Abstract
I wish to investigate these areas as there is a gap in previous
research regarding this topic. There has been extensive research
carried out with regard to the phonics and whole language debate,
but this has not been applied specifically to the National Literacy
Strategy and the opinions of those who teach it. The previous
research has surrounded the debate as to which method is most
effective in teaching literacy to primary school children, and
definitions and contents of these methods. Previous research will
be discussed further in the literature review section of this
research.
In order to find out information regarding the relationship
between phonics and whole language in primary education I will
analyse the National Literacy Strategy Framework and related
teaching materials to see whether the educational policy makers
support either a phonics or whole language approach. I will also
examine the two Key Stages that are involved in primary education
to see whether there is a difference in the approaches to teaching
literacy between them.
Since I am also interested in primary school teachers opinions
with regard to the National Literacy Strategy and the phonics and
whole language debate, I will carry out semi structured interviews
with three primary school teachers to see which of the teaching
approaches they support. I am interested in their opinions as the
National Literacy Strategy Framework for Teaching specifically
states the content and methods that should be used during literacy
lessons. If the teachers opinions are in contrast with the methods
that the strategy promotes, this could have wider educational
implications with regards to whether this is the best approach to
teaching children how to read and write.
Research Questions and Hypotheses.
The interests that I have regarding this topic have led me to
comprise three specific research questions. These questions are
related to both the analysis of the National Literacy Strategy
Framework for Teaching and the individual teacher interviews.
My first research question is with regard to whether the
National Literacy Strategy supports either a phonics or whole
language approach to literacy teaching. My hypothesis based on this
research question is that the National Literacy Strategy will
support a phonics based approach to primary education. My second
research question relates to the teachers interviews, which is the
main area of my research. I wish to find out whether the teachers
that I will interview support either a phonics or whole language
approach to literacy instruction. My hypothesis regarding this
particular question is that the teachers will show some support for
the phonics based method, but will probably favour a more balanced
approach to teaching literacy in their classrooms. My final
research question is in relation to whether the teachers that I
will interview agree or disagree with the implementation of the
National Literacy Strategy teaching framework, and the teaching
methods that it promotes. My hypothesis regarding this research
question is that the teachers will probably resent such a rigid
teaching framework as the one that the Department of Education
provides for literacy.
My research project will consist of examining previous
theoretical work that has been carried out in relation to the
phonics and whole language debate for literacy teaching. I will
also gather some background information on the National Literacy
Strategy. The next area that I will cover is the methodological
implications of my research, which will consist of my methods of
data collection and analysis. Since I have an obligation to protect
the teachers participating in this research, I will also examine
the ethical considerations of my research. Following the
methodology section, I will move onto the analysis and results of
my research. This will include the analysis of the National
Literacy Strategy teaching framework and the individual teacher
interviews. Since my data will be qualitative, this section will
consist of in depth discussions of the two types of data. The
conclusion of my research will examine how successful this project
was in relation to my research questions, and I will examine my
results to see whether they are the same as I predicted in my
hypotheses. I will also discuss any possible questions that may
arise from my research.
Literature Review.1.The phonics based approach.
One of the most influential methods in the teaching of literacy
is the phonics approach. This approach is concerned with dividing
the sounds in a word up into what are known as phonemes. The
phonics approach to reading uses this division of sounds to assist
children in learning to read and spell. Once the children have
divided up the phonemes in a word, for example cat into /k/, // and
/t/, they are taught to blend these individual sounds to create a
whole word.
Hannan (2000:65) provides the following definition;
Phonics teaching involves giving children letters or letter
combinations and teaching them the corresponding sounds i.e the
direction of teaching is letters to sounds. Children are then
taught to blend sounds together, eventually to form words. The
phonics approach to teaching children to acquire literacy skills is
based upon the fact that the English writing system is alphabetic.
In English, phonemes are represented by graphemes, and the phonics
approach is put into place to teach children that the graphemes
that appear on the page represent the phonemes that are produced in
speech. (Dombey, Reading, Vol.33 No2, July 1999)Letters- single, in
pairs or clusters give us vital information about how a word should
be pronounced. (Dombey, Reading, Vol.33 No 2, July 1999). If this
is the case, then how a word is pronounced can give children who
are acquiring literacy clues as to how it would appear on the
page.
As Dombey (1999) points out;
To learn to read fluently, children need a firm grasp of the
patterns of grapheme/phoneme correspondences, and of the
relationships between larger units of spoken speech and written
texts that govern most English spellings. Without effective
teaching of graphophonics children tend to teach our writing system
as if each word were a separate logogram. (Reading, Vol.33 No2,
July 1999)
Phonics has always been an influential teaching method in
literacy acquisition, but was overshadowed during the 1980s when a
whole language or whole word approach was favoured. However, in
Britain during the late 1990s, the phonics approach experienced a
revival when it was adopted by the Education Department and
implemented in the new National Literacy Strategy in 1997. As
Hannan (2000:65) describes,
The phonics revival came about as a result of the insistence
that early learning of the phoneme-grapheme relationship was the
key to later success in reading and writing.
Over the years, there have been different approaches to teaching
the phonics method to children as well. The type of phonics that
has been described so far, the teaching of phoneme-grapheme
correspondences and then blending various phonemes together, is
known as Synthetic Phonics.
However, another phonics approach to teaching literacy that has
been proposed includes the teaching of onset and rime patterns, for
example the str onset in string, and the ght rime in right. As
Dombey (Reading, Vol.33 No2, July 1999) points out, children also
need to learn these orthographic patterns that govern our spelling
system as well as the one to one phoneme-grapheme relationships.
This view is supported by Bradley and Bryant (1986 cited in Reading
Vol. 31 No2, July 1997) who state that;
Children with good preschool awareness of onsets and rimes
become better readers later on.
Goswami (1994, cited in Reading, Vol. 31No2, July 1997) is also
in favour of this approach to teaching phonics, stating that it is
at this level that our spelling system is at its most regular.
Firth (1985, cited in Reading, Vol. 33 No2, July 1999) states
that children acquire a phonic method to reading and writing in
three stages. The first stage, the logographic stage, is when
children come to pay attention to the letters that words are made
up of. Children in this stage of phonic knowledge acquisition are
yet to grasp the phoneme-grapheme relationship.
The second stage that they pass through is known as the
alphabetic stage. Children begin to understand that there is a
relationship between the smaller units of spoken language and the
smaller units of written language.
The final stage is the Orthographic stage, which is when major
patterns of the English writing system are internalised.
The phonics approach to teaching children literacy skills is not
without its critics though. The phonics approach is based on the
phoneme-grapheme relationship in English, but as Steirer and Maybin
(1993:133) point out, the correspondence between written and spoken
English is no longer perfect, if it ever was. By teaching children
that there is a direct relationship between sounds and letters on a
page, they are being presented with a false view of language. The
number of letters in the alphabet does not come close to
representing the many phonemes in English. However, the onset and
rime approach to phonics does overcome some of these problems.
Another criticism of the phonics approach is that it is not
helpful to break up words in order to teach children how to read
and write. As Hughes (1981, cited in Reading Vol. 31 No.3, November
1997) states;
Over-emphasis on phonics gives the child a completely false view
of the reading process.
The view that phonics interferes with a natural learning process
is one that is supported by Ken Goodman;
In our zeal to make it easy, weve made it hard. How? Primarily
by breaking
up whole (natural) language into bite-size, but abstract little
pieces. We postponed its natural purpose- the communication of
meaning, - and turned it into a set of abstractions, unrelated to
the needs and experiences of the children that we sought to
help.
Goodman also compares the acquisition of literacy to that of
oral language. Children can acquire this well without having it
broken down into the smallest units, and so he believes that
written language will follow the same principles.
Despite these criticisms, the phonics approach to reading and
writing has received extensive support over the years. The fact
that the phonics programme is so central to early literacy
education in British schools illustrates that it is a popular
approach to teaching literacy.
There have been numerous studies to support the view that the
phonics method is a successful approach to teaching literacy. Jane
Oakhill and Alan Graham (1988) support the phonics based approach
to teaching literacy.
The evidence that is in favour of the phonics-based approach is,
if anything, stronger than ever.
Early intensive instruction in phonics produces readers who are
more proficient in pronouncing words than those that are taught by
a whole language approach. Many studies have shown no clear
difference in comprehension ability between children taught by
whole word and phonics approaches. (cited in Stierer and Maybin,
1993:122)
One of the main criticisms towards a phonics based approach is
that it focuses too much on the mechanics of reading and neglects
the comprehension of any literacy event. Jeanne Chall (1967) in
Learning to Read: The Great Debate found that
children who are taught by means of programmes which emphasised
code showed superiority in reading and spelling, accompanied by no
lack of motivation and interest, over children taught by approaches
which emphasised meaning. (cited in Stierer and Maybin,
1993:115)
Although Challs study was conducted during the 1960s, the theory
still received support from Charles Perfetti in 1985;
Code emphasis programmes do not hurt comprehension and provide
at least some help with word recognition. As far as the evidence is
concerned, the great debate is over, and Challs conclusion holds.
(cited in Stierer and Maybin, 1993:115)
Further evidence to support the phonics approach to reading
comes from research conducted by Just and Carpenter (1987).
Research in America using high-tech equipment to monitor the eyes
suggests that fluent readers look at every part of every word.
(cited in Reading Vol.31 No2, July 1997) This research supports the
view that each part of a word is vital to the reading process, and
therefore it would make sense to teach children how to break down
the individual parts of the word, in order to assist them in the
acquisition of literacy skills.
2. The whole language approach.
Whole language is the term given to instructional curriculum
that builds on the view that readers and writers integrate all
available information in authentic literacy events as they make
sense of print. (Goodman, K 1993:108)
The whole language, or whole word approach to teaching literacy
differs to the method that is used by the phonics based approach.
Whole language is concerned with children engaging in authentic
literacy events and acquiring literacy skills through texts that
have significant meanings.
During the mid-20th Century, the whole language approach was the
dominant style in literacy teaching. Hannan describes it as;
Inspired by a desire to make early reading as meaningful as
possible, and influenced by ideas from Gestalt psychology, that
words could be perceived as wholes, meant that teaching children to
recognise individual words through flashcards and other means. Many
children did learn to read in this way with minimal teaching about
sub-word letter-sound relationships. (2000:65)
Many researchers support the view that the whole language method
to teaching literacy is more effective than the phonic method. They
believe that making phonics the main approach to teaching can have
a damaging effect on childrens comprehension, and that children
will acquire literacy skills without doing this.
Goodman (1986:19) is a supporter of the whole language method
and states that;
The whole is always more than the sum of the parts and the value
of any part can only be learned within the whole utterance in a
real speech event.
However, as Goodman (1993:108) states, the whole language
approach does not reject phonics, but teachers who support this
technique put it in its proper place. They see phonics as one
aspect of a wide range of skills that children need to be taught
and apply whilst engaging in literacy events.
The whole language approach has been criticised for not teaching
spellings explicitly. This approach teaches spellings by
encouraging children to be creative and experimental with language.
Once they have done this, they will gradually come to learn the
conventions of the language, and adopt them into their own writing.
These are skills
that are acquired through regularly engaging in authentic
literacy events.
Although the main focus of the National Literacy Strategy in
Britain is now phonics, the whole language programme of learning is
still used in New Zealand. As Goodman (1986:59-60) describes,
teachers are expected to plan language activities based on students
everyday lives, widening interests and developmental needs.
There have been some studies carried out to support the whole
language approach to teaching literacy. The Authors Study, carried
out by Goodman in 1965 (1993:52) involved children from the first,
second and third grade in an American school. Before getting the
children to read a story, Goodman gave them a list of words to read
aloud that were present in the story. Even the first graders could
read, in the story, two out of three of the words that they could
not read on the word list. For the third graders in the experiment,
it was four out of five words. Based on these results, Goodman
concluded that;
Reading is making sense of print, and thats a much more
efficient process than accurately identifying words. Other
researchers in support of the whole language method have criticised
the phonics method in that it is only a part of learning to read,
albeit an important one. Smith (1978) states that the teaching of
phonics has to be put into perspective- teaching children phonics
will not teach them how to read. It will teach them phonics. (cited
in Reading Vol. 31 No3, November, 1997)
Hughes (1981) also supports this view, stating, without
contextual information, phonics is inconsistent and unreliable, as
does Lawrence (1988) who focuses on the importance of meaning. If
we want children to learn anything successfully, the learning must
be made meaningful. (both cited in Reading Vol.31 No3, November,
1997)
These views are supported by Goodman (1993:3), who states that
there is more than one process involved in making sense of a
printed text. Children do need to apply their knowledge of the
languages grammatical structure, but they also need to apply their
knowledge that coherent meaning can be constructed from an
authentic literacy event.
Finally, there has also been some physiological research
conducted that supports the whole language approach to literacy
teaching. Taft, (1991) and Underwood and Batt, (1996) state that
proficient readers do not recognise words by decoding them
phonemically, but through visual recognition. (cited in Hannan,
2000:70)
3. The National Literacy Strategy.
The National Literacy Strategy was implemented by the Education
Department in 1998, after a successful pilot scheme in thirteen
Local Education Authorities during 1997. This strategy came about
as a result of concerns for the declining standards of literacy in
British schools. The National Literacy Strategy is used alongside
the National Curriculum. The National Curriculum states what
children need to be taught, and the Literacy Strategy states how it
should be taught. (Reading, Vol.33 No1 April 1999)
The National Literacy Framework, which is implemented in all
British schools today, provides information on the methods that
should be used to teach literacy skills. Essentially, it dictates
how teachers should shape their lessons to get the best results
from literacy instruction. The National Literacy Strategy takes the
form of a Literacy Hour, which is taught in schools every day, and
consists of a mixture of whole class, group and independent work.
Teachers are told to spend specific amounts of time on these
activities within the literacy hour. The work that the children
carry out is also divided into three levels, the word level, the
sentence level and the text level.
Since the National Literacy Strategy is now compulsory in all
LEA schools, teachers attitudes towards it have varied according to
their views on the teaching of reading and writing. One Local
Education Authority gave 180 teachers a questionnaire asking them
what they felt were the positive and negative aspects of the
literacy hour. Nearly 30% of teachers liked the structure of the
teaching framework, with one Key Stage One teacher describing it as
having clear, focussed, hierarchical learning objectives. (cited in
Reading Vol. 33. No1. April 1999) However, it is worth noting that
30% is not the majority, and therefore teachers attitudes towards
the literacy hour are an important aspect of literacy
instruction.
4. Research Questions and Hypothesis.
In light of the research that has been carried out with regard
to the phonics versus whole language debate, I wish to investigate
the methods used for teaching reading and writing in British
schools.
The three main questions that frame this research are;
a) Does the National Literacy Strategy support a phonics or
whole language approach to teaching reading and writing?
b) Do teachers support a phonics or whole language approach to
teaching literacy?
c) Do teachers agree or disagree with the implementation of the
National Literacy Strategy teaching framework, and the teaching
methods that it stipulates?
My hypotheses regarding this research are;
a) The National Literacy Strategy will focus on a phonics-based
approach to teaching literacy.
b) The teachers interviewed will show some support for phonics,
but will probably favour a more balanced approach to teaching
literacy.
c) Teachers will resent the rigid framework that the National
Literacy Strategy provides.
Methodology.
1. Research Questions.
I wish to investigate teachers attitudes to literacy teaching
methods and the National Literacy Strategy, and also wish to
investigate the methods promoted by the National Literacy Strategy
with regard to literacy instruction.
2. Subjects.
The subjects of my research are Primary school teachers of
varying ages and experience. Teachers from both Key Stage One and
Key Stage Two will be interviewed in order to ensure that all areas
of the primary sector that implement the National Literacy Strategy
are covered. I will also interview teachers with a variety of
specialist subjects in order to obtain a balanced sample of data.
Both male and female teachers will also be interviewed for this
reason.
Subject one is a female primary school teacher who has been
teaching for nineteen years. She specialised in language and
mathematics whilst training, and has experience of teaching both
Key Stage One and Key Stage Two.
Subject two is also a female primary school teacher who has been
in the profession for two years. Her specialist subject at
university was English language, and she teaches Key Stage One.
Subject three is a male primary school teacher who has been
teaching for five and a half years. His specialist subject whilst
studying at university was information technology, but he studied a
full teacher training degree, so his training focussed on all
aspects of primary education in detail. He teaches Key Stage
Two.
3. Materials.
The main material that I will use in this research is the
primary and secondary questions that form the basis of the
semi-structured interviews. The primary questions are the main
topics which I wished to gather information on, which include
discovering the teachers opinions on the National Literacy
Strategy, the phonics materials provided by the education
department, and their opinions on effective literacy teaching. I
also included some secondary questions which were used to allow the
teachers to get used to being interviewed and recorded, and to also
gather some important background information which may be a
contributing factor to the construction of their opinions.
The Progression in Phonics supplementary pack was also used to
provide examples of the phonics materials that the National
Literacy Strategy promotes, which the teachers were asked to give
their opinions on during the semi-structured interview.
The National Literacy Strategy teaching guidelines will also be
analysed in order to establish to what extent they support a
phonics or whole language approach. I will examine the teaching
methods promoted at the word level work, since this is the main
area that is concerned with the phonics and whole language debate.
I will also examine the two separate Key Stages in primary
education to see whether there is a difference between the methods
that are promoted in higher and lower primary education. 4. Data
Collection Methods
I will employ two types of data collection and analysis. In
order to investigate the literacy teaching methods that are
promoted by the National Literacy Strategy, I will examine the word
level work at both Key Stage One and Key Stage Two, to see whether
phonic or whole language methods are recommended. I will also
examine the Progression in Phonics supplementary pack to gather
examples of phonics lessons and materials. An example of the work
included in the phonics pack can be found in appendix 5.
The second type of data collection that will be employed is
interviews with Primary School teachers. I have decided to use
interviews as my data collection method, as I feel that
questionnaires do not allow much scope for discussion. Since the
main aim of this investigation is to get teachers opinions of the
literacy hour, I did not wish to restrict their answers in any way.
I also wish to collect examples of how they would teach a literacy
lesson using their preferred methods, and this would be difficult
to achieve using a questionnaire.
For the interview section of my data collection I have decided
to employ a semi-structured interview method. Again, since I am
interested in individual teachers attitudes and methods, applying a
structured interviewing method would restrict their answers. Each
teacher interviewed will display their own attitudes, and this
could sometimes lead me to ask them to elaborate on a particular
point of interest. A sample of the questions that framed the semi
structured interview can be found in appendix 1.
I carried out a pilot interview with one of the teachers before
completing my final version of the interview questions. It was
during the pilot that I decided to employ a semi-structured
approach, since it allowed the teachers to express their opinions
fully. I also redrafted some of my questions as a result of the
pilot interview, as some of them were initially leading.
One of the main problems that I encountered during the pilot
interview was that the teacher had some trouble establishing what I
wanted them to talk about. To overcome this problem, I decided that
it would be beneficial to discuss the questions with the teachers
prior to interviewing them, to explain the questions and give them
some time to contemplate their answers. This will lead to gaining
greater and more relevant data to analyse.
5. Analytic Procedures.
My research will produce two individual instances of qualitative
data. The analysis of the National Literacy Strategy will produce
qualitative data, as I will be examining to what extent the phonics
and whole language methods are presented in the guidelines for each
Key Stage. This will be done by examining the word level section of
the strategy for each Key Stage, to see whether the phonics or
whole language method is dominant. I will also examine the
introductory section of the framework to see if either a phonics or
whole language approach is dominant it construction of this
educational policy.
The second and main section of my research will also produce
qualitative data. The teachers interviewed will discuss how they
feel about the National Literacy Strategy, and the various teaching
methods that are used for literacy instruction. Since I am
interested in their opinions, the analysis of this data will
involve looking for similarities in the teachers answers, and
establishing whether they support either a phonics or whole
language approach. I will also analyse their responses to see
whether their opinions tie in with the methods that are promoted in
the strategy framework.
Ethical Considerations.
Although I will be given consent by the teachers prior to
conducting the interviews, I still have some ethical concerns
surrounding this research. Firstly, I feel that it is important for
the teachers to be aware of the questions that I will ask them
prior to conducting the interviews, so they will be made aware of
the content of the interviews prior to taping. It is also important
that I respect their right to confidentiality, so the participants
in this research will be known by subject number. I will also
ensure that their answers remain confidential by ensuring that the
primary schools that they are employed by are not named. I will
also request that if the teachers wish to discuss a particular
child whilst providing examples during interview, the child must
not be named, since it would not be possible for me to gain
parental consent. Analysis and Results. 1. Introduction.
The data that I have collected for this research project
comprises of two sections. The first section is the analysis of the
National Literacy Strategy Framework for Teaching, which was
carried out to see whether the National Curriculum supports either
a phonics or whole language approach to teaching literacy. The
second section of my data consists of the individual interviews
with primary school teachers at Key Stage One and Key Stage Two.
The aim of these interviews was to find out whether the teachers
support a phonics or whole language approach to literacy, and
whether they agree with the methods that the National Literacy
Strategy promotes.
2. Analysis of the National Literacy Strategy.
Three materials provided by the Department of Education were
analysed as part of this research. They were the National Literacy
Strategy Framework for Teaching, the Progression in Phonics CD Rom
for teachers, and the Progression in Phonics pamphlet for teachers
which gives details on phonics games for whole class teaching.
I carried out the analysis of the National Literacy Strategy
framework with three main questions in mind. I wished to find out
how the strategy is structured with regard to the teaching of
reading and writing, what kinds of criteria need to be fulfilled,
and what kind of teaching methods are promoted.
One of the main principles that underlies the National Literacy
Strategy is the Reading Searchlight Model. (NLS,09/01, p4) A copy
of this model can be found in appendix 6. The framework states that
pupils will use four searchlights when engaging in literacy
practices. Children need to be taught how to use these searchlights
in order to become successful readers and spellers. The four
reading searchlights are:
1) Phonics The phonic strategy for sounding out words
2) Grammatical Knowledge Prediction or confirmation of a word or
phrase from grammatical construction of the sentence.
3) Word Recognition and Graphic Knowledge Automatic recognition
of whole words.
4) Knowledge of Context Prediction or confirmation of a word or
phrase from contextual cues.
The Reading Searchlights Model implies a whole language method
to the teaching of literacy. Pupils are taught to employ a range of
methods for decoding written text, one of which is the phonics
technique. This, like the whole language approach, states that
although the teaching of phonics is important, it has its place
within a wider scheme of literacy instruction.
The National Literacy Strategy Framework for Teaching is divided
into three levels of work in reading and writing. These are word
level, sentence level and text level. (NLS, 09/01 p6) These levels,
as stated in the strategy, vary between Key Stage One and Key Stage
Two. The most drastic variations between the two Key Stages occur
at the word level, reflecting the progress of pupils literacy
development. It is the word level of the National Literacy Strategy
that is concerned with the phonics versus whole language debate, so
my analysis of the framework and related materials will focus on
this area.
Despite the Reading Searchlights Model demonstrating support for
the whole language approach to literacy teaching, explicit teaching
of phonics is promoted throughout the framework.
Research evidence shows that pupils do not learn to distinguish
between the different sounds of words by simply being exposed to
books. They need to be taught to do this. (NLS, 09/01 p4)
This quote shows that the National Literacy Strategy supports a
phonics method. Greater emphasis is placed on phonics than any of
the other reading searchlights at word level. This goes against the
whole language approach as it is implied that without explicit
knowledge of spelling to sound rules, pupils will not make advances
in reading and spelling.
Under the National Literacy Strategy Framework for Teaching,
teachers are expected to fulfil criteria with regard to literacy
acquisition at word level. The strategy states that literate
primary pupils should:
Be able to orchestrate a full range of reading cues to monitor
their reading and correct their own mistakes. (NLS, 09/01 p3)
This suggests that a whole language approach, using the Reading
Searchlights Model, should be applied by teachers during literacy
lessons. The criteria also states that pupils should:
Understand the sound to spelling system, and use this to read
and spell accurately. (NLS, 09/01 p3)
This supports the phonics approach, as phonics is treated as an
individual and vital skill.
So far, the National Literacy Strategy has shown support for
both a phonics and whole language approach to teaching literacy.
Phonics, however, is treated as an important part of teaching, and
is given attention that the other elements of the Reading
Searchlights Model do not receive.
One of the main differences between the phonics and whole
language approaches at word level is to do with the separate Key
Stages in Primary education. There is a significant difference in
the teaching methods applied at Key Stage One and Key Stage
Two.
At Key Stage One there should e a strong and systematic emphasis
on the teaching of phonics. (NLS, 09/01 p4)
There is a clear focus on the phonics approach to teaching
literacy at Key Stage One. The National Literacy Strategy states
that the Key Stage Two objectives are built on an expectation that
pupils will have attained a basic level of reading fluency. (NLS,
09/01 p7) Pupils are expected to have achieved this basic level of
reading fluency as a result of work that is done at Key Stage One
through word level work. Since the word level work at Key Stage One
relies heavily on the teaching of phonics, the underlying principle
is that phonics must come first. By teaching pupils to use the
spelling to sound rules, they are laying the foundations that need
to be built on to become successful readers and spellers.
The Key Stage One word level of the framework consists of a
large section on phonological awareness, phonics and spelling. An
example of such work is teaching children to discriminate and
segment all three phonemes in CVC (consonant-vowel-consonant) words
and blend them together. (NLS, 09/01 p20) This is an example of
explicit phonics teaching that does not incorporate any of the
other elements of the Reading Searchlights Model. The acquisition
of accurate spellings is also dependent on phonics at this level.
The National Literacy Strategy framework states that in order to
spell successfully, pupils must segment words into phonemes. (NLS,
09/01 p22)
The word level work at Key Stage Two states that pupils must
refer back to phonics work done in Key Stage One, as and when
needed. (NLS, 09/01 p32) However, the phonological awareness,
phonics and spelling section that was so dominant at Key Stage One
is no longer present at Key Stage Two. This major difference
illustrates that the National Literacy Strategy believes that
phonics must come first. Once this basic skill has been acquired,
pupils will be able to acquire and use other elements of the
Reading Searchlights Model.
The Key Stage Two framework at word level supports this view.
One element of the word level section is vocabulary extension.
Children are encouraged to infer meaning of unknown words from
context. (NLS, 09/01 p33) This method supports the whole language
approach as pupils are employing more than one searchlight to
enable themselves to read unfamiliar words. It is more than just
the phonics method that is used to carry out word level work.
Evidence to show that the National Literacy Strategy follows the
phonics approach to teaching literacy comes from the Progression in
Phonics pack and CD Rom that has been published for Key Stage One
literacy lessons. The teaching of phonics is stated explicitly in
these materials, saying that pupils should be taught to:
1) Discriminate between the separate sounds in words.
2) Learn the letter and letter combinations most commonly used
to spell these sounds.
3) Read words by sounding out and blending their separate
parts.
4) Write words by combining the spelling patterns of their
sounds.
(NLS Progression in Phonics Pack)
Since there has been supplementary materials published for word
level work at Key Stage One that focuses only on phonics, it is
clear that the Education Department sees this as a vital part of
literacy teaching. An example of the teaching materials and methods
provided in the Progression in Phonics Pack can be found in
appendix 5.
The phonics CD Rom for teachers also promotes the explicit
teaching of phonics at Key Stage One.
The most readily available spelling strategy to young children
is to spell words by writing down the letters for the sounds that
they can hear in words the phonic strategy. (Progression in Phonics
CD Rom)
This supports the view that phonics is a skill that should be
acquired first in pupils early education at Key Stage One. The
quote also implies that the acquisition of phonics is one of the
easiest skills to gain, which will then enable pupils to progress
onto other literacy skills.
The progression in phonics pack also provides materials for
whole class teaching, in the form of phonics games. These games are
devised to be used in the two separate sections of the literacy
hour that are dedicated to whole class teaching. The games
incorporate the use of phoneme fans and flashcards with individual
phonemes printed on them. An example of these games is the teacher
asking the children to match the first phoneme in CVC words, then
the final phoneme, and finally the middle vowel sound. This follows
the order of phoneme acquisition for pupils.
These games have been put together purely for the promotion of
explicit phonics at Key Stage One. The Progression in Phonics pack
states how teachers should structure their whole class teaching to
enable pupils to acquire phonemic awareness. They are restricted to
using phonic methods at Key Stage One, not whole language
methods.
3. Teacher interviews.
The analysis of the National Literacy Strategy Framework for
Teaching led me to ask teachers how they felt about the teaching
methods that the Literacy strategy promotes, and how they feel
about the phonics and whole language methods to teaching literacy.
I was also interested in how they felt about the structure of the
literacy hour and the methods of teaching that it promotes, and the
materials for teaching literacy that are recommended by the
Department of Education.
A list of the questions that I used for the semi-structured
interviews can be found in appendix 1, although each of the
interviews varied slightly depending on the teacher and the
responses that they gave.
Three primary school teachers of varying specialist subjects and
experience were interviewed. A sample of Subject Ones responses can
be found in appendix 2, Subject 2 can be found in appendix 3, and
Subject 3 can be found in appendix 4. There were notable
differences between their responses, especially between the
different Key Stages. To analyse these responses, I will look at
each of them in turn to see whether they agree with the methods
that are approved by the National Literacy Strategy, and whether
they support phonics or a whole language approach to teaching
literacy, based on the definitions provided by previous
research.
Firstly, I wished to find out whether the teachers that were
interviewed felt that the National Literacy Strategy had improved
the teaching of literacy in British schools. The teacher responses
were fairly contrastive, and they felt that there were different
negative aspects to the introduction of the Literacy hour. Subject
1 felt that the literacy strategy was too rigid, although it has
improved since it has been revised. Subject 1 also felt that it
depends on the individual child, as the methods that are promoted
by the National Literacy Strategy do not necessarily work for all
children. She also stated that it depends on the teacher, as if you
have a good teacher, you wont really see much of an improvement in
literacy standards.
Subject 2 felt that it was too early to say if there had been a
definite improvement in literacy standards, since the strategy was
only implemented in 1997. Subject 3 felt that there had been a
definite improvement in literacy standards, but expressed concern
that this was at the expense of other subjects.
I also wished to find out how the teachers felt about the way
that the literacy strategy promotes the teaching of reading and
spelling. Again, there were contrasts in their opinions, most
notably between Key Stage One and Key Stage Two. Subject One felt
that the strategy breaks down the teaching of literacy too much.
She did not feel that the distinction between word, sentence and
text level was not helpful at Key Stage Two. Subject Two, a Key
Stage One teacher, liked the emphasis on phonics, as she felt that
it provided a good basis for further literacy learning. Subject 3,
who is also a Key Stage Two teacher, agreed with Subject 1 with
regards to the word, sentence and text levels. He felt that
although they were a good idea in theory. When put into practice it
did not work. He felt that it was more beneficial to look at
meaningful sentences in a meaningful context at Key Stage Two. This
response shows support for a whole language approach as he feels
that looking at language as a whole is a better strategy for
teaching literacy in the upper primary years. The responses given
by the teachers in this question tie in with the strategy
framework, as in the early primary years there is a great emphasis
on the phonics approach, which leads to a whole language approach
during Key Stage Two.
When the teachers were asked what changes they would make to the
teaching methods if they were able to do so, all teachers had
opinions on what they would like to change. Subject 1 would like to
get rid of the word, sentence and text distinction at Key Stage
Two, as she does not think it is useful. In contrast, Subject 2
felt that the word, sentence and text level distinction was helpful
at Key Stage One. However, she would like to use the cursive script
more often, as she feels that it is useful for keeping the pupils
thoughts on the page, as well as improving spelling and handwriting
skills. Subject 3 would like to see more choice in individual
reading and more non-fiction texts available. This response could
be seen as tying in with a whole language approach, as whole
language states that children should read for a purpose in
something that interests them. In conclusion, the responses here
seem to suggest that the word, sentence and text distinction is
helpful at Key Stage One but not at Key Stage Two.
I was also interested in finding out how the teachers would
teach a child reading and spelling using their preferred methods.
In order to find this out, I asked them to describe how they would
teach a child to read or spell a word that they were having
difficulty with. The phonics approach to teaching literacy played a
huge part in the responses that the teachers gave to this question.
All teachers described phonic methods such as breaking up a word
and sounding it out, but other methods of teaching literacy were
also favoured. Subject 1 said that she would teach spellings by
breaking down words and getting the children to sound out the
individual phonemes. However, Subject 1 also pointed out that it
depends on the individual child, and that you have to try out a
range of techniques to find which one works best. She also stated
that the cursive script method, as mentioned previously by Subject
2, was a technique that she finds useful.
Subject 2, again showed support for using cursive script, and
she felt that the phonics element to literacy teaching was useful,
as she feels that the English writing system is difficult to learn,
and to break words down into individual phonemes is helpful to the
children.
Subject 3 also showed some support for the teaching of phonics.
However, he feels that although it is valuable, it should not be
treated as a subject in its own right. Subject 3 feels that phonics
is just one of the tools that should be applied to teaching
literacy, and pupils should also be taught using grammatical cues
and contextual cues. Like Subject 1, he states that it also depends
on the child and the ways in which they find it easiest to learn.
Therefore, it can be said that Subject 3 supports a whole language
approach to teaching literacy, as his response to this question
ties in with the Reading Searchlights Model which can be said to
embody a whole language view.
The next question that I put to the teachers was asking them how
they felt about the phonics games that the National Literacy
Strategy promotes for whole class teaching. Subject 1 said that she
felt that by Key Stage Two the pupils were too old for phonics
games. She did however say that she felt that they were a useful
resource for Key Stage One, and that she had used them, or
variations of them whilst teaching this age group. Subject 1 said
that the phoneme fans were useful for teaching, but also stressed
that it was important to use a variety of techniques. Cursive
script and the use of flashcards were also favoured. This response
shows some support for a whole language approach as Subject 1 feels
that it is important to try lots of different methods to teaching
literacy, and not just relying on the phonics games.
Subject 2 feels that the phonics games are successful, and said
that the children enjoy the interactive side to them. This shows
support for a phonics approach to teaching literacy, which ties in
with the strategy framework, stating that explicit phonics teaching
should occur at the first Key Stage. She also stated that her
classroom had a lot of phonics stimuli about, and example of this
is a letter line, which has individual phonemes tied to it. She
feels that this is a useful resource in her classroom as she is
able to constantly refer back to it whilst teaching, and she is
able to teach individual children with it when they struggle with a
particular word.
Subject 3 also agrees that the phonics games are good, but says
that it depends on the child and the context that you use them in.
He feels that by Key Stage 2, the pupils should not be relying on
phonics games in their literacy lessons. Subject 3 states that they
should be used at Key Stage One, as by Key Stage Two he feels that
the pupils should be competent enough readers and writers and
should not need to use these games extensively. However, he also
says that phonics may be useful for the lower ability groups and
pupils with special educational needs such as dyslexia. The view
that phonics is a useful tool for teaching children with special
educational needs is one that is also shared by Subject 1 and
Subject 2. In conclusion, it can be said that from the responses
that the teachers provided to this question, that phonics games and
materials are a useful resource for Key Stage One literacy, but not
necessarily for Key Stage Two. This mirrors the views that are
upheld in the strategy framework, where explicit phonics teaching
occurs at Key Stage One, and these skills are revised as and when
they are needed at Key Stage Two.
4. Discussion of Results
The teachers responses have provided me with an insight of their
views on the National Literacy Strategy Framework for teaching, and
the implications of such a teaching framework being put into
practice. It would appear from responses given in the interviews
that the teachers have varying views on the framework and the
methods of teaching literacy that it promotes. All of the teachers
felt that there were certain elements of the framework that they
were not happy with, and other teaching methods that they felt
would be beneficial to their pupils that are not included in the
strategy.
From these responses it is evident that the teachers feel that
although the strategy does provide some good teaching methods, it
fails to take the individual difference between the pupils into
account. One comment that recurred frequently is that different
methods of teaching literacy will work for different children.
Therefore, it is important to try a variety of teaching methods in
order to find the one that suits the children the best. At Key
Stage One, the teaching of phonics is stated explicitly in the
strategy, and although all of the teachers acknowledged that this
was appropriate, they also felt that other teaching methods should
be applied.
With regards to the phonics versus whole language debate, which
is something that has been addressed extensively in previous
research, the teachers did show some preference for a particular
approach. It appears from the interviews that this preference is
divided between the Key Stages. Subject 1 provides a good
illustration of this since she is a supply teacher who has
experience of teaching both Key Stage One and Key Stage Two.
Subject 1 stated that the explicit teaching of phonics, and the use
of phonics games and materials is useful at Key Stage One, but is
not really relevant at Key Stage Two. This view is backed up by
Subject 3 who feels that teaching explicit phonics at Key Stage Two
is not necessary, except with lower ability groups, and such work
should be carried out in the earlier primary years. Subject 2 also
supports the view that phonics is relevant at Key Stage One, as she
shows great support for phonics teaching in her class, and
highlights such methods when asked to describe her own teaching.
The teachers responses to the phonics versus whole language debate
have shown a certain amount of support for the approach to these
teaching methods that is promoted in the National Literacy
Strategy. It appears from their responses that the teachers feel
that phonics is relevant to earlier primary education, and that
whole language methods should be employed once these foundations
are laid. This approach is prevalent in the Key Stage One and Key
Stage Two framework.
The teachers responses in the interviews also provided me with
an insight to how they feel about the content of the National
Literacy Strategy and whether they feel that it has improved the
literacy standards in schools. The teachers stated that there were
some elements that they disagreed with, and Subject 3 expressed
some concern that the focus on literacy may be at the expense of
other subjects. These comments mirror those that have been provided
by teachers in previous research.
Conclusion.
When I began this research I had three main research questions
in mind. I wished to find out whether the National Literacy
Strategy supported a phonics or whole language approach to teaching
literacy, whether individual teachers support either of these
approaches, and whether the teachers that I interviewed agreed or
disagreed the National Literacy Strategy and the teaching methods
that it promotes.
Based on these research questions I had three hypotheses
regarding my research. I predicted that the National Literacy
Strategy would support a phonics based approach to .literacy
teaching, that the teachers would show some support for phonics,
but would probably favour a more balanced approach, and finally,
that the teachers would resent the rigid teaching framework that
the National Literacy Strategy provides.
Following my analysis of the National Literacy Strategy and
related teaching materials, I have found that the framework has
elements of both a phonics and whole language approach to teaching
literacy. The phonics approach to teaching literacy can be said to
be most prevalent at Key Stage One, when primary school children
are first learning to acquire literacy skills. However, the Reading
Searchlights Model, one of the main teaching ideologies that
underpin the strategy, shows support for a more balanced approach
to teaching literacy, including grammatical, contextual, and word
recognition strategies. This model shows support for a whole
language approach, and therefore it can be said that to a certain
degree the National Literacy Strategy supports both a phonics and a
whole language approach to teaching literacy, depending on the Key
Stages, with phonics being dominant in Key Stage One, and whole
language in Key Stage Two.
Therefore, my hypothesis with regard to this research question
has not been supported by my findings. The National Literacy
Strategy shows support for both phonics and whole language
approaches and therefore my hypothesis has been disproved.
The next prediction that I made prior to conducting this
research was that the teachers would show some support for the
phonics based approach, but would probably support a more balanced
approach to the teaching of literacy. To a certain extent this
prediction was accurate. All the teachers described phonics methods
when they were asked how they would teaching reading and spelling
to a child. However, there was a distinction between the Key
Stages, as Subject Two, who teaches Key Stage One supported the
phonics approach extensively, whereas the Key Stage Two teachers
also referred to other methods. Despite this, phonics was one of
the many teaching methods that were described, along with cursive
script and contextual and grammatical cues, so therefore to a
certain extent my hypothesis regarding this research question was
supported.
My final hypothesis with regard to how teachers feel about the
National Literacy Strategy was supported by some of the teachers
but not others. Subject One, as I predicted, felt that the strategy
framework was too rigid. However, although both Subject Two and
Subject Three had some reservations regarding the framework, they
did not describe it as being too rigid. One possible explanation
for this could be that Subject One has been teaching for nineteen
years, and has therefore experienced literacy teaching prior to the
introduction of the strategy. Subjects Two and Three have only been
teaching since the introduction of the strategy, and therefore have
not experienced any other kind of teaching framework. This would
explain why Subject One described the framework as rigid and the
others did not.
Looking back on the previous research that has been carried out
with regard to the phonics and whole language debate, it is not
really possible for me to draw any conclusions based on my
research. One of the main problems with doing this is that although
there has been extensive research into the phonics and whole
language debate, teachers opinions regarding this have not been
explored. However, the analysis of the National Literacy Strategy
has shown close links to the whole language debate through the
Reading Searchlights Model.
Whole language is a term given to instructional curriculum that
builds on the view that readers and writers integrate all available
information in authentic literacy events as they make sense of
print. (Goodman, K 1993:108)
Goodmans definition of whole language literacy teaching, stating
that readers integrate all information available to them, ties in
with the reading searchlights model, as pupils are expected to
employ a range of four different techniques in order to read a text
successfully.
Definitions of the phonics based approach to teaching literacy
that were discussed in the background research are also backed up
by the National Literacy Strategy definitions of effective literacy
teaching. A good example of this comes from Dombey (1999) who
states that in order to read fluently, children need a firm grasp
of the patterns of grapheme/phoneme correspondences (Reading,
Vol.33 No2, July 1999)
This view of literacy teaching is represented in the National
Literacy Strategy Framework for Teaching which recommends that the
systematic teaching of phonics should occur at Key Stage One.
Although my research has provided me with an insight into how
teachers feel about the phonics versus whole language debate, and
the way that the National Literacy Strategy promotes the teaching
of phonics, it cannot be said that my findings are representative
of teachers opinions. Although I have tried to get a representative
a sample as is possible for a small research project, my findings
are by no means conclusive. However, the arguments that they have
raised with regard to the restrictive nature of the strategy and
the way that it is comprised are important nonetheless. It appears
that teachers feel that the strategy could be improved and that
certain elements do not work well in their classrooms. If a more
representative study was conducted with a much larger sample and
the findings were replicated, these results would have important
educational implications.
Although my research was specifically concerned with the phonics
and whole language debate in literacy lessons, I also discovered
that one of the teachers was critical of the way that the actual
literacy hour was structured into whole class, group and individual
work. This information could also lead to a different study to see
whether separating the lessons in this way is useful for literacy
instruction. References.
Steirer, M & Maybin, J (1993) Language, Literacy and
Learning in Educational Practice. Multilingual Matters Limited.
Goodman, K (1993) Phonics Phacts: A common-sense look at the most
controversial issue affecting todays classrooms. Heinemann
Publishing.
Dombey, H. Towards A Balanced Approach to Phonics Teaching.
Reading Vol. 33No.2 July 1999.
Johnston, R.S & Watson, J. Developing Reading, Spelling and
Phonemic Awareness Skills in Primary School Children. Reading
Vol.31 No.2 July 1997.
Snow (1998) What Needs to be in Place in order for the Teaching
of Phonics to be Effective. Reading Vol. 33 No2 July 1999.
Lingard, T. Making Phonics Work: its role within Literacy
Acceleration. Reading Vol.31, No3 November 1997.
Bertleson, P (1986) The Onset of Literacy: Cognitive Processes
in Literacy Acquisition. Elsevier Science Publishers:
Amsterdam.
Goodman, K (1986) Whats Whole about Whole Language? Heinemann
Educational Books.
Perfetti, C (1985) quoted in Steirer, M & Maybin, J (1993)
Language, Literacy and Learning in Educational Practice.
Multilingual Matters LimitedChall, J (1967) quoted in Steirer, M
& Maybin, J (1993) Language, Literacy and Learning in
Educational Practice. Multilingual Matters Limited.Kline, C (1992)
quoted in Goodman, K (1993) Phonics Phacts: A common-sense look at
the most controversial issue affecting todays classrooms. Heinemann
Educational Publishing.
Goodman, K (1965) quoted in Goodman, K (1993) Phonics Phacts: A
common-sense look at the most controversial issue in todays
classrooms. Heinemann Educational Publishing.
Frith (1985) quoted in Dombey, H Towards a balanced approach to
phonics teaching Reading Vol.33 No.2 July 1999.
Bradley & Bryant (1986) quoted in Johnson, R.S and Watson, J
Developing Reading, Spelling and Phonemic Awareness Skills in
Primary School Children. Reading Vol.31 No2 July 1997.
Goswami (1994) quoted in Johnson, R.S and Watson, J Developing
reading, Spelling and Phonemic Awareness Skills in Primary School
Children. Reading Vol. 31 No2 July 1997.
Content, Kolinsky, Morais and Bertleson (1986) quoted in
Johnson, R.S and Watson, J Developing Reading, Spelling and
Phonemic Awareness in Primary School Children. Reading Vol.31 No2
July 1997.
Just and Carpenter (1987) quoted in Lingard, T Making Phonics
Work; its role within literacy acceleration. Reading Vol. 31 No3
November 1997.
Hughes (1981) quoted in Lingard, T Making Phonics Work: its role
within literacy acceleration. Reading Vol.31 No3 November 1997.
Smith (1978) quoted in Lingard, T Making Phonics Work: its role
within literacy acceleration. Reading Vol.31 No3 November 1997.
Lawrence (1988) quoted in Lingard, T Making Phonics Work: its
role within literacy acceleration. Reading Vol.31 No3 November
1997.
The National Literacy Strategy Framework for Teaching. (2001)
Department for Education and Skills.
The National Literacy Strategy Phonics (with CD Rom) Progression
in phonics: materials for whole class teaching. (1999/2000)
Department for Education and Employment: London. Appendix 1
Research Questions
Primary Questions.
1. How do you feel about the way that the National Literacy
Strategy promotes the teaching of reading and spelling?
2. If any, what changes would you make to the methods used if
you were able to do so?
3. Describe how you would like to teach a child reading and
writing, using your preferred methods.
4. How do you feel about the phonics games that the National
Literacy Strategy provides for whole class teaching?
5. Do you use them in your classroom?
6. If so, are they a useful resource?
7. When teaching reading and writing, do you use phonics
materials regularly?
8. If so, why, if not, why not?
Secondary Questions.
1. How long have you been teaching?
2. What was your specialist subject whilst studying at
university?
3. What Key Stage do you teach?
4. Do you think that the National Literacy Strategy has improved
the teaching of literacy in British schools?
Appendix 2
Interview 1.
1. How long have you been teaching?
19 years.
2. What was your specialist subject whilst studying at
university?
I did a degree in law at university, but decided I wanted to
teach. When I was doing my PGCE I focussed on Maths and
Language.
3. What Key Stage do you teaching?
I mainly teach Key Stage Two, but Im doing supply teaching at
the moment and do some Key Stage One as well. I was teaching year
one today.
4. Do you think that the National Literacy Strategy has improved
the teaching of literacy in British Schools?
Its too rigid. Its not too bad now theyve revised it, but when
it first came out it wasnt very popular! I think it also depends on
the teacher. If youve got a good teacher then you wont see much of
an improvement.
I also dont think it takes individual kids into account. I mean,
every pupil in your class will learn differently, and different
methods will work for them, not necessarily the way that the
literacy hour tells you how to teach them.
5. How do you feel about the way that the literacy hour promotes
the teaching of reading and spelling?
It breaks it down too much. I dont like the whole word level,
sentence level and text level distinction. I dont think it works
too well for Key Stage Two especially.
6. If any, what changes would you make to the methods used if
you were able to do so?
As I said, Id probably get rid of the whole word, sentence and
text distinction. But thats really from my point of view!
7. Describe how you would like to teach a child reading and
writing using your preferred methods.
Sometimes with spellings, Id break the word down and get the
child to sound it out. It depends on the individual child though.
Some children learn well through cursive script method, which is
what I was taught when I was doing my training. Theyre bringing
that back into the literacy lessons now, so its kind of gone full
circle and Im using the old techniques again. Maybe Ive been
teaching too long!
I mean, as a teacher, you need to be able to have a variety of
techniques that you can try out to see which suits each individual
child. You also have to be able to have the time to get to know
them to find out what suits them.
8. How do you feel about the phonics games that the NLS provides
for whole class teaching?
Key Stage Two pupils are a bit old for phonics games. I have
used them in Key Stage One, or variations of them that I have made
up myself.
I use the fans in my Key Stage One classes, with the different
phonemes on each one. They can be useful sometimes, but you have to
use lots of different methods. Cursive script, again, is something
I use a lot. Flashcards of words from stories work quite well as
well.
9. When teaching, do you use phonics materials regularly?
In Key Stage Two, not really. Theyve gone past that stage by
then. But when were doing new words from the vocabulary list at Key
Stage Two, sometimes it helps to sound out the new words to learn
how to spell them. In Key Stage One, as I said, I use fans and
flashcards.
10. Does using phonic methods work for you and your class
then?
Yes, sometimes. Its important to get a balance though, cos
phonics dont work for every child all the time.
I was teaching the literacy hour today, and compounds were a
problem. Some kids were writing football as two separate words, as
in foot ball. So, sometimes breaking up words can confuse them.
But, using phonics can be good for kids with special needs, like
dyslexia.
11. Have you ever had any dyslexic children in your class?
Yes
12. And do you think using phonics has helped them with their
reading and spelling?
Yes, I think so, yes. Appendix 3
Interview 2. 1. How long have you been teaching?
Ive only been teaching for two years. Im fairly new to the game
really.
2. What was your specialist subject whilst studying at
university?
At uni I did English Language.
3. What Key Stage do you teach?
At the moment Im with Key Stage One.
4. Do you think that the National Literacy Strategy has improved
the teaching of literacy in British schools?
Improved is a bit harsh I would say. Really I think that with it
only being implemented in 1997 its still at an early stage and
perhaps within the next few years youd maybe more inclined to see
an improvement. If there was one!
5. How do you feel about the way that the literacy strategy
promotes the teaching of reading and spelling?
I think giving such an emphasis on phonics within the first Key
Stage, I think thats an important thing, in the fact that it gives
the children a basic skill to base all their reading and all their
spelling within future years.
6. If any, what changes would you make to the methods used if
you were able to do so?
Id perhaps place a larger emphasis on cursive really, as I feel
that its important for, not only for dyslexics or anyone with
special needs as it helps keep their thoughts on the page, but I
think it helps them within their handwriting skills in general, and
also the flowing nature helps spelling definitely. Well, thats what
Ive found within my classroom. Any other changes I suppose, I do
rely heavily on my parent-assistants and people who generally help
me within the class. They tend to do most of my individual reading
with the children as Ive got too much to do within the classroom,
whole group teaching and to set up my individual and my group
tasks, and maybe sometimes I feel very pressured by the time
constraints of the literacy hour there. Other than that, I think it
works fairly alright as it is having the sentence, text and word
level is helpful.
7. How do you feel about the different sections of the literacy
hour, for example whole class, individual and group teaching?
I think just giving the initial introduction to the lesson as a
whole group is sometimes too little, as the children do tend to
need the support of the whole group, and not only that, but its
time for them all to be together and me to teach them all at the
same level, and I find myself repeating that many times, like a
stuck tape recorder, the same things over and over again, and I
think the initial ten minutes is not enough sometimes for the whole
group.
8. Describe how you would like to teach a child reading and
spelling using your preferred methods.
As I said before, definitely cursive script, erm, giving the
joining hands, splits not only the letters but it enables it easier
to be blended as a pair, when your giving the phonemic awareness
and the phonic aspect to reading and writing. It definitely helps
to have your phonics and your phonemes there, as English is quite
difficult to learn really.
9. How do you feel about the phonics games that the NLS provides
for whole class teaching?
Personally, I think they are absolutely great. The children love
the interactive side of them. Generally they tend to be quite
multi-sensory as they are getting them to move about, and theyre
listening to the sounds and there is a big emphasis when you are
physically teaching them to say to the children listen, or lets
look at this together, so it helps from a whole point of view.
10. So you use them quite regularly in your classroom then?
Definitely. Yeah, with most of the whole class teaching
areas.
11. Do you think theyre a useful resource?
Yes, as they include everybody. Theyre not specific to the level
theyre at. Some children who are very advanced may find them
boring, but at Key Stage One they are all basic skills that need to
be learned.
12. When youre teaching reading and spelling do you use phonics
materials regularly?
Yes, within the classroom theres plenty of phonics stimuli
about. I tend to rely on the letter line really in the classroom
rather than the fan. I find a fan too fiddly when Im actually
standing teaching. The letter line is basically a washing line in
the classroom that is constantly there and its something that the
children can always refer back to, or if Im teaching an individual
child Ill take them back to the letter line, you know, to aid their
memory that way, and they can easily be moved about when teaching.
Appendix 4
Interview 3.
1. How long have you been teaching?
About five and a half years.
2. What was your specialist subject whilst studying at
University?
It was a BA Hons in Primary Education with ICT as a subject
specialism.
3. What Key Stage do you teach?
Key Stage Two - years 3 and 4.
4. Do you think that the National Literacy Strategy has improved
the teaching of literacy in British schools?
Id say definitely, but at the expense of other subjects. Across
the curriculum its the big point that Ofsted are pushing with
literacy and numeracy and theres a lot of teachers, a lot of my
colleagues feel that theres too much of an emphasis on the literacy
and numeracy rather than other subjects across the curriculum.
5. How do you feel about the way that the literacy hour promotes
the teaching of reading and spelling?
I think the shared reading and writing with the whole text with
the whole class is good. I think that theres a lot more that can be
done at home, a lot of things that can be done with shared reading
with parents. Bedtime stories, that kind of thing. A lot can be
done there that can make everything throughout the school years a
lot easier if theyd got that behind them up until the age of four
when they start.
I think theres a lot of good ideas behind the word and sentence
level stuff, text level, the whole class reading, thats a good
thing, but I think theres too much of a borderline, or a
distinction between the two. Theres a lot of stuff that could be
done as a whole, which is basically what the English Language is,
its one whole thing, and breaking stuff down into phonics, text
level, at the end of the day all those things can be applied to a
whole text situation, meaningful sentences in a meaningful context.
So, theres a lot to be done on a more general scale, and using
those tools to build those up.
6. If any, what changes would you make to the methods used if
you were able to do so?
More choice in individual reading. I think a lot of the reading
schemes pitch work at a level for the individual child, and also
there are a lot of words that focus on high use words, that are
reinforced within the reading schemes. I think there could be a lot
more, not so much pushing, but steering the children towards making
their own decisions and choosing the books, the stories, the texts
that they want to read, as their own reading. Again, things that
they can do at home, and theres a lot of emphasis, not emphasis,
but most of the libraries and reading schemes tend to be fictional,
stories, narratives, things like that, theres a lot of factual work
that they could be reading. A lot of non-fiction, reading and
writing to inform, rather than just the usual stories, which again
they should be getting quite a dose of that at home in the earlier
years.
7. Describe how you would like to teach a child reading and
writing, using your preferred methods.
So, were onto phonics. Right, well Im 29 and my primary
education was under the Butler Act, before the National Curriculum.
I cant ever remember hearing the word phonics while I was at
school, or phoneme, but words were still broken down, and they
tended to be, what would now be Key Stage One, or the early years,
with general sort of writing the odd sentence and spelling.
So, I think all thats valuable, but what I dont like is the big
push into phonics, almost as its own subject within the curriculum.
In my opinion, phonics is just another small part of the whole
English Language, its just a tiny little tool, a bit of
understanding you need to understand how a word is made up, but I
think on its own its useless. For example, words like there and
their, as in over there and their car its exactly the same word, it
sounds the same, but its spelt differently, and has got a totally
different meaning. Youre not going to get any sort of understanding
of how to use those words unless theyre in a context, which is
where the whole reading and writing comes in.
So, again, I think the big emphasis on phonics as almost a
subject within itself is a point that depends on a lot of things.
Youve got the ability of the child, what words theyve been exposed
to and are used to using before, how much reading, writing, stories
theyve been read, things like that at home, their own reading and
writing abilities, spelling level, then youve got the learning
difficulties, dyslexia, things like that. Theres a hell of a lot of
factors other than phonemes that affect how the childs going to be
as a reader, writer, speaker, at the end of the primary years.
There are grammatical cues to consider, contextual cues, and I
think that kind of thing can only be understood by just playing
around with words and reading. I mean, Ive tried a number of
techniques to get them to understand better by deliberately putting
contextually wrong words into sentences that might be related to
the way theyre spelt and the meanings, but again, a lot of that
depends on the child. I think aiming for a general fluidity with
these variety of techniques to get the overall goal of good
speakers, readers and writers, by the end of the primary years is a
target that needs to be addressed.
8. How do you feel about the phonics games that the National
Literacy Strategy provides for whole class teaching?
Right, I think theyre great. Again, what Ive said before, with
pretty much what Ive said before so far in the interview, its going
to depend on the child, and depend on the context you use it in. If
in my class of year 3 and 4 I was having to use phonics cards and
phonics games a lot then Id be questioning my own ability as a
teacher. Really I think by the age of 7,8,9 those foundations for
the understanding of a word should be well and truly in place
throughout their reading and writing. As regards to ability groups,
the sort of phonics factors and games from the National Literacy
Strategy, Id probably use those as an on-hand resource for the
ability groups that needed to use them, so if they got stuck on a
particular word and its spelling, if they wanted to use that in a
piece of creative writing and were struggling to spell it, they
could investigate it themselves, and pull the word to bits and
perhaps discuss it as groups on the table to try and pull it to
bits and sort it out themselves to an extent because I think theyre
going to learn a lot more by playing around with the vocabulary,
the words, the letters themselves than just being told all the
time. But, as Ive said, that if by the age of 8 or 9 theyre not
quite competent to read or write themselves, then theres something
seriously wrong with the teaching thats gone before.
I think the whole phonics thing should be used as just a big
emphasis on it being just used as a tool to get certain points
across, I dont think its got any place as a subject area in itself.
Basically I think all that sort of stuff should be taken care of
and addressed and hammered home in the really early years. That
really should start before school, with the reading that they do
with parents and things, carried on throughout Key Stage One, so
that by Key Stage Two, theyre already well on their way to being
competent readers and writers and also speakers. Appendix 5.
Appendix 6.
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