The Teaching of Reading: What can parents do???

[Catflap]

Hi there to all who have followed my phonics ramblings on many a thread, and indeed to those who haven't but are interested in this thread title!

I have commented a lot on the state of poor reading teaching in schools and described the effective method of synthetic phonics which is beng taught in a few schools but largely ignored by the educational establishment.

It has been fascinating reading the comments and observations that everyone as parents has on their children's reading - it amazing how many of you pick up on things that the teaching profession are not accepting. I have always found parents to be a preceptive lot. However, what is also sad in this case is how many of you put your trust and support in your children's teachers - which I wholey support because we are losing that fast - but in this case it is sadly misplaced.

The Reading Debate is discussed quite widely online now and has made its appearance in the news recently. You can do a search for 'synthetic phonics' and it will present you with plenty to read, but a thorough site for discussing the issues and providing you with information is the Reading Reform Foundation website

The thing is, lots of you are recognising the issues and are understanding the sort of methods that I describe and see that it makes sense. But what do you do??

I thought I would just post with a few suggestions, as it would seem pertinent after all my advices to offer some pointers for more positive action! Thing is, it's not that rosy an outlook, all the while the Government continue to rrefuse to accept that there might just be something in this synthetic phonics lark and teachers are driven by pressure from above...

However, should you believe that there is something in it and feel it could help your child, I would personally suggest that you have the following options open to you:

1. Do nothing. The chances are that your child will eventually struggle through like many thousands have in the past and will read successfully, or in some fashion, or will struggle and be offered some sort of remedial help eventually.

2. Teach them yourself. Get your hands on some resources and information and provide your child with the skills and knowlegde they need. This is of course is labour intensive, has some financial implications and could be seen as not your job...

3. Find a reading tutor that practices the same philosophies. This could be hard as there are few scattered around, but by posting on the messageboard of the above RRF site, I'm sure you will find someone who could help. (I myself am planning to get into that at some point, but not whilst dd is still so small and more are planned!)

4. Hound the teacher and then the school. Equip yourself with all the necessary facts and information and maybe get a team of parents and ask questions and get answers. Maybe even contact your LEA.

Meanwhile, online tuition will continue to be available whilst I am still managing to access this board!

Hope this helps give a bit more direction and a conclusion to previous discussions.

God think some of you need to go back to Fing school.

I NEVER (shall I find teh definition of that word for you???) said anything to contradict your "most wise" statement frogs. I NEVER said the mixed teaching was "better", or that phonetic teaching wasn't the best - I purely said that those teachers who don't use pure "synthetic phonics" aren't doing a "dis-service" to their pupils - unless they're simply cr*p teachers - in which case they could give the kids one-to-JP all day, and probably fail.

And of course why would anyone believe you frogs?

Who knows so little about linguistics that you are in constant demand as one of the leading expert witnesses in this field

Q0fQ - I don't understand what your problem is - but at the end of the day it is your problem and not mine - thankfully!

So what is the problem QoQ? I don't understand why you are so upset?

because -

a) I posted something (which on another thread, was quickly 'hijacked' by the JP brigade) which was then ripped to shreds.

b) Because no-one is reading my bloody posts - then I get an occasionaly "oh I misread it" - well yes that's what happens if you don't READ properly and people f*cking accusing of me of saying things I've never bloody well said.

c) because everyone has to jump on the "X poster is perfect and anything anyone else says is complete cr*p" (even when they haven't bothered to read the posts properly anyhow).

ven't seen your other thread - can you do a link please????

no point - just says the same cr*p I posted at 4.58 yesterday

QoQ
a) Your post was not "ripped to shreds" - in fact there were several people telling you how helpful they found it. There were a couple of people adding to the thread with other advice on the topic - that is the purpose of Mumsnet. You had been worried, you found a solution and you shared advice - others did the same.

b)Most of your posts on this thread have been rants, so it is difficult to identify the point that you are actually making? If I think that I understand it, it is that you do not think that synthetic phonics is the only route for learning to read? I think people would agree, but the discussion is around which methods are the most effective.

c)Not sure I can comment. Some people are sharing their experience of advice that other Mners have given. In the same way that others found your list helpful. Bearing in mind you have only posted it in the last day or two, I suspect that you won't find loads of MNers saying that this was the crucial advice that made the difference to their slow reader yet - but hang on for a couple of months, and perhaps it will be!

You mean this one ???????

Can't be??????

Only one person mentioned synthetic phonetic and very nicelt at that - the other posts are all positive????

Is there another one???

look at the time of the posts - they were only posted this evening.

I think you'll find (if you bothered to read my earlier posts in this thread) that I posted no differently to my 'normal' style of posting on them - only later did I start "ranting" - after I'd been deliberatel targetted in people's 'defence' of synthetic phonics.

Nobody has 'ripped you to shreds' - equally nobody has sworn at you, suggested you 'go back to fucking school' or anything else. In fact 'people' have been quietly perplexed. And still are. You seem to have taken this extremely personally and I have absolutely no idea why.

almost as soon I posted my first post people starting picking bits out and criticising the methods we've been advised to do - with absolutely no knowledge of teh school, the backgrounds the children generally come from (ie how much reading they may have done "pre" school) - infact anything which the 'experts' said was wrong and a dis-service to the children - was 'backed up' by everyone else

(I always understood science to be one of those amazing things where "conclusive studies", quite often are only conclusive until another major study comes out with different results)

But that's still not attacking you - that is merely pointing out where the methods of the school may be less effective than they could be. That's hardly ripping you to shreds, is it?
I'm not 'backing up' catflap et al because I've joined some mad cult! I think she happens to be right! And the research is taking children who are taught in different ways and looking at how well they read.

Ok, looking at what you have said
"EVERY child that has left this school in 'recent history' has been able to read AT LEAST to the level 'expected' at the end of y2, and many exceed it. "

I understand that your ds1 goes to St Barnabus?

Whilst the majority of the children there have done very well at ready, and overall the standard is above National Level, the SATs results would indicate that NOT every child in recent history left there able to read. Looking at the results for 2001-3 (which are on the school website), somewhere between 5 and 10% of children each year were below the expected standard for reading. In fact the "plan" or possibly expectation for 2005 would that this would continue to be 10%.

Perhaps it might help you, if you were to consider how you might feel if ds1 was one of the 6 children in reception to be at a lower then expected standard. (And no I am not wishing this on you - my ds also goes to a high-performing school which uses mixed methods) Because for some of the mums here, that is what has happened to them. Yes their children went to good schools, but their children just didn't manage to pick up reading.

For my part, I will certainly be watching ds1's progress with interest, but I am very much open to helping him at home with another method if this looks as if it will become necessary.

I do have slight hesitations about this "pure synthetic phonics" business ... certainly as far as parents (rather than teachers) are concerned.

Parents can easily and quickly become paranoid and worried about children's reading, and that can be VERY damaging to the learning process. IMO many many children do memorise the stories, do guess the words, do use clues from the pictures (especially if - like many schools - they use ORT books or similar) ... and there's nothing wrong with this, nothing dangerous - it's a natural process. I just worry that parents will read some of Catflap's posts and start covering up the pictures, and getting agitated when a child guess a word, instead of decoding it phonetically. I know that's not what Catflap is advocating, but I can imagine it happening.

In an ideal world yes, I agree, all schools should be teaching synthetic phonics. But at home I think the primary focus should be on enjoying sharing books together, not stressing, and having fun together ... in fact precisely those helpful comments that QoQ posted on the other thread.

I listened to readers at primary school for several hours a week for 3 hours, and the children I had to "work hardest" with were the ones with low self esteem because their parents were clearly stressing about their reading performance, writing negative comments in their books, and clearly making negative comments to the children.

Roisin - might have guessed that it was the parents fault that their children were failing at reading

Agree it is good not to stress out about it. Our school emphasises that this is not a race through the reading scheme.

Still not sure how I''ll feel when Ds1 stays on this level, and the others progress though, but alas his father and I were both high-achievers at school, so currently I have no idea how I'll handle the ds's being different. Still, it's only one more challenge of parenting - I'm sure we'll cope!

I am hoping and praying that the school will do its stuff with him - he can be as stubborn as a mule at home, and certainly won't let me "teach" him anything. Certainly his "please" and "thank you"s seem to be more regular after a couple of weeks of school!

That group of children with low self esteem (relating specifically to reading) actually had very varied reading abilities. But they were in danger of not progressing with their reading because they were losing confidence, and were not seeing reading as a pleasure.

"I just worry that parents will read some of Catflap's posts and start covering up the pictures, and getting agitated when a child guess a word, instead of decoding it phonetically. I know that's not what Catflap is advocating, but I can imagine it happening. "

You know what - I'd never read any of Catflaps' posts before - but before we got that sheet to help us at home that is almost exactly what was happening to me when I was reading with DS1. I was "expecting" him to be able to decode the words, instead of just enjoying reading, pointing at the words as he said them etc etc.

Since Wednesday we've had 2 lovely sessions of sitting down and looking at his book, because I wasn't getting agitated with him.

That's great that you've had two lovely sessions with him QoQ
I hope he continues to enjoy sharing his books with you.

Roisin - I knew what you were saying hence the wink!!!

I did reading with my Ds's class too each week and tbh I didn't really see any of that kind of issues despite teh type of school it is IYKWIM.

It is wonderful to read with them though - isn't it

I miss it actually. I loved listening to readers in school, and watching children progress from being non-readers to being fluent, confident readers.

I still listen to dss read, and read to them, but they can both pretty much read anything now, so it's not so exciting somehow.

I do sincerely hope parents won't be doing this - a child can only perform as well as they have been taught and parents need to be supportive and encouraging, that is right.

Basically, I believe that teachers should do the teaching and parents should share the progress and success with children by enjoying books with them and praising their abiltiites. That's all. I never minded if parents never 'heard' their chidlren read as a matter of course each evening, or week or whatever. It was my job to teach, their job to sit back and go 'wow, I can't believe they just read that road sign!!'

However, where a child is struggling and it seems the school is not meeting their needs, then I would encourage parents who wish to to engage in home tuition using such resources as JP.

There is a new government drive to go back to learning through play and not so much emphasis on performance, Educators will understand this when talking about really young children, couldn't be arsed to read all of this thread but please, just chill out!!!! If you and your family are literate you will raise a literate child, stop blaming the teachers and just enjoy teaching your little one how much fun it is to pretend to read and write, they will pick it up!

Agree with you,roisin, my 8 year old dd (with a reading age of 13) can read everything to herself now but still enjoys being read to sometimes as well - I think its because dh and I put on silly voices for the characters. Also some of the old-fashioned words in books like Black Beauty need explaining. When dd does read a book herself she then likes to precis it for us so in that way we still remain completely involved with what she is reading.