gillingham and Stillman noted that students who are provided with remediation for four or five years have a greater chance in improving their reading skills. Students who are remediated early in their school career will often not have memories of failing to learn to read. Students who are remediated early will usually be more confident in their reading abilities and in learning other subjects.

Gillingham and Stillman’s Phonic Instructional Theory

Gillingham and Stillman (1956) stated that students should first be taught the grapheme-phoneme or letter-sound correspondences, followed by the encoding of phonemes to form words. She stated that whole word instruction cannot take the place of “word-building” or phonics instruction. One student stated that “Until I had these Phonic Drill Cards, I never knew that the letters in a word had anything to do with pronouncing it” (Gillingham & Stillman, 1956, p. 39). Gillingham and Stillman’s method involves the close association of components that form a language triangle. These components are visual, auditory, and kinesthetic. These components work together to record information in the brain.

The first step or linkage is letter-sound correspondence instruction (Gillingham & Stillman, 1956). Students are taught the name of the written symbol (visual), then the sound (auditory) of the written symbol while looking (visual) at the written letter. Students are also taught to feel (kinesthetic) their vocal cords to understand how their body is producing the associated sound. Gillingham and Stillman stated that there is not a set order that letters must be taught. It is suggested that letters should be introduced beginning “with unequivocal sounds and non-reversible forms” (Gillingham & Stillman, 1956, p. 44). She also suggested that teachers should have a plan to follow for the introduction of new symbols.

The teacher first models each process, then completes the tasks with the student, before the student is ask to complete the task independently. Emphasis is placed on learning the correct pronunciation of each letter phoneme, which is modeled by the teacher. Gillingham and Stillman (1956) discussed that teachers should study the correct pronunciation of each letter sound, using pictures that show the correct pronunciation-mouth, tongue, and teeth position. They suggested that each grapheme should be introduced with a “key word” that models the correct pronunciation of the symbol in the initial letter position, like /b/ bear. Students practice correspondences until they become fluid in each letter-sound correspondence. Today we know that phonological awareness plays a major role in students learning the correct pronunciation of each letter sound.

The second step or linkage is learning how to write (kinesthetic) the symbols (visual) of the learned sounds (auditory). The teacher models how to write the symbol; how to hold a writing utensil, where to begin, where to end, etc. Students then trace over the teacher’s model of how to write the symbol. When students become fluid in how to correctly form the symbol through tracing, then they begin copying the symbol on their own.

There are six more steps in Gillingham and Stillman’s (1956) phonic instructional theory, which will be addressed in future blogs.

References

Gillingham, A, & Stillman, B. (1956). Remedial training for children with specific disability in reading, spelling, and penmanship. Cambridge: Education Publication Service, Inc.

Gillingham, A. (1955). The prevention of scholastic failure due to specific language disability, part I. Bronxville: N.Y. Academy of Medicine.

Gillingham’s Theory of Phonics Remediation

Gillingham (1956) labored countless hours in the pursuit of an instructional process for students who have language deficits. Gillingham worked closely with Dr. Orton, a neurologist, in his research lab, investigating the struggles in reading acquisition of children referred to Dr. Orton. Gillingham used Dr. Orton’s theory (1955, 1956) regarding language function to find solutions to students’ reading problems. Many of the students who were referred to Dr. Orton had emotional issues and reading acquisition deficits, and students were three to four years behind students of their age.

Most of the students referred to Dr. Orton’s practice had similar characteristics in relation to their learning abilities. Students were often assessed in the higher intelligence range (Gillingham, 1956). However, students often shut down when reading was mentioned. Most students had proficient memories. Most students also wrote their letters in a mirrored image. All students gave great effort in learning to read, but most of them were often labeled as lazy or uncooperative. Many of the referred students were thought to have emotional issues that were believed to be the central issue in learning to read. Many of the students were tested by an oculist or optometrist for vision issues, but usually, no vision issues were found. Parents were flustered about why their children could not learn to read, but their siblings could learn to read. Gillingham noted that most of the students had a family history of reading acquisition deficits. Gillingham found that many of the students responded positively to other forms of reading curriculum and instruction given by a remedial teacher, and then most of the emotional issues dissipated.

Gillingham (1955) also came to the conclusion that students who struggled with reading acquisition skills could be assessed and taught using a different curriculum than the dominant reading curriculum. This different curriculum and instruction would teach these students how to read and allow them to keep up with their peers academically. Gillingham believed that this new type of instruction would prevent students from experiencing “the heartache and frustration and their parents from the anxiety and expense that is now met when the child is a reading case” (p. 28).

Gillingham (1956) wrote a manual based on her findings about how to teach students to read. The predominant form of reading instruction was whole word. Gillingham used the “reading and spelling with phonetic words” curriculum and instruction for students who were identified as having possible or known deficits in learning to reading (p. 39). The major support systems for students struggling with reading acquisition skills are noted in Gillingham’s 1956 manual, which is titled Remedial Training for Children with Specific Disability in Reading, Spelling, and Penmanship. Gillingham describes the teacher’s role in teaching students with reading deficits. Gillingham also describes current research theories in teaching struggling learners how to read. The roles of school administrators and of parents are also described. In addition, Gillingham included descriptions of technology, curriculum, and student motivation in learning how to read. Community support systems for remedial students are also noted. My next blog will describe Gillingham’s theory about phonics remediation in further detail.

References

Gillingham, A, & Stillman, B. (1956). Remedial training for children with specific disability in reading, spelling, and penmanship. Cambridge: Education Publication Service, Inc.

Gillingham, A. (1955). The prevention of scholastic failure due to specific language disability, part I. Bronxville: N.Y. Academy of Medicine.

Has reading instruction really changed in the last 200 years?

Has reading instruction really changed in the last 200 years? Webster’s main push was to unify an American literacy curriculum that was different from the literacy curriculum used in the mother country of England; the current push is to unify reading curriculum through national standards in reading. Webster utilized phonics within his reading curriculum; phonics is still a major portion of reading instruction today. Educators have been pushed and pulled in different directions regarding reading instruction, with the goal that every child will be blessed with the gift of reading. This national effort is a laborious undertaking, because each child is unique and reaches the school door with a different learning style, different learning challenges, and a different home environment. Over the last 200 years, there have been changes to accommodate the needs of a growing society in learning to read, despite a dependence on old ideals.

Webster (1843) saw language as a way of conveying one’s thoughts and feelings from one person to the other. Webster thought that America needed ownership of their own language, a simpler language to read and write apart from the language of the “mother country” of England (preface, 1790, p. x,). Webster noted, “America must be as independent in literature as in politics, as famous for its arts as for arms; and it is not impossible but a person of my youth may have some influence in exciting a spirit of literary industry” (as cited in Blinderman, 1976, p. 32). Utilizing British grammar as a model, Webster wrote an America version of language and spelling instruction called A Grammatical Institute of the English Language in 1783. Webster would continue to improve his methods of teaching language and spelling until his death.

Webster (1790) saw that the strength of the United States was dependent on the education of its youth; his patriotism led him to remold the education of young people, noting that no person, regardless of their social economic status, cultural heritage, or sex, should be excluded from educational opportunities. He saw language arts as the center piece of educating youth, adding moral issues, science, history, government, and the arts to the curriculum. As Webster’s curricula progressed, he introduced other subjects into standard teaching lessons, and this curriculum was the beginning of an instructional approach to teaching subjects separately and purposefully.

Webster (1843) also saw a need to improve the separate entities of language, spoken and written. He simplified and regulated the spelling of words, utilizing didactical marks for punctuation; this method improved student ability to spell and to pronounce words. Webster also noted that spoken language involved the correct articulation of words, utilizing an intricate team of the throat, tongue, palate, teeth, and lips. Teachers were looked upon to model correct articulation and to correct students on the spot in order to ensure correct articulation of words spoken or read. A student’s body language was seen as a part of how words were articulated correctly. Written language was the part committed to paper, written to communicate a variety of thoughts, and to be utilized in a global sense that could be transported from place to place.

Webster (1843) believed that grammar made logical sense of words and provided the rules for both spoken and written language. Webster also saw grammar as the science of organizing words together, utilizing firm rules that were seen as a model of organized language in order to communicate effectively. Webster saw four major parts to grammar: orthography, etymology, syntax, and prosody.

“Orthography treats of the letters, their powers and combinations in syllables; or, it teaches the true manner of writing words, called spelling. Etymology treats of derivation of words from their radicals or primitives, and of their various inflections and modifications to express person, number, case, sex, time and mode. Syntax explains the true mode of constructing sentences. Prosody treats of the quantity or accent of syllables and the laws of versification (p.7).”

Each portion of the language puzzle was taught in a “systematic, sequential, letter-based, and learned by rote—would not be challenged until 1820’s” (Monaghan, E. J., 2010, p. 4, para. 4).

Webster (1790) felt so strongly about the need to improve education in the United States that he shifted from his role as a lawyer to an educator in order to devote his energy to the transformation of the reading curriculum in America. To protect his own writings, Webster helped to develop the copyright laws, holding the first copyright of a book; these laws ensured that the money from the sales of publishing through his efforts to develop, improve, print, advertise, and distribute would be protected and placed in his hands. He standardized orthography, spelling, articulation, and other portions of grammar in America, leaving heavy footprints within the reading curriculum and instruction of today.

References

Blinderman, A. (1976). Three early champions of education: benjamin franklin, benjamin rush, and noah webster. Bloomington: Phi Delta Kappa Ed. Foundation.

Monaghan, E. J., Ed. (2010). Noah webster (1758-1843) – webster’s innovations, perfecting the spelling book for reading instruction, other works. http://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/2544/Webster-1758-1843.html.

Webster, N. (1800). A grammatical institute of the English language; comprising an easy, concise, and systematic method of education. Boston: Thomas & Andrews.

Webster, N. (1814). An American selection of lessons in reading and speaking: calculate to improve the minds and refine the taste of youth. Philadelphia: Hogan.

Webster, N. (1843). An improved grammar of the English language. New York: Webster & Clark.

Webster, N. (1790). Collection of essays and fugitive writings on moral, historical, political and literary subjects. Boston: Fauet’s Statue.