It is, but the parents just get frustrated and give up because teaching a kid to read is hard. My nephew is in his 20s and it’s atrocious to read his texts. My sister studied English, but didn’t have patience for him to learn to read properly.
absolutely. my mom taught me to read english and she was an legal immigrant with very little money.. school is important but learning at home is important too. Especially considering she could not afford to send me to pre-k which she still regrets to this day due to early childhood development.
As a mother of 3 children, I started teaching them how to read once they turned 2 years old, early stimulation, started reading to them once they turned 18 months old and teaching them the alphabet with games, reading was our entertainment every day, no excuses, got their library cards at 4 years old, would take them to the library every week to get their favorite books they wanted to read, everyone read, read and read. We all got our books together as a family, made it look to my kids as a fun activity to do. They all started reading at 3 years of age, my 2 older boys were both reading at a 6th grade level when they started 1st grade, they were reading chapter books and their teachers were amazed to find out my children could read so well. I'm a trained and licensed Mexican clinical psychologist, and also always loved reading, at 62 I still read 2-3 books a week. All you need to do is install in your children a love for reading, for learning at a very young age, read together as a family, it takes patience and practice, but it is possible. Teachers can't do it all, it's our job as parents to start teaching our children to read. My 3 grown up children are now all successful college graduates, and they still enjoy reading books, the old fashion way. ❤ 9:57
Reading to the kids is great. It really works wonders. My boy started fluently reading at 4. We work with our 18 month old the same as we did him. Books all the time, very little tv and lots of talking about everything
If you only knew why schools don’t teach the basics…there are a variety of reasons. Ultimately, it’s not the teachers choice what they teach. That comes from the school board and the administration at the school. I mean, the woman in this video said something SUPER IMPORTANT: she hid that she was teaching phonics. She taught phonics on the down low because it wasn’t supported by her bosses. It’s sad.
Im wondering how long ago phonics was taken out of lesson plans? I’m a teenager in high school and when I was in elementary we still learned with phonics and there were quite a few gifted kids in harder classes, including me. Do these gifted classes even exist anymore? It doesn’t seem like it
Because phonics really doesn’t help you with an orthographic system as complex as English. English not only has digraphs (which aren’t the end of the world), it has whatever is going on in through, though, and tough, and cough. Those last two, despite having the same -ough, have different vowels represented by the same letter. If you try to wade through English with phonics, you’re going to drown.
Well, the problem that you try to solve with phonics is that the outdated English spelling is so inconsistent. If English would be written as it is spoken, it would not be unnecessarily difficult!
As a speech pathologist, we learned phonics/phonemic awareness to help kids read. I WISH EVERY school in the country would continue to do this! Screw site words
As a Special Ed teacher with a master's degree in Special Ed, it absolutely infuriates me that anyone thinks phonics is the key to reading for every single student, including students with specific learning disabilities like dyslexia. I have read studies that confirm sight words are the key to students with dyslexia learning how to read, that they will never learn reading through phonics the way their neurotypical peers will. You work in the field of Special Education. You should have read the same studies I did. Sad.
@@ToastbackWhale a great example right in your response, the words tough and though, only one beginning consonant letter difference but somehow the vowel sound created by the middle and ending letters, "ough" changes from /uf/ to /ō/ (long vowel sound for "o". Then try adding a "t" to the end of "though" and it becomes "thought" with the vowel sound in the middle being /ô/ or /o/ (short vowel sound for "o". I watched an hour and a half long video the other day of a reading specialist from Michigan (video was maybe 4 years old I think) wherein she said the English language is 85-90% phonetic. If your definition of phonetic is one letter corresponds to one sound, almost none of our language is phonetic. Even most consonants can and do make more than one sound, because modern (American) English started as a Germanic language, then was influenced by Latin, Greek, Spanish, French, Portuguese, and Nordic languages over time. Again, I don't think phonics is useless. I believe each student should be exposed to phonics rules and have a fair amount of practice with phonics/ blending skills across multiple elementary grade levels. But if they have an identifiable processing disability like dyslexia and they aren't getting phonics and blending to the same extent as their same age same grade level peers by the end of elementary and into middle school, I believe (and this is supported by research) that continuing to drill them on phonics skills is only going to get them so far. Sight words are the key for students with dyslexia, especially when they've hit a wall with building phonics skills. Doesn't matter how many times you ask a paraplegic to climb a set of stairs, if you don't give them any supports to climb those stairs, they will never be able to climb those stairs anywhere near the rate their non paraplegic peers will. We have to think of dyslexia and processing disabilities like this. To not do so can be emotionally and psychologically harmful to our students.
Parents if you want your child to read well, read aloud to them early! There are kids with severe dyslexia but most just "bloom" late. It is important that they don't feel "dumb" because it takes longer. Anyone can learn to read, even dyslexics. We used Garfield comics to practice reading with my boys and read aloud all the time. They improved immensely and all of them can read on their own now.
@@MedicalAutonomyProjectI'm an advocate for children who can't read. This is the very same thing I have been saying to my few critics. Blind can't lead the blind.
Yes. Dyslexic’s can read but many wont read with typical curriculums or learn at school. My severely dyslexic daughter would make it to 18 not reading if I left it to the school. She had to have an evidenced based reading program, (Barton) and in two years has moved up from kinder level to beginning 4th grade. It will take me 2-3 years of tutoring her before school 5 days a week and she will be reading at 9th grade level. Its not an easy path, but with dedication its doable.
I am a kindergarten teacher in Japan. Phonics is a program we have besides Reading and it works well. It definitely helps with the building steps of reading along with memorizing sight words. Parents should install phonics apps into their phones or tablets and children can play and learn at the same time through those apps.
I also taught in Japan and feel the same. I wrote a much longer comment talking about just a few issues I have with US schools as well, since I've taught in both places.
@@SmartJandirayou gotta look into it…. There are people that think it’s useless…. Also, I believe the main thing is that some researcher or something thought that it was better to use “sight words” as in memorizing words by how they’re “shaped” ….. please look up “Sight Words VS Phonics” it’s a whole thing and people are still debating it to this day but a lot are now seeing that English language NEEDS phonics….
I’m so glad to hear many states and districts are reimplementing teaching reading with phonics. It made me so mad and still makes me mad that schools ever stopped using phonics in the first place. I was in kindergarten, 1st grade, and second grade in a strong school district in Wisconsin from 1997-2000, and phonics is how we were taught to read, and it worked. I’m now a high school English teacher, and I remember back in 2016 during my 3rd year teaching, I was babysitting a friend from church’s children. Before putting them to bed, we read a book together, and her kindergartener pointed at a word she knew and read it, so proud of herself. 🥰 I told her that was so good, and she told me she knew it because it was one of her sight words. Since she did so well with that word, I asked her what some other words on the page were. When she said she didn’t know, I told her that was okay and to sound them out and that I would help her, and she really struggled to sound them out, which wasn’t a huge deal to me considering she was just in kindergarten, although I did find it a little odd. I talked to a friend, also an educator, about this afterwards, who told me they didn’t teach phonics anymore, and that that made sense that this little girl couldn’t sound out words because she had never been taught how to. I was shocked and pretty outraged. She told me that our high school students at the time also hadn’t been taught phonics in elementary school, and suddenly, my 11th graders’ difficulties with reading made a lot more sense. In my opinion, teaching a child to read with sight words and the other technique mentioned in this video where children use pictures to guess words will only get them so far. It’s giving them tools for early elementary school, not tools for life-long reading. I believe phonics provides children with the tools to sound out most words they’ll encounter, thus setting them up better for reading for life. It really makes me think of the popular saying- “Give a man a fish, feed him for a day. Teach a man how to fish, feed him for a lifetime.” Sight words and guessing words is like giving them a fish that will feed them for a day. Phonics is teaching them how to fish, how to read, which will benefit them for their lives.
Exactly that is so wild that they are/were just teaching reading by sight. I don’t have school age children so I didn’t even know this was how things were being done.
THEY DONT TEACH THEM PHONICS?! I was just working with a 14 year old student than cannot read and write. Well its at like a preschool level, maybe less. I always teach my students to sound out words. However, I am a health teacher so this only happens when most of my students are absent and I can give them one on one attention. This is insane. Sight words is just teaching to memorize the word. This is crazy. No wonder no one can read.
Yes! I listened to a piece on NPR about this and couldn't believe it! The fact that curriculums changed on the advice of a few people vs hundreds of years of education is so concerning to me. They are finally changing it back, but I shudder to think of all the children that are struggling and just getting passed on to the next grade year after year. I taught my niece sight words and phonics. She left Kindergarten reading at a second grade level. Every child should be given that foundation in school. 💔
well this makes a lot of my experiences as a college professor at a community college make waaaaay more sense. I knew a lot of the issues we saw in our remedial classes stemmed from environmental reasons (meaning unsupportive parents, for whatever their reason might be, some intentional, most being busy due to working 3 jobs and/or having a lingering disdain of education from their own school memories) and we knew that there were a few under performing schools in our area because of budget issues and thus students being unable to access the help they needed to succeed. We also knew that at that time the no child left behind act was shoving unprepared students out the door and into our halls which happily accepted them because they were just another US Department of Education loan paycheck and it didn't matter to the administration that these kids were blowing their one shot at an education that they weren't interested in to begin with but had come because they were told that was what was next (no conversation about trade schools, no conversation about gap years, little assistance other than some remedial classes and an overworked tutoring center). But i never thought that the schools had stopped doing the phonics lessons that were used when i was in school in the 80s. Seeing these kids having to come up with the word Cookie while looking at a picture suddenly makes so much of my experiences teaching make even more sense. We really have failed these kids.
My child was the whole language experiment. No phonics in grade school. It's criminal the time these kids spend in school to be cheated of an education.
That's what happened to me. I had undiagnosed autism and other learning-disabilities. I was lucky that I was naturally good at reading but nothing else. I'm 21 now and still can't do any math beyond basic addition and subtraction. I was pushed along through school despite getting all F's past the third grade. In high school, when I wasn't ready for graduation, instead of helping me meet the requirements, they waived them. I'm now in community college and am almost done with my Psych AA other than the fact that I cannot pass Statistics. My math level is around 2nd grade. Teachers and counselors keep trying to tell me to just to do my best and I'll succeed. I don't think they comprehend that an adult can get to college while truly having lower elementary skills. Someone with a second grade math level cannot pass Statistics and I honestly don't know how I am going to push forward. "No child left behind" totally failed struggling students like me. Schools would have had to help us if we needed to meet certain criteria to pass through grades, but instead they were allowed to keep moving us up despite not developing. It's more tragic than ever now that we are living in an era where you typically need a degree to make even a somewhat survivable wage. No HS diploma? You're really screwed then, even most fast food chains now require it.
Parents have relied too much on school to teach their kids. My mother sat down with me and my siblings each night doing homework oftentimes while she cooked dinner. And now the public wants to blame public education and the government for deficiencies, when education was never a one-sided responsibility that can be delegated to one adult who have to supervise 25-40 other kids in the same room. I couldn't read English in 3rd grade, so my mom read to me each night so I was caught up with the reading exams each week and that I was completing the 30 minutes of required reading assignment. But if she hadn't read to me, I doubt "English" would have suddenly clicked in the 4th grade to the point to where I was actually reading at grade level despite being completely blind just a year prior. I performed very well during the No Child Left Behind era. I don't blame standardized testings. And I don't blame the educators who are just trying to catch their students up. But what I find is that the teachers can only do so much when the parents are elsewhere with other priorities. I personally can't even blame poverty since that was just the way things were. However, the topic of wealth doesn't matter as much as parents who make education a priority. 2 free-ride scholarships later, with siblings who are working on finishing up their 4-year degrees on a discount, circumstances pale in comparison to how you can define things as important. Despite poverty, renting rooms, vehicle issues, and two working parents, education was made important.
During the pandemic I witnessed how my kindergartener was being taught to read by memorizing sight words and guessing words based on pictures. I took him out and homeschooled him because i was so deeply disturbed.
👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏 Smh. The “sight word” trend does not seem like all it’s been hyped up to be. You might get somebody to watch your child on the state’s money while you go to work, but they’re not going to come back prepared to read you a list of words they’ve never seen before.
@@remnant1018funny enough i did teach my son the sight words lists, but i taught him how to read them by sounding out each letter, not by memorizing the whole word haha 😂
My daughter is on the autism spectrum and homeschooled. She learned to read by using the McGuffey Readers. These readers are from the 1800s. She is an excellent reader and speller. Maybe it's time to go back to basics.
Retired senior here. My parents were country people. They left the rural South where they attended a tiny school. As a child my mother would read to me. She bought me alphabet blocks. My father liked to read. This gave me the vision of books and reading in our household. It all clicked for me. You would think with all of the technology available these days, there would be fewer literacy problems in American schools. Maybe it's time to go back to the old fashioned basics.
Back to basics, with direct instruction and Round Robin reading circles. Get away from so much fiction, and focus on nonfiction. Make reading enjoyable and informative.
It's not so much the technology itself, it's more of how to use it effectively and efficiently. Just like using tools like hammers or jigsaws, if you weren't taught how to use it, you won't know how. And certain tools are for certain projects, just like certain forms of technology.
@lindatart I actually think fiction in necessary. Most kids don’t want to read books that are made to inform, it just doesn’t prompt the love of reading. I think schools should read fiction more. As a recent high school graduate I almost never read fiction after about 3rd grade, and when I ask my peers why they don’t read they all say it’s boring.
I really feel for these kids and, as a college English instructor mainly teaching freshman writing, I would agree this is a huge crisis. The amount of people who come into my classes barely even semi-literate is shocking. Ms. Pleasant is spot on; this needs to be dealt with super early. A number of comments here have also mentioned parents reading too and with kids and that's also crucial. Teachers can do tremendous work but it has to start at home. By the time they get to my end, it requires massive intervention, far more than I'm capable of. Also, I'm grateful for the attitude that father expressed at the end, but we need more adults thinking like that. Another major frustration for me is that, by the time a lot of students are college age, the semi-literacy has frequently crystalized into an ideology, often encouraged by parents and even some teachers, basically justifying their own failures. Cannot count the number of lectures I've gotten from students about how reading is stupid, a waste of time, how you actually learn way more from playing video games and etc. We need a wide-ranging societal discussion on the importance of critical thinking, reading and literacy. But, unfortunately, I think there are a lot of people not eager for that talk. 😕
Those are some pretty ignorant students. If they can't read then they're missing out on the best video games, and mainly the ones that have any educational value; role-playing games. What they're playing is likely mindless FPS and sports games which have no end goal, no story and give no real sense of accomplishment. One cannot beat a Resident Evil games puzzles without reading all of the notes and clues. Its likely that those freshmen have parents who played fps and sports games excessively and exclusively.
@@kreativeforce532 Very true, good point! I think it's more sustained reading, for pleasure and intellectual curiosity, that they're dismissive of. But as you're pointing out, reading is central to many different activities.
It’s heartbreaking 💔 when educators have to hide the fact that they’re teaching their students and that they’re learning. School districts should be ashamed. 😡
@lindatart Same here. I'm a high school math teacher, and the methods they are using now often don't work. They have taken away our ability to pivot and try something else if the method we are using doesn't seem to be working (as any good teacher should). I just get told "research shows...." OK, what research? Where was it conducted? Sample size, etc? I'd like to see the published findings on this mysterious "research" they are relying upon. They might as well replace me with a programmable robot.
Oh it's good to come across individuals who know what they're talking about!! I'm from a small town fighting for all children who can't read and I get banned from meeting with my grandkids' teachers because I'm viewed as a trouble maker.
@@btezeno4860 If I were to ever start a school and was able to run it however I want, one of my requirements for working there would be that you were at some point labeled a "troublemaker".
As a middle school teacher who experienced children who read on a 1st and 2nd grade level, I VOWED to make sure my children knew how to read before kindergarten, if I ever had children. Now, I have a 2 year old, and he knows all of his letters, their sounds, some sight words, and what his first/last name looks like. Now I'm considering what does it look like to teach PARENTS the super simple things that can help their children do the same. I honestly think that some parents sincerely don't know where to start or what to do when it comes to early literacy. For some, it may seem obvious but for others it truly isn't that natural of a thing.
That is fantastic! If you dont mind sharing, how did you teach your child to do so? What were some resources you've utilized? I agree with you on many points.
@lageena8642 it was honestly super natural in the sense that I made educational "things" available and I named whatever he interacted with. For example, he has toys that have shapes so as he'd pick up a shape I'd say "rhombus" or "square" which then led me to adding in colors. So if the rhombus was red I'd say "ohh that's a RED rhombus". When it came to reading I'd pretty much do the same. I also made flashcards using index cards at home and a marker. For longevity, I also laminated them. So as he'd pick up letter cards or played with the letter magnets on our fridge I'd name the letter. THEN when he became familiar with them I'd give the letters a sound. So genuinely I was just pretty intentional with whatever he interacted with. And I'm not gonna lie, my son now has an iPad that we curate content for. So our favorite channels are number blocks, alpha blocks, coilbook, listener kids, and vooks. He also likes super simple songs but that's pretty much the only content we allow him to watch and that's been really cool to see him interact with on occasion. Hopefully that was helpful but it sincerely wasn't too labor intensive or rocket science, just intentional, consistent, and meaningful interactions. Blessings!!
Phonics is the key❤ I was devastated to see how the school system was teaching our youth, phonics is very important. Phonics is how I learned how to read, and I absolutely love books and reading to this very day. In my opinion these “sight words” are not working because it’s a lot of guessing and memorizing but if you take that same word away and say ok spell it the child can’t and that’s a problem, because there are millions of words that your going to need to use phonics to pronounce out because you simply can’t memorize every word out there. Also Hooked on phonics really works if you have someone or know someone struggling it’s a really great program, best of wishing to all struggling with this ❤
I think the phonics system is good, but it can be extremely frustrating. Kids are constantly told to “sound it out” when they see a word they don’t know, but that doesn’t always work. For example “bomb” “comb” and “tomb” are all pronounced different. You just need to have it memorized. It’s not like math where you can teach rules and it never changes. I was always a strong reader, in 3rd grade I read at an 8th grade level but failed every spelling test. Because I knew what the words looked like, but having to put all the letters in order myself felt impossible. Despite my elementary teacher saying I can’t be dyslexic because “I read too well to be dyslexic” I very much was and didn’t get a formal diagnosis until my junior year of college (a little late to be helpful). The only way I could pass my spelling tests was brute memorization which often resulted in me frustrated to tears. I learned for the test, but it never stuck, I’m almost 30 and still struggle with spelling many words. Spell check is my lifesaver.
@TurretBA Hi! This is something similar to what I was covering with my daughter in our phonics lesson today! I think if teaching phonics systematically and comprehensively those words are taught after teaching short "o"; long "o"; the letter "o" often says "oo" such as in to, do, shoe, and move; and of course when teaching the silent "b." Ideally, the student would have already practiced inferring and using context to figure out what sound fits with words that have fewer choices such as open and closed syllable words like "robot" and "robin." However, knowledge of words (phonics and vocabulary) would be used rather than something like a picture. Perhaps in phonics, the "rules" should not be taught as "rules." Teaching comprehensive and systematic phonics works (after phonemic awareness is established!) with the most struggling readers, but I don't know about using the term "rule" in phonics. Phonics works for reading, but spelling is tricky. I know I have a lot more to learn, but so far, I think that spelling is a lot more about exposure (or memorizing) because there are just so many options!
@@abcmoonsweeti5234 The problem is that English spelling is terrible, and is full of inconsistencies that drive you nuts. Spanish doesn't have this problem. Give any Spanish word, no matter how complicated, and anyone who knows the basics, can know how to say it.
I find it really shocking that in Europe (I'm Dutch) I learned Dutch, English and some even a third language (usually German, French or a native language to their family of origin), yet in the USA people already seem to struggle over just learning proper English. What is going on over there?
I was so sad when I talked to the principal about my daughter's struggles with reading and he responded that the "pendulum had swung" and the district was using a whole language approach instead of comprehensive and systematic phonics. My daughter was even working one-on-one with a Reading First teacher for 30 minutes every day, but it was an absolute waste of time because all that was taught was the things that came naturally to her such as using context or inferring and basically guessing by looking at the picture. Homeschooling wasn't very popular at that time, but I knew I had to figure it out on my own. I am absolutely thrilled to hear that phonics is gaining popularity again.
Step number one.. dump those iPads and devices. Don’t let them near them bc they will easily replace what books are supposed to do for more natural acquisition of literacy. Step number two.. Do everything in your power to get kids to fall in love with books. Read to your kids the minute they come out of the womb. If you can, load your house with books.. either the ones you buy or the heaps of books you can get from the library.
It's not the device it's the method. Turn off the sound capability on the devices so the student is forced to read the lesson, if the teacher is going to be lazy and not provide any more instruction than "Do lessons 2.4 to 3 on ... platform ..." I'm serious that's how a lot of teaching is happening today in schools, even through their senior year.
Encourage kids to use reading apps on their tablets. Many even offer audiobooks where they can read along while they listen. Leave on the closed-captioning when they are watching videos, movies, or shows and they will learn how to read and pronounce new words automatically. Take them regularly to the local public library and sign them up for a free library card. Ask them about what books they are reading and if they like the story/book. Last but not least, read daily to your kids (I still read to my 10 yo, they are never too old). When they are able to read, let them read aloud to you while you cook dinner or ride in the car. Signed, a librarian ❤
People keep saying “it’s also the parents responsibility”. News flash: there are a lot of bad parents out there . Period. We need to offer ways for kids with bad parents to still have a fair shot at learning how to read. It’s not the childrens fault they have parents who won’t work with them on reading at home.
Not teaching your kids to read doesn’t necessarily make someone a bad parent. There are lots of parents out there the struggle with reading even as adults. You can’t expect parents who struggle with reading/writing themselves to teach their kids to read/write.
Who the hell is "we"? I get it, I had bad parents, but my responsibility is to my children not to society at large's. I taught mine to read, my responsibility stops there.
Are the children not learning phonics in schools? I remember having a phonics book/phonics class. What the hell is picture power? Not every word will have a relatable picture, at least ones that children can understand. There is also a lot to be said about reading to children.
Idk I am in my late 20s so I might be out of touch with what’s going on in schools now, but I remember learning how to read and it always being “sound it out!” or the adult would help you sound out the word. Idk why we would switch from that, it worked for all of human history beforehand.
As someone who loved to read as a child, I am surprised that they got rid of phonics because it made so much sense. But then again it makes sense when I saw parents these days trying to teach their kids “sight words”
These parents don’t care! They expect teachers to do everything! Parents don’t sit at the table anymore with there children and read and help them out. They expect someone else to act like the parent
It’s not that parents don’t care. If you are a parent you likely reinforce what the teacher taught. Imagine a student learning one way to read at school (using context clues) and another at home (phonetically). That would be pretty confusing. The point of this video is that the methods being used were wrong. The video literally started with concerned parents. Many parents are trusting the education system and just reinforcing at home. Teaching phonics is so important and shouldn’t have been abandoned by schools.
What if they’re parents aren’t around? I grew up with my grandparents and my grandma doesn’t even know how to read. My grandpa was always drunk so that didnt help either. Point is that it’s impossible to learn at home sometimes.
Working class parents may have multiple jobs just trying to keep a roof over head and food on table for basic survival. Capitalism…. The folks that are in charge of education own kids don’t go to public schools either so it doesn’t affect them. Local elections and term limits all around are a partial solution. Somebody’s making those decisions and we never hear about by name. en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phonics#:~:text=The%20use%20of%20the%20term,by%20John%20Hart%20in%201570.
I am a teacher and my district teaches a phonics approach. We actually use the curriculum and decodables shown in the video all based on the science of reading. We have seen such growth and I will always stand by the fact that kids need to learn these skills in order to read. Luckily, the science of reading is becoming more and more popular. It’s honestly amazing.
As a parent, what phonics program could I use to help my 3rd grader become a better reader? He is below average only in this area. I also have a 1st grader and a 2nd grader, and they both read ABOVE average! I’ve read books to them often from the time they were babies. My husband and I both have a masters degree and I was a stay at home mom when they were young. My mother-in-law was a retired elementary school teacher but unfortunately she died in 2019. She was the one who wanted to teach them to read. I don’t really know how to teach this. I had ADHD and didn’t read well until I went to college. The only bit of an excuse I can think of for why it’s been more difficult for him is that he started Kindergarten in 2020.. which meant he started school online… then going to days in person, and eventually towards the end of the school year for days in person, but always wearing a mask as they were required.
@@BoyMama87 I teach 3rd grade. We use Fundations to teach and I think it is honestly the best out there! They even learn cursive once they get to third grade, which helps kids who struggle with letter formation because all of the lowercase letter start at the same line. We partner it with decodable readers and UFLI (University of Florida Literacy Institute) to teach during small group as well as 95% phonics, Heggerty, and West Virginia Phonics. Basically, Fundations is our core curriculum and then the teachers have the autonomy to pick which of the other programs they want to use during small group. I have found success with all of the ones I have listed. We also have students do a program called Amplify for fifteen minutes per day (this is all on the computer and all tailored to where each individual student is at). All of these are amazing programs that really help kids learn to read and close the gap and you really can't go wrong with any of them. It just depends on what is best for you! That is awesome that you are reading to your kids though because that the absolute BEST thing you can do for them! Nothing makes them love reading more than spending that time with you!
@@nvw5415 I explained it in an above comment in depth, but basically we use Fundations for our phonics instruction. We use Voyager decodables or "power readers", but all of our curriculum for reading and writing is entirely teacher created and is standards based and based in the Science of Reading. We really focus on using our data to drive instruction.
I can’t believe that schools ditched phonics!!! Glad to hear that there are principals who care enough to do the best educational method for her students…even when the superintendent doesn’t agree. She deserves an award!
I didn’t know how to read well until 8th grade. I had to teach myself. I learned by going to the school library and just going for it. I also put subtitles on tv. I still remember reading Harry Potter books and struggling through them but then realizing that I’ve learned a lot of new words. I also tried to think about how the word I spoke were spelled out and that helped a lot.
^ You very likely built your reading skills mostly through using your right brain and connecting meanings to whole words, which is exactly what the whole "phonics is the only way" contingency is saying is the wrong way to teach reading skills. In reality, some students learn best through phonics, others learn best through whole word/ sight word skill building activities, and others learn best through both teaching/ learning styles. We cannot take a "one way works for everyone" approach and think that we will have no struggling readers. I'm fine with drilling phonics in the early grade levels. Once you've given students a few years of exposure to and practice with blending sounds, if they're still significantly struggling, it's time to move to sight words. Been in the field of Education/ Special Ed since 2012. Have a master's degree in Special Ed. Thanks for sharing!
@@kotenoklelu3471 Do you have a masters degree in education, are you a researcher, a neurologist, a dyslexia specialist, do you know anyone who has dyslexia, or do you have dyslexia yourself? If not, then why are you acting like you know how to best help people with dyslexia? Think. Use your common sense. Listen to the people who have dyslexia first, and the people who work every day with trying to help them grow their reading skills. Then, you can act like you know what people with dyslexia need and benefit from.
@@keithbushsuarez7445 I am psychologist. I worked in a mental hospital. Some people would never learn to read I can assure you in it. Sight words don't work. If they don't work with normal people, they wouldn't work with people with special educational needs. There are techniques that work but it surely not sight words. I am not a special education specialist. But I saw in Indian movie that they used movement and tactile senses. Try at least sound credible and realistic like this movie. I have no doubt that your country totally mess up special education. You can even decide who is ill and who is healthy.
@@kotenoklelu3471 I'm sorry but until you've lived in the US and worked in either our healthcare system, education system, or special education, I don't think you're all that qualified to talk about what we are or are not doing in our country. Every student I've ever worked with was capable of reading when given the right supports and when taught in a way that works best for how their brains process and best store information. Indeed, some people do learn best through connecting whole words to meaning, and indeed, there is a lot of research that shows for everyone when we engage visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learning modalities simultaneously during learning, it will often times convert things from short term memory to long term memory more readily.
Parents are a large part of the problem. Some of them lack basic skills too. I've seen it in my experience as a tutor. I've mostly helped students, and only a few adults, but notice the parents themselves lacking the ability to write well or do basic math. It's nice that they turn to a tutor for help, but some students don't put in the work. I can only help so much. Parents are a child's first teacher, yet I feel I have to be the one really trying to encourage them to get homework done and study.
thank you so much for sharing this story. So important. I've worked with elementary age children as well as babies and I have to say its so true that at home work isn't done to create the foundation or even supplement what is learned. Its very unfortunate. A lot of parents put more focus on their jobs/careers and their OWN higher education than they do on their children. Im glad there are people highlighted like reading specialists because I did not even know that was a career. Every teacher here seems to do amazing work and I wish more parents got on board and cared as much as the teachers. There are babies 15 months that don't even crawl or attempt walking or talking because the parents don't give time and attention and its sad and ridiculous
Watching this report made me want to cry for the US Education System. BA in "English, Writing Specialization", MS.Ed in "Curriculum and Instruction". Combined teaching experience between Japan and the US, ESL and ELA/Writing: 10 years. ...But it definitely doesn't take someone like me to understand phonics works, and if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Schools really need to reduce the introduction of tech to lower grades and focus on going back to the basics and using pencil and paper to help build motor skills. The two years I taught in the US, I was at a K-12 school, and every kindergartener even had their own Chromebook they were doing a substantial amount of work on. ...Why? When I taught abroad, older methods were still being used, and the countries that are doing so are outperforming the United States in education. Look at the typical elementary classroom in East Asia, and young learners do not have smartphones at school or laptops at their desks. There was nothing wrong with how my generation was taught to read and write, in my opinion, and my elementary school growing up did have a computer lab for the occasional project that used it. Schools also need to "cut the fat"-- paying admin more than teachers who come up with these new teaching techniques and policies that have no scientific backing and create worse outcomes in the classroom. If you have such skilled teachers as you claim, trust them. Appoint a lead teacher for each grade or department and have them report directly to assistant principals on academics. Despite my Master's in C&I and my colleagues' experience, we had to teach methods and content as determined by someone who had the same degree as me but who was quite young and had no classroom experience as a teacher. And she was getting paid double the teacher salary! Not necessary. Parents-- I know we do a lot on our phones now, but take some time to put the phone down and model reading behaviors, and also read books with your child. It will help! If you take your child to a private tutor, I also worked at a tutoring center for a while, and just as recently as early 2022 when I was still there, the materials we used were all from the early 70's to mid 90's. Pretest, Practice, Test. And we taught phonics and reading comprehension the good ol' fashion way. So know that when you're paying a tutoring center $70 an hour (of which the tutor gets $15-$20, btw), we're just teaching your kids using the same methods you learned in school. No magic.
Encourage kids to use reading apps on their tablets. Many even offer audiobooks where they can read along while they listen. Leave on the closed-captioning when they are watching videos, movies, or shows and they will learn how to read and pronounce new words automatically. Take them regularly to the local public library and sign them up for a free library card. Ask them about what books they are reading and if they like the story/book. Last but not least, read daily to your kids (I still read to my 10 yo, they are never too old). When they are able to read, let them read aloud to you while you cook dinner or ride in the car. Signed, a librarian ❤
They also have to teach the parents how to use the phonics system as well so the kids can continue to learn in the same manner at home. So basically, phonics is a system that breaks down words into phonemes which are the individual sounds that make up words. These phonemes are represented visually by graphemes. Once the kids learn the sounds they then learn to blend them together to pronounce the words (ie: c/a/t/ = cat). So the kids learn to decode words and they also learn sight words (high frequency words). I am currently focused on teaching adults reading and basic English grammar so I had to teach myself all of this from a teaching point of view in case I encounter someone who also needs this level of learning. I am not a teacher - just a person trying to help. I am focused on functionally illiterate adults. Spoiler alert - alphabets and phonics are not the same thing as there are 44 phonemes and 26 alphabets. Happy Learning!!!!!
I grew up learning phonics. I received my masters in the Science of Reading. I learned so much more about decoding words and how word origins can help you with words you see in high school textbooks even medicine.
This was how I learned to read-I actually was under the impression that this was taught in schools everywhere. As a speech language pathologist I can say literacy starts at BIRTH. We can screen a child at a year old and tell if they at risk for language and literacy disorders. It starts with family members talking and reading to baby!
@@tammymavery Who said it was all on parents? I’m just stating that literacy starts at birth. I think phonics is necessary and the base of all language-written and verbal.
Phonics is not a fad but phonics is also not everything. Phonics is one needed component to teach a person how to read. It is an important piece of the puzzle. Reading comprehension, spelling comprehension, and writing comprehension are all needed for literacy.
Parents used to read with their children, they used to sing rhymes and interact with their children.... now days parents just hand them a tablet to keep them occupied. 😢
In my day kids weren't interacted with they were told to go away and be quiet. They were only told to do chores and then go away. My parents didn't read to me after age 2. Devices weren't a thing, hell a home PC was barely a thing. Remember DOS. I don't know what your parents did but my boomer parents expected the school to teach me book smarts, they were to drill manners, religion, behavior and work.
As a homeschool mom of 4, I had no idea they got rid of phonics in the public school system. I have always started with this to teach my kids how to read. Having that said, they have all started reading at different ages. One at 5 another at 6 and now one just starting at 7. It has made me nervous seeing my 7 year old struggle with fluency. I couldn't imagine by 3rd or 4th grade not knowing how to read anything 😮 I am glad the schools have been starting to overcome this.
I know at the school so taught at phonics was taught! It must depend on the state, because it’s ridiculous if some schools still aren’t using phonics when the research supports it
@@DopeyDetector I didn't read until 7 and I went to public school lol Also, when I say read, I mean able to pick up a book and read without help. Not just read a couple of sight words, repeat a story from memory, or sound out cvc words slowly. I'm talking about fluency...
Anyone remember the distar approach to teaching how to read. I do. I learned basic phonics in kindergarten, then moved schools the following summer. The new school taught distar approach, which is a memorization technique. I as a 6 year old was yelled at by my teacher for trying to sound out the unknown word. I taught my daughter phonics when I realized she was struggling in reading. The only issue was they were more focused on retention of what is read over the ability to read. It's sad.
Yes! There is an amazing book called Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons that uses this method. I’ve taught my own kids using it and cannot recommend it enough.
@@trawrtster6097 English has 26 graphemes (letters) and 44 phonemes (sounds). There are outlier words, but not as many as people would like to suggest. There are rules and patterns of letters that children will benefit from learning.
Been teaching for 31 years. The kids who do best are those with actively involved parents who set high expectations and work with the teachers and schools instead of blaming them.
now im glad that my dad made me have an English tutor from 5-9 years old. Crucial time of my life, and I learned a lot. My tutor was also the greatest woman ever. Unfortunately, the tutor academy shut down for a reason I'm not aware of. I miss her. I want to show her my gratitude.
“We don’t necessarily think it’s a miracle that children learn to read.” Wow, the power in these words. This is the way education should be. The standards shouldn’t keep lowering because children don’t reach them. Change the system to ensure they do!
I blame the parents. My mother and immigrant became a teacher. My reading level was always way higher than my classmates. When you read well and speak well you are made fun of. I would be told I sounded white. I would say English is my first language how am I supposed to sound. I also busted my behind to learn proper Spanish in high school and get mocked for it. Told no one speaks that way. Both languages I speak too well and it makes people mad.
Wow, this is truly shocking to see. In the UK, phonics had been used for centuries to teach children how to read from kindergarten age. Thank God for that teacher in Ohio for the boldness to start using phonics in her school.
There is a reading curriculum if anyone is looking to help their struggling child. It's called " All About Reading". Look into it, we homeschool and because of that I have been able to teach my oldest to read, which didn't come easily to her. This curriculum uses the phonics technique mentioned in the video. Its a multisensory curriculum and also has games and letter tiles. It teaches children to read through sight, sound and touch, because not all children learn only through sound.
Kids in France don’t start learning to read until 7 so seems like more is going on here. Lack of parental help at home, class sizes that are too large…
They use whole language approach or whole words approach. You can Google it. It's a disaster. Especially if you read Reddit about it. Some actually teach their kids at home. But like half of the class in middle school can read only words that they know.
Of course the schools have to do a better job teaching our kids to read, but parents have a role in educating their kids as well. My mama taught me how to read before I started school. And I've been doing 10-minute reading lessons with my son since he was 3 years old. It's hard at times, but it's far too important for me to completely trust someone else to do it.
Stories like this is why my hustle during college was tutoring. I tutored in English and Math teaching students the methods I learned in school and everyone passed. We would get the right answers the old school way then apply the methods they were learning in school afterwards so they could still show the work that way when it was requested.
Watching this with tears in my eyes broken-hearted about those children 🥺. Thank you teachers for believe and invest on them, the system is sick and want people be ignorant slaves living in poverty. I wish the best future for all these precious kids.
That’s what it is! The system is corrupt. Imagine a teacher having to hide that she’s teaching kids properly. They don’t care about these brown and black kids. So she had to do it herself, and show that it works wonders. They would have never listened to her.
Most of us watching this news report should reflect on how we learned to read and where we learned to read . Then I’m curious about the home environment of many of the children featured…. Are their homes immersed with books? Do family members have a public library card? Are these children seeing their parents and other family members reading? I grew up in the early 60’s before integration and reading was an expectation….. even while being black and poor. Of course we didn’t have the distraction of iPad , Nintendo switch, cell phones and we had a b/w tv. Sometimes it takes investing time with your children in those things that’s most important .
@@marlenamcmurray8067 I agree with you. I’m an immigrant mom, I don’t speak English well but I am always taking my 1st grader to the public library, I read for him since he was little and I encourage him to read every day, I listen him reading to me. Parenting efforts and participation can change the children lives
These policies seem almost arbitrary- why is it so difficult for these administrations to LISTEN to the teachers and principals, you know, the ones in the classrooms everyday 🙄
I teach middle school (special education) and am currently in the position of having to teach basic phonics skills to struggling 8th graders. This crisis is very real.
Also give them practice reading grade level texts with you or a classroom aide helping them read and/ or decode unfamiliar words - build their sight words lexicon, because if they have processing issues like dyslexia for instance, they may never absorb phonics (blending skills) as well as their same age same grade level peers. Research does indeed confirm this. Help them attach meaning to each word they read, if they read a new word and don't know or understand what it really means, give them specific real world examples and show them pictures if you can. Dyslexic people become good readers through sight words and meanings of words, which happens in the right brain rather than the left (left is where decoding and encoding/ sound blending/ phonics skills take place).
@keithbushsuarez7445 Thanks so much. These tips are great! It's a must that I provide direct instruction with unfamiliar words and use images to connect what they already know to the unfamiliar. For example, last week, a student was completing a probe for progress monitoring. The topic was about a parade. I knew the comprehension was there, but by showing a video and images, the student made the connection to carnivale (native to their culture) and the parade, supported their overall understanding of the passage. The student redid the assessment and scored much higher the second time around. Also, this group of students receive exposure to grade level texts through their ELA class where the on level curriculum is taught. Their ESOL needs are addressed in that setting as well 😊
@@NYCAppl3 Yeah so phonics can be useful for a lot of students and should be taught and retaught, but after 12 years of working in SPED and working a lot with students with processing issues and attention issues, and after having read all the research I've read, I really have found that focusing more on sight words/ whole word approaches and attaching strong meaning and real world connections to each word is by far the better way to go for a lot of students with attention and processing issues; basically, you'll know when you see things click for students just like you did with your student who connected an unfamiliar word to carnival which they know from their own culture, those moments are what we constantly have to search for as SPED teachers I think, there's a reason our students reach upper elementary and beyond grade levels and still have as much trouble sounding out and blending as they do sometimes, we have to therefore attack other ways of absorbing new or difficult words, for me asking my dyslexic students to sound out words even after a huge amount of review of sounds and direct support with blending is kind of like asking a paraplegic to climb several flights of stairs with no extra supports in place, it's unrealistic at times and in my experience it's just not how their brains absorb and store new words... Thanks for listening and for working hard out there too, it's a very troubled field and a very troubled time for education and for people in general right now, wish our country prioritized the middle and working classes way more than it does, feels like we're all just hanging on right now...
@@NYCAppl3 mad respect for all sped teachers! But also please do not listen to the dude above. I think he might be the sight word spokesman of the year or something. He is completely right that you support semantic knowledge with context but implementing a sight word heavy approach for the majority of students struggling will absolutely lead to “guess and go” speed first path that led us to this mess in the first place.
@keithbushsuarez7445 I grew up with a special needs class since I was in preschool after I got hospitalized as baby and I remember that I wasn't able to read until age of 10. When I was 10 years old I normally hate reading a book until my mom got me into books like Dork diaries, Diary of a Wimpy kid and Raina telgemeier's comics books. I becoming obsessed with books that I like and able to read. And I love Sailor Moon and others anime books that I would to read everyday. Nowadays I was in normal class in high school.
Parents need to STOP all screen time. No video games! Make them READ. Kids aren't practicing reading/writing enough. Also make your kids memorize spelling words weekly. Both are critical.
It's not always as simple as ditching the screens. First of all, after working all day, I have zero energy to work with my kid on school stuff. I was seriously considering suicide a year ago because the burnout was so bad. Secondly, my kid hates her peers. Many are impossible to get along with, which as required a lot of work on my part to socialize her and help her make friends (something that, again, I don't have the energy for). Third, I tried to get my kid to read, but the fights and meltdowns over school were nonstop for YEARS! Like literally hours a day every day. Now we homeschool, which I hate because I am literally dragging my kid through her education, forcing her to do it, and she puts absolutely ZERO effort into it. She literally doesn't care about school. How do you change that when they've already decided that they aren't going to do it? There have been so many times when I wanted to just give up and let her quit school for my own mental health. This is not a hill I ever thought I'd die on when I became a parent. And it is literally killing me. My mental health is at an all-time low because my relationship with my kid basically revolves around fighting over school. I think it's caused both of us to turn to screens as a coping mechanism because I don't see another way out of it, and my relationship with my kid is terrible as a result.
Games help with problem solving and can teach real world issues, there's even a link to kids who play video games becoming surgeons due to their mental and physically acuity. Video games are also an easy, harmless form of stress relief for students. I've played games since I was very little, and I'm studying physiology Don't ban, but MODERATE. Moderate what your kids play, how long they play. Cut off the online games unless supervised because that's where a lot of the problems are coming a lot of the problems are coming from.
Changed career direction recently, started as a middle school science teacher in my 30's. Always telling the kids to sound out the word in assignment questions and not worry about their little spelling mistakes when it comes to science vocabulary. I substituted as classroom support for English and suggested the same strategy when the teacher told me they no longer do phonics in elementary school and probably don't understand how to break down the word. I couldn't believe it! We learned to read this way without even being told all the technical jargon about phonics.
Phonics is the most effective way to teach a child how to read because it gives a (scientific) method to a seemingly abstract topic especially if English is not spoken at home
It's funny how this is coming out after so many years. Just when there's a major downfall is when they announce it. Not to mention, the structure of early learning, just with the basics such as reading, writing, and math (the THREE which build the foundation in a child's education) are what a kid in preschool/kindergarten needs (not science or history, not until they are a older). This is also something that parents (before becoming parents) should be aware of also. You want your kid to succeed? Be a part of their life and get off the phone.
I started to learn how to read and comprehend in 3rd grade, which was late. I was grateful for two major factors. The first factor was the school giving me extra time outside of class with a teacher to help me. This class was only a few students and it would be done in the middle of the day, so the students weren't tired. I class had 1:1 sessions, computers with programs and collaborative reading groups. This school was labeled a blue ribbon school for a reason. The second factor was the stable environment my grandparents gave me when raising me during this time. They brought structure and safety to my life. There are many factors that contribute to a student's success but schools should play their part as well.
I am a 32 year old black American and i was taught to read during summers by my grandmother long before i attended school. I was too young to attend camp with my older brothers so my grandmother who was a high school history teacher would buy workbooks at the store and work with me a little bit each day before i played or watched cartoons. I was an advanced reader in elementary school and i would bring books into the bathroom with me because i loved them so much. We had African fables, i read about ben carson, Ralph bunch and other notable black American pioneers. My parents also took us to barnes and nobles or borders on the weekend and we would get milk and cookies and pick out books to read to ourselves in the cafe. Sometimes we would purchase the books and sometimes we wouldnt. It was one of my best memories from childhood. I think it starts at home and for some reason the people in my community choose to not make the effort. I bet alot of those kids know every lyric to rap songs though smh. Im going to be having my daughter next year and she will be reading in German and English. Parents do better
Learning to read has to happen at home. No matter how many chromebooks, smart boards, and over-credentialed “learning specialists” schools pay for, they can’t replace reading at home to your kids. That said, as a former teacher, I wholeheartedly advocate for homeschooling.
Lord I thank all of the educators and involved parents that are doing the work to encourage reading. I cried watching this video because I loved reading as a child. 😢
My twins are 4. They’re reading at a grade 2 level. I practice with them multiple times per week about 15 minutes. All it takes is parents setting aside a little time a few days a week to help their children. Don’t solely rely on the school.
Not at all surprised they profiled a Louisiana family. I lived there for five years and was shocked to learn how far behind their education system was compared to my home state (Minnesota).
Mrs. Pleasant was my 4th grade teacher! She is a TREASURE and it's no question she led the charge to help those kids and Warrensville Heights! This absolutely brought tears to my eyes. I didn't struggle to read but as an adult now I have a child with special needs and would give anything for him to have a teacher like Mrs. Pleasant. There aren't many out here like her unfortunately.
So one of the main issues is that they changed the way they teach children to read😯. No more phonics. Just like they changed the way they teach math. Wow!
The glaring problem is parent involvement. Learning doesn't just stop at school. Kids need to read with someone individually. Teachers can only provide so much one on one attention. Parents need to do their part.
"Why Johnny can't read" was written almost 70 years ago, yet the discussion about phonics is still going on. It is like school districts do not want kids to learn how to read.
I'm sure the United States isn't the only country with this problem. I grew up in Western Australia. I left school at 15 and started working. My math was so bad that I wasn't placed in any math classes after my first year of high school. I went back to school in Canada as a mature student. I did some 'upgrading' in math and english. English was never a problem for me but I had to start at grade 8 maths. Fractions. I made it to calculus 12 but it took years. I'm currently working on a second Degree in computer science and I'm 50 now. Looking back, I feel angry. Once I understood math, it was fine. The method of being taught math is not fine. I persisted and noticed fellow adults in the same position as me get frustrated, leave the class and never come back. Not all textbooks are user friendly and I was told by one instructor that she could have 3 students in front of her. Two will understand what she's saying and one person won't. She said it's up to that person to overcome any embarrassment they may feel to say they don't understand and it's her job to find another way to explain the concept until that person does understand. It made me feel better when she told me that. It has nothing to do with how smart a person is. Some people are more visual learners or their auditory learning is sharper. Different learning methods should be implemented in schools and individual progress charts might be another way to identify problem areas for students so they don't fall behind and drop out of school.
I remember they taught me phonics in kindergarten which helped me grasp proper English pronunciation, and by second grade we were writing and reading stories. Only a few of my classmates struggled with this. Man, if you can’t read by 4th grade you are really behind. Good luck to them. Literacy is the backbone of our democracy.
From my perspective, with 3 children, there's more of a Math crisis than a literacy crisis. The math tutoring is costly, but falling behind in math is a total nightmare.
Education has switched between whole word, phonics, and blends more times than can be counted. The biggest thing is exposure and building a love for reading. Aside from disability, it comes together naturally. I would say the biggest shift in classeooms over the past couple of decades has been that kids with disruptive/violent behaviors are no longer removed and isolated. If your child has bad behavior kids in their prek-2 classes, do a lot of work at home because those behaviors distract kids and drain the teacher.
To people saying video games are the problem: it's not the games, it's your child's usage. Games help with problem solving and can teach real world issues, there's even a link to kids who play video games becoming surgeons due to their mental and physically acuity. Video games are also an easy, harmless form of stress relief for students. I've played games since I was very little, and I'm studying physiology Don't ban, but MODERATE. Moderate what your kids play, how long they play. Cut off the online games unless supervised because that's where a lot of the problems are from .
@autismogamer I'm SUPPORTING them. Read the whole comment before responding. The games themselves aren't bad and are actually great learning tools. Just depends how you use them, some games require moderation or supervision and moderation over screen time in general has benefits.
@autismogamerOP was defending video games not blaming them. just responding to comments blaming them. They made a comment about the education system before this one too I think
I am a product of the phonics movement. I had teachers that focused on phonics. I didn’t hear about the battle between phonemic awareness and whole language in the education communities until I took “Reading in the Content Areas” when I was pursuing my certificate and masters in secondary education. What I learned was students read to learn in the upper grades around 4th grade and above. Early literacy is learning how to read which this investigative report illustrates. As we see in real experiences across several districts is the need for a reading curriculum that embeds phonics, phonemic awareness so that students can get from decoding words to reading fluency, (reading without stopping and breaking and decoding or deciphering a word) to reading comprehension. As an educator and chemist I HIGHLY suggest to everyone please become a volunteer at a local elementary school and help a kid. They all need us. 😊
When I learned how to read, it felt like a super power. Being able to decipher the little symbols written on the pages. Knowing how to read was cool. I think that maybe it’s not so much the same now. It’s good that we don’t shame children no matter how old or even adults who can’t read but help how we can.
I’m in complete and utter shock that state legislatures would remove phonics from the students curriculum. That’s INSANE!!! 🤯🤯🤯 It’s literally the foundation of reading.
This is the beauty of homeschooling - you're not dependent on a local or state school board deciding what fad they want to force on everyone next. You can just teach your child in a way that actually works.
When I was a kid, my twin and younger brother struggled with reading, and the teachers weren’t helping them. My mother is a teacher herself, and she knew about phonix, so she took matters into her own hands and had all four of us spend two hours every Sunday learning phonix. She printed out games, got us movies, and spent a lot of time. She made it fun and had all of us do it so my brothers wouldn’t feel left out.
My son's school implemented phonics starting in Kindergarten. My child was a COVID kindergartner. I noticed that many of his classmates are suffering greatly because of the time lost learning from home. Parents were not equipped nor did they have the resources to be a teacher to their children. Fortunately, l am a stay at home mom. I was able to sit there and teach my son. There was a lot of material that had to be covered.. Kindergarten is the foundation of a child's entire education. I can't even imagine how it was for families with two working parents or single working Mom's and Dad's.😢 My heart went out to them during that very trying time.
As a single father who lives in the South, I KNEW for a FACT it'd be a folly to assume my son was going to get much of an Education down here. So I read to him beginning at a young age--in addition to myriad other things. These kids are functionally illiterate because their parents are that way--because READING is not a priority of any kind in the household. . ..at least as much as watching TV, playing with their cell phones, drinking beer, getting high, fighting, or watching other adults throw balls around. (If you want to dispute this, please list ten books you have on your bookshelves.) Just as much: Why are schools continually dumping PROVEN teaching methods like Phonics for whatever new educational sham is out there? It's been going on like this for a long time; maybe these new gimmicks are hacks they're trying to incorporate to try and make up for DECADES of decline and falling behind. It should be a complete and utter embarrassment to be so stupid, or to manage things so stupidly. But here we are, giving out little Participation Trophies to Adults for making things slightly less shitty.
In this particular report they did not highlight the importance of language comprehension and it's role in reading instruction. Researchers have found that language comprehension is essential because if students with limited language and vocabulary learn basic decoding skills they still need to know the meaning of the words they are learning to read. For example, if a student from a low-income household successfully decodes many words they do not know the meaning of in a text, that will limit their ability to comprehend the text. Listen to the podcast Sold a Story by Emily Hanford.
Parents its Our Job to teach our children to read, my dad was a hardworking Plumber, who's work day started at 6Am ,and when I was 5-6, every evening before the tv/games he taught me to read, then once I learned, he made me read books out loud to him.
I think it’s parents responsibility too to help their kids to read not just school.
Most of these parents don’t sit with there children and help them out or read to them! They are to busy at the club getting there hair did!
@@javiruiz8365My sister is white and didn’t have patience to help her kids read, you racist.
It is, but the parents just get frustrated and give up because teaching a kid to read is hard. My nephew is in his 20s and it’s atrocious to read his texts. My sister studied English, but didn’t have patience for him to learn to read properly.
absolutely. my mom taught me to read english and she was an legal immigrant with very little money.. school is important but learning at home is important too. Especially considering she could not afford to send me to pre-k which she still regrets to this day due to early childhood development.
Exactly!! I taught my kids to read the teachers help and test them but daily one on one practise has to come from the parents ❤
As a mother of 3 children, I started teaching them how to read once they turned 2 years old, early stimulation, started reading to them once they turned 18 months old and teaching them the alphabet with games, reading was our entertainment every day, no excuses, got their library cards at 4 years old, would take them to the library every week to get their favorite books they wanted to read, everyone read, read and read. We all got our books together as a family, made it look to my kids as a fun activity to do. They all started reading at 3 years of age, my 2 older boys were both reading at a 6th grade level when they started 1st grade, they were reading chapter books and their teachers were amazed to find out my children could read so well. I'm a trained and licensed Mexican clinical psychologist, and also always loved reading, at 62 I still read 2-3 books a week. All you need to do is install in your children a love for reading, for learning at a very young age, read together as a family, it takes patience and practice, but it is possible. Teachers can't do it all, it's our job as parents to start teaching our children to read. My 3 grown up children are now all successful college graduates, and they still enjoy reading books, the old fashion way. ❤ 9:57
I love it!!! Doing the same my two little ones.
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Okay 👌🏾
Reading to the kids is great. It really works wonders. My boy started fluently reading at 4. We work with our 18 month old the same as we did him. Books all the time, very little tv and lots of talking about everything
My mom did the same with me and my brother, we were both reading fluently by 4 years old.
The problem is that schools no longer teach phonics, which is the basics.
If you only knew why schools don’t teach the basics…there are a variety of reasons. Ultimately, it’s not the teachers choice what they teach. That comes from the school board and the administration at the school. I mean, the woman in this video said something SUPER IMPORTANT: she hid that she was teaching phonics. She taught phonics on the down low because it wasn’t supported by her bosses.
It’s sad.
Im wondering how long ago phonics was taken out of lesson plans? I’m a teenager in high school and when I was in elementary we still learned with phonics and there were quite a few gifted kids in harder classes, including me. Do these gifted classes even exist anymore? It doesn’t seem like it
Because phonics really doesn’t help you with an orthographic system as complex as English. English not only has digraphs (which aren’t the end of the world), it has whatever is going on in through, though, and tough, and cough. Those last two, despite having the same -ough, have different vowels represented by the same letter. If you try to wade through English with phonics, you’re going to drown.
Well, the problem that you try to solve with phonics is that the outdated English spelling is so inconsistent.
If English would be written as it is spoken, it would not be unnecessarily difficult!
@@ToastbackWhale phonics is a good foundation for learning English but you are correct, there is much more needed and many miss that point.
As a speech pathologist, we learned phonics/phonemic awareness to help kids read. I WISH EVERY school in the country would continue to do this! Screw site words
As a Special Ed teacher with a master's degree in Special Ed, it absolutely infuriates me that anyone thinks phonics is the key to reading for every single student, including students with specific learning disabilities like dyslexia. I have read studies that confirm sight words are the key to students with dyslexia learning how to read, that they will never learn reading through phonics the way their neurotypical peers will. You work in the field of Special Education. You should have read the same studies I did. Sad.
Okay, you teach the kids phonics so that they can read “raft”. Things get tough, though, when you try to go through words like cough phonetically.
@@ToastbackWhale a great example right in your response, the words tough and though, only one beginning consonant letter difference but somehow the vowel sound created by the middle and ending letters, "ough" changes from /uf/ to /ō/ (long vowel sound for "o". Then try adding a "t" to the end of "though" and it becomes "thought" with the vowel sound in the middle being /ô/ or /o/ (short vowel sound for "o". I watched an hour and a half long video the other day of a reading specialist from Michigan (video was maybe 4 years old I think) wherein she said the English language is 85-90% phonetic. If your definition of phonetic is one letter corresponds to one sound, almost none of our language is phonetic. Even most consonants can and do make more than one sound, because modern (American) English started as a Germanic language, then was influenced by Latin, Greek, Spanish, French, Portuguese, and Nordic languages over time. Again, I don't think phonics is useless. I believe each student should be exposed to phonics rules and have a fair amount of practice with phonics/ blending skills across multiple elementary grade levels. But if they have an identifiable processing disability like dyslexia and they aren't getting phonics and blending to the same extent as their same age same grade level peers by the end of elementary and into middle school, I believe (and this is supported by research) that continuing to drill them on phonics skills is only going to get them so far. Sight words are the key for students with dyslexia, especially when they've hit a wall with building phonics skills. Doesn't matter how many times you ask a paraplegic to climb a set of stairs, if you don't give them any supports to climb those stairs, they will never be able to climb those stairs anywhere near the rate their non paraplegic peers will. We have to think of dyslexia and processing disabilities like this. To not do so can be emotionally and psychologically harmful to our students.
@@ToastbackWhalethey’ll learn it eventually 😂
*sight
Parents if you want your child to read well, read aloud to them early! There are kids with severe dyslexia but most just "bloom" late. It is important that they don't feel "dumb" because it takes longer. Anyone can learn to read, even dyslexics.
We used Garfield comics to practice reading with my boys and read aloud all the time. They improved immensely and all of them can read on their own now.
Has it occurred to you that these struggling readers were born to struggling readers?
@@MedicalAutonomyProjectI'm an advocate for children who can't read. This is the very same thing I have been saying to my few critics. Blind can't lead the blind.
@@btezeno4860 The schools have them 6 hours a day 150 days a year. Absolutely no excuse for kids to be illiterate.
I love positive comments like these that don't point fingers of blame but find solutions out of love
Yes. Dyslexic’s can read but many wont read with typical curriculums or learn at school. My severely dyslexic daughter would make it to 18 not reading if I left it to the school. She had to have an evidenced based reading program, (Barton) and in two years has moved up from kinder level to beginning 4th grade. It will take me 2-3 years of tutoring her before school 5 days a week and she will be reading at 9th grade level. Its not an easy path, but with dedication its doable.
I am a kindergarten teacher in Japan. Phonics is a program we have besides Reading and it works well. It definitely helps with the building steps of reading along with memorizing sight words. Parents should install phonics apps into their phones or tablets and children can play and learn at the same time through those apps.
I also taught in Japan and feel the same. I wrote a much longer comment talking about just a few issues I have with US schools as well, since I've taught in both places.
@@stephsteph4503 They don't use phonics in the states anymore. No syllables, no spelling, no grammar, no penmanship, no nothing.
How come? It´s foundation.@@Imissyoulou
@@SmartJandirayou gotta look into it…. There are people that think it’s useless…. Also, I believe the main thing is that some researcher or something thought that it was better to use “sight words” as in memorizing words by how they’re “shaped” ….. please look up “Sight Words VS Phonics” it’s a whole thing and people are still debating it to this day but a lot are now seeing that English language NEEDS phonics….
Are you teaching English in Japan or Japanese? I would be very skeptical for phonetic reading in Japanese since the kanjis.
I’m so glad to hear many states and districts are reimplementing teaching reading with phonics. It made me so mad and still makes me mad that schools ever stopped using phonics in the first place.
I was in kindergarten, 1st grade, and second grade in a strong school district in Wisconsin from 1997-2000, and phonics is how we were taught to read, and it worked. I’m now a high school English teacher, and I remember back in 2016 during my 3rd year teaching, I was babysitting a friend from church’s children. Before putting them to bed, we read a book together, and her kindergartener pointed at a word she knew and read it, so proud of herself. 🥰 I told her that was so good, and she told me she knew it because it was one of her sight words. Since she did so well with that word, I asked her what some other words on the page were. When she said she didn’t know, I told her that was okay and to sound them out and that I would help her, and she really struggled to sound them out, which wasn’t a huge deal to me considering she was just in kindergarten, although I did find it a little odd. I talked to a friend, also an educator, about this afterwards, who told me they didn’t teach phonics anymore, and that that made sense that this little girl couldn’t sound out words because she had never been taught how to. I was shocked and pretty outraged. She told me that our high school students at the time also hadn’t been taught phonics in elementary school, and suddenly, my 11th graders’ difficulties with reading made a lot more sense. In my opinion, teaching a child to read with sight words and the other technique mentioned in this video where children use pictures to guess words will only get them so far. It’s giving them tools for early elementary school, not tools for life-long reading. I believe phonics provides children with the tools to sound out most words they’ll encounter, thus setting them up better for reading for life. It really makes me think of the popular saying- “Give a man a fish, feed him for a day. Teach a man how to fish, feed him for a lifetime.” Sight words and guessing words is like giving them a fish that will feed them for a day. Phonics is teaching them how to fish, how to read, which will benefit them for their lives.
Exactly that is so wild that they are/were just teaching reading by sight. I don’t have school age children so I didn’t even know this was how things were being done.
THEY DONT TEACH THEM PHONICS?! I was just working with a 14 year old student than cannot read and write. Well its at like a preschool level, maybe less. I always teach my students to sound out words. However, I am a health teacher so this only happens when most of my students are absent and I can give them one on one attention. This is insane. Sight words is just teaching to memorize the word. This is crazy. No wonder no one can read.
Yes, we practiced phonics with our now 11 year old. She is in 6th grade reading at a 12th grade level.
Yes! I listened to a piece on NPR about this and couldn't believe it! The fact that curriculums changed on the advice of a few people vs hundreds of years of education is so concerning to me. They are finally changing it back, but I shudder to think of all the children that are struggling and just getting passed on to the next grade year after year. I taught my niece sight words and phonics. She left Kindergarten reading at a second grade level. Every child should be given that foundation in school. 💔
Excellent points!
well this makes a lot of my experiences as a college professor at a community college make waaaaay more sense. I knew a lot of the issues we saw in our remedial classes stemmed from environmental reasons (meaning unsupportive parents, for whatever their reason might be, some intentional, most being busy due to working 3 jobs and/or having a lingering disdain of education from their own school memories) and we knew that there were a few under performing schools in our area because of budget issues and thus students being unable to access the help they needed to succeed. We also knew that at that time the no child left behind act was shoving unprepared students out the door and into our halls which happily accepted them because they were just another US Department of Education loan paycheck and it didn't matter to the administration that these kids were blowing their one shot at an education that they weren't interested in to begin with but had come because they were told that was what was next (no conversation about trade schools, no conversation about gap years, little assistance other than some remedial classes and an overworked tutoring center). But i never thought that the schools had stopped doing the phonics lessons that were used when i was in school in the 80s. Seeing these kids having to come up with the word Cookie while looking at a picture suddenly makes so much of my experiences teaching make even more sense. We really have failed these kids.
My child was the whole language experiment. No phonics in grade school. It's criminal the time these kids spend in school to be cheated of an education.
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That's what happened to me. I had undiagnosed autism and other learning-disabilities. I was lucky that I was naturally good at reading but nothing else. I'm 21 now and still can't do any math beyond basic addition and subtraction. I was pushed along through school despite getting all F's past the third grade. In high school, when I wasn't ready for graduation, instead of helping me meet the requirements, they waived them. I'm now in community college and am almost done with my Psych AA other than the fact that I cannot pass Statistics. My math level is around 2nd grade. Teachers and counselors keep trying to tell me to just to do my best and I'll succeed. I don't think they comprehend that an adult can get to college while truly having lower elementary skills. Someone with a second grade math level cannot pass Statistics and I honestly don't know how I am going to push forward.
"No child left behind" totally failed struggling students like me. Schools would have had to help us if we needed to meet certain criteria to pass through grades, but instead they were allowed to keep moving us up despite not developing.
It's more tragic than ever now that we are living in an era where you typically need a degree to make even a somewhat survivable wage. No HS diploma? You're really screwed then, even most fast food chains now require it.
Parents have relied too much on school to teach their kids. My mother sat down with me and my siblings each night doing homework oftentimes while she cooked dinner. And now the public wants to blame public education and the government for deficiencies, when education was never a one-sided responsibility that can be delegated to one adult who have to supervise 25-40 other kids in the same room.
I couldn't read English in 3rd grade, so my mom read to me each night so I was caught up with the reading exams each week and that I was completing the 30 minutes of required reading assignment. But if she hadn't read to me, I doubt "English" would have suddenly clicked in the 4th grade to the point to where I was actually reading at grade level despite being completely blind just a year prior. I performed very well during the No Child Left Behind era. I don't blame standardized testings. And I don't blame the educators who are just trying to catch their students up. But what I find is that the teachers can only do so much when the parents are elsewhere with other priorities. I personally can't even blame poverty since that was just the way things were. However, the topic of wealth doesn't matter as much as parents who make education a priority.
2 free-ride scholarships later, with siblings who are working on finishing up their 4-year degrees on a discount, circumstances pale in comparison to how you can define things as important. Despite poverty, renting rooms, vehicle issues, and two working parents, education was made important.
Balanced literacy is the bane of all dyslexic kids existence
During the pandemic I witnessed how my kindergartener was being taught to read by memorizing sight words and guessing words based on pictures. I took him out and homeschooled him because i was so deeply disturbed.
You RAYCISS
I homeschool my kids for the same reason. The schools here are 100% sight words.
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Smh. The “sight word” trend does not seem like all it’s been hyped up to be. You might get somebody to watch your child on the state’s money while you go to work, but they’re not going to come back prepared to read you a list of words they’ve never seen before.
@@remnant1018funny enough i did teach my son the sight words lists, but i taught him how to read them by sounding out each letter, not by memorizing the whole word haha 😂
you dont like your communist teachers that you voted for?
My daughter is on the autism spectrum and homeschooled. She learned to read by using the McGuffey Readers. These readers are from the 1800s. She is an excellent reader and speller. Maybe it's time to go back to basics.
don't fix what isn't broken, if the education system worked to a good enough degree, why change it?
Retired senior here. My parents were country people. They left the rural South where they attended a tiny school.
As a child my mother would read to me. She bought me alphabet blocks. My father liked to read. This gave me the vision of books and reading in our household. It all clicked for me.
You would think with all of the technology available these days, there would be fewer literacy problems in American schools. Maybe it's time to go back to the old fashioned basics.
Back to basics, with direct instruction and Round Robin reading circles. Get away from so much fiction, and focus on nonfiction. Make reading enjoyable and informative.
It's not so much the technology itself, it's more of how to use it effectively and efficiently. Just like using tools like hammers or jigsaws, if you weren't taught how to use it, you won't know how. And certain tools are for certain projects, just like certain forms of technology.
@lindatart I actually think fiction in necessary. Most kids don’t want to read books that are made to inform, it just doesn’t prompt the love of reading. I think schools should read fiction more. As a recent high school graduate I almost never read fiction after about 3rd grade, and when I ask my peers why they don’t read they all say it’s boring.
DAT'Z RITE !!
Pencils and paper work better than flashy gadgets
I really feel for these kids and, as a college English instructor mainly teaching freshman writing, I would agree this is a huge crisis. The amount of people who come into my classes barely even semi-literate is shocking. Ms. Pleasant is spot on; this needs to be dealt with super early. A number of comments here have also mentioned parents reading too and with kids and that's also crucial. Teachers can do tremendous work but it has to start at home. By the time they get to my end, it requires massive intervention, far more than I'm capable of.
Also, I'm grateful for the attitude that father expressed at the end, but we need more adults thinking like that. Another major frustration for me is that, by the time a lot of students are college age, the semi-literacy has frequently crystalized into an ideology, often encouraged by parents and even some teachers, basically justifying their own failures. Cannot count the number of lectures I've gotten from students about how reading is stupid, a waste of time, how you actually learn way more from playing video games and etc. We need a wide-ranging societal discussion on the importance of critical thinking, reading and literacy. But, unfortunately, I think there are a lot of people not eager for that talk. 😕
Those are some pretty ignorant students. If they can't read then they're missing out on the best video games, and mainly the ones that have any educational value; role-playing games. What they're playing is likely mindless FPS and sports games which have no end goal, no story and give no real sense of accomplishment. One cannot beat a Resident Evil games puzzles without reading all of the notes and clues. Its likely that those freshmen have parents who played fps and sports games excessively and exclusively.
Good points.
The world needs ditch diggers.
@@mjwbulich Haha, yes but, also, ditch diggers should think and dream more, too! 😜
@@kreativeforce532 Very true, good point! I think it's more sustained reading, for pleasure and intellectual curiosity, that they're dismissive of. But as you're pointing out, reading is central to many different activities.
It’s heartbreaking 💔 when educators have to hide the fact that they’re teaching their students and that they’re learning. School districts should be ashamed. 😡
It's all part of a larger trend of taking classroom control away from teachers in the name of uniformity.
@@EmpressMermaid I use to "slip" and teach from my materials. Kids ALWAYS did well on the testing. I used Kim Marshall, for reading, English and math.
@lindatart Same here. I'm a high school math teacher, and the methods they are using now often don't work. They have taken away our ability to pivot and try something else if the method we are using doesn't seem to be working (as any good teacher should). I just get told "research shows...." OK, what research? Where was it conducted? Sample size, etc? I'd like to see the published findings on this mysterious "research" they are relying upon. They might as well replace me with a programmable robot.
Oh it's good to come across individuals who know what they're talking about!! I'm from a small town fighting for all children who can't read and I get banned from meeting with my grandkids' teachers because I'm viewed as a trouble maker.
@@btezeno4860 If I were to ever start a school and was able to run it however I want, one of my requirements for working there would be that you were at some point labeled a "troublemaker".
As a middle school teacher who experienced children who read on a 1st and 2nd grade level, I VOWED to make sure my children knew how to read before kindergarten, if I ever had children. Now, I have a 2 year old, and he knows all of his letters, their sounds, some sight words, and what his first/last name looks like. Now I'm considering what does it look like to teach PARENTS the super simple things that can help their children do the same. I honestly think that some parents sincerely don't know where to start or what to do when it comes to early literacy. For some, it may seem obvious but for others it truly isn't that natural of a thing.
Then they should be sterilized!
Good points.
That is fantastic! If you dont mind sharing, how did you teach your child to do so? What were some resources you've utilized? I agree with you on many points.
@lageena8642 it was honestly super natural in the sense that I made educational "things" available and I named whatever he interacted with. For example, he has toys that have shapes so as he'd pick up a shape I'd say "rhombus" or "square" which then led me to adding in colors. So if the rhombus was red I'd say "ohh that's a RED rhombus". When it came to reading I'd pretty much do the same. I also made flashcards using index cards at home and a marker. For longevity, I also laminated them. So as he'd pick up letter cards or played with the letter magnets on our fridge I'd name the letter. THEN when he became familiar with them I'd give the letters a sound. So genuinely I was just pretty intentional with whatever he interacted with. And I'm not gonna lie, my son now has an iPad that we curate content for. So our favorite channels are number blocks, alpha blocks, coilbook, listener kids, and vooks. He also likes super simple songs but that's pretty much the only content we allow him to watch and that's been really cool to see him interact with on occasion. Hopefully that was helpful but it sincerely wasn't too labor intensive or rocket science, just intentional, consistent, and meaningful interactions. Blessings!!
@@emeraldcollier178I second Alphablocks and Numberblocks they are truly such a helpful resource!
Phonics is the key❤
I was devastated to see how the school system was teaching our youth, phonics is very important. Phonics is how I learned how to read,
and I absolutely love books and reading to this very day.
In my opinion these “sight words” are not working because it’s a lot of guessing and memorizing but if you take that same word away and say ok spell it the child can’t and that’s a problem, because there are millions of words that your going to need to use phonics to pronounce out because you simply can’t memorize every word out there.
Also Hooked on phonics really works if you have someone or know someone struggling it’s a really great program, best of wishing to all struggling with this ❤
I think the phonics system is good, but it can be extremely frustrating. Kids are constantly told to “sound it out” when they see a word they don’t know, but that doesn’t always work. For example “bomb” “comb” and “tomb” are all pronounced different. You just need to have it memorized.
It’s not like math where you can teach rules and it never changes. I was always a strong reader, in 3rd grade I read at an 8th grade level but failed every spelling test. Because I knew what the words looked like, but having to put all the letters in order myself felt impossible. Despite my elementary teacher saying I can’t be dyslexic because “I read too well to be dyslexic” I very much was and didn’t get a formal diagnosis until my junior year of college (a little late to be helpful).
The only way I could pass my spelling tests was brute memorization which often resulted in me frustrated to tears. I learned for the test, but it never stuck, I’m almost 30 and still struggle with spelling many words. Spell check is my lifesaver.
@TurretBA Hi! This is something similar to what I was covering with my daughter in our phonics lesson today! I think if teaching phonics systematically and comprehensively those words are taught after teaching short "o"; long "o"; the letter "o" often says "oo" such as in to, do, shoe, and move; and of course when teaching the silent "b." Ideally, the student would have already practiced inferring and using context to figure out what sound fits with words that have fewer choices such as open and closed syllable words like "robot" and "robin." However, knowledge of words (phonics and vocabulary) would be used rather than something like a picture. Perhaps in phonics, the "rules" should not be taught as "rules." Teaching comprehensive and systematic phonics works (after phonemic awareness is established!) with the most struggling readers, but I don't know about using the term "rule" in phonics.
Phonics works for reading, but spelling is tricky. I know I have a lot more to learn, but so far, I think that spelling is a lot more about exposure (or memorizing) because there are just so many options!
@@TurretBASo what’s your plan to teach those words and every other word? Just tell the kid to memorize them all?
@@abcmoonsweeti5234 The problem is that English spelling is terrible, and is full of inconsistencies that drive you nuts. Spanish doesn't have this problem. Give any Spanish word, no matter how complicated, and anyone who knows the basics, can know how to say it.
I find it really shocking that in Europe (I'm Dutch) I learned Dutch, English and some even a third language (usually German, French or a native language to their family of origin), yet in the USA people already seem to struggle over just learning proper English.
What is going on over there?
I was so sad when I talked to the principal about my daughter's struggles with reading and he responded that the "pendulum had swung" and the district was using a whole language approach instead of comprehensive and systematic phonics. My daughter was even working one-on-one with a Reading First teacher for 30 minutes every day, but it was an absolute waste of time because all that was taught was the things that came naturally to her such as using context or inferring and basically guessing by looking at the picture. Homeschooling wasn't very popular at that time, but I knew I had to figure it out on my own. I am absolutely thrilled to hear that phonics is gaining popularity again.
As a teacher, I knew this. So, I taught my daughter how to read before she started school.
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Step number one.. dump those iPads and devices. Don’t let them near them bc they will easily replace what books are supposed to do for more natural acquisition of literacy. Step number two.. Do everything in your power to get kids to fall in love with books. Read to your kids the minute they come out of the womb. If you can, load your house with books.. either the ones you buy or the heaps of books you can get from the library.
that's not gonna work. a modern world without modern technology can't exist
Ok grandpa, go take a nap.
You can waste your time, I'll actually educate my children.
It's not the device it's the method. Turn off the sound capability on the devices so the student is forced to read the lesson, if the teacher is going to be lazy and not provide any more instruction than "Do lessons 2.4 to 3 on ... platform ..." I'm serious that's how a lot of teaching is happening today in schools, even through their senior year.
Encourage kids to use reading apps on their tablets. Many even offer audiobooks where they can read along while they listen. Leave on the closed-captioning when they are watching videos, movies, or shows and they will learn how to read and pronounce new words automatically. Take them regularly to the local public library and sign them up for a free library card. Ask them about what books they are reading and if they like the story/book. Last but not least, read daily to your kids (I still read to my 10 yo, they are never too old). When they are able to read, let them read aloud to you while you cook dinner or ride in the car.
Signed, a librarian ❤
People keep saying “it’s also the parents responsibility”. News flash: there are a lot of bad parents out there . Period. We need to offer ways for kids with bad parents to still have a fair shot at learning how to read. It’s not the childrens fault they have parents who won’t work with them on reading at home.
Well said
Absolutely right. Teachers are quitting and many US districts have teachers shortages.
Not teaching your kids to read doesn’t necessarily make someone a bad parent. There are lots of parents out there the struggle with reading even as adults. You can’t expect parents who struggle with reading/writing themselves to teach their kids to read/write.
@@leniequeen true! It can be a vicious cycle for sure…
Who the hell is "we"?
I get it, I had bad parents, but my responsibility is to my children not to society at large's.
I taught mine to read, my responsibility stops there.
Are the children not learning phonics in schools? I remember having a phonics book/phonics class. What the hell is picture power? Not every word will have a relatable picture, at least ones that children can understand. There is also a lot to be said about reading to children.
I think "picture power" is common core
Idk I am in my late 20s so I might be out of touch with what’s going on in schools now, but I remember learning how to read and it always being “sound it out!” or the adult would help you sound out the word. Idk why we would switch from that, it worked for all of human history beforehand.
As someone who loved to read as a child, I am surprised that they got rid of phonics because it made so much sense. But then again it makes sense when I saw parents these days trying to teach their kids “sight words”
What happens when they leave school and go home ????
Who spends time with them, reading, spelling, and trying to comprehend what they're reading.
These parents don’t care! They expect teachers to do everything! Parents don’t sit at the table anymore with there children and read and help them out. They expect someone else to act like the parent
It’s not that parents don’t care. If you are a parent you likely reinforce what the teacher taught. Imagine a student learning one way to read at school (using context clues) and another at home (phonetically). That would be pretty confusing. The point of this video is that the methods being used were wrong. The video literally started with concerned parents. Many parents are trusting the education system and just reinforcing at home. Teaching phonics is so important and shouldn’t have been abandoned by schools.
What if they’re parents aren’t around?
I grew up with my grandparents and my grandma doesn’t even know how to read. My grandpa was always drunk so that didnt help either. Point is that it’s impossible to learn at home sometimes.
Working class parents may have multiple jobs just trying to keep a roof over head and food on table for basic survival. Capitalism….
The folks that are in charge of education own kids don’t go to public schools either so it doesn’t affect them. Local elections and term limits all around are a partial solution. Somebody’s making those decisions and we never hear about by name.
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phonics#:~:text=The%20use%20of%20the%20term,by%20John%20Hart%20in%201570.
@@franklinburk3314No it's not
Educational system messed up when they stopped teaching phonetically
Its probably intentional. An illiterate population is easy to control.
I am a teacher and my district teaches a phonics approach. We actually use the curriculum and decodables shown in the video all based on the science of reading. We have seen such growth and I will always stand by the fact that kids need to learn these skills in order to read. Luckily, the science of reading is becoming more and more popular. It’s honestly amazing.
As a parent, what phonics program could I use to help my 3rd grader become a better reader? He is below average only in this area. I also have a 1st grader and a 2nd grader, and they both read ABOVE average! I’ve read books to them often from the time they were babies. My husband and I both have a masters degree and I was a stay at home mom when they were young. My mother-in-law was a retired elementary school teacher but unfortunately she died in 2019. She was the one who wanted to teach them to read. I don’t really know how to teach this. I had ADHD and didn’t read well until I went to college. The only bit of an excuse I can think of for why it’s been more difficult for him is that he started Kindergarten in 2020.. which meant he started school online… then going to days in person, and eventually towards the end of the school year for days in person, but always wearing a mask as they were required.
@@BoyMama87 I teach 3rd grade. We use Fundations to teach and I think it is honestly the best out there! They even learn cursive once they get to third grade, which helps kids who struggle with letter formation because all of the lowercase letter start at the same line. We partner it with decodable readers and UFLI (University of Florida Literacy Institute) to teach during small group as well as 95% phonics, Heggerty, and West Virginia Phonics. Basically, Fundations is our core curriculum and then the teachers have the autonomy to pick which of the other programs they want to use during small group. I have found success with all of the ones I have listed. We also have students do a program called Amplify for fifteen minutes per day (this is all on the computer and all tailored to where each individual student is at). All of these are amazing programs that really help kids learn to read and close the gap and you really can't go wrong with any of them. It just depends on what is best for you! That is awesome that you are reading to your kids though because that the absolute BEST thing you can do for them! Nothing makes them love reading more than spending that time with you!
🙌
WHich curriculum do you use? Cause mine is garbage! Also what decodable readers? We are currently using i-ready magnetic readers
@@nvw5415 I explained it in an above comment in depth, but basically we use Fundations for our phonics instruction. We use Voyager decodables or "power readers", but all of our curriculum for reading and writing is entirely teacher created and is standards based and based in the Science of Reading. We really focus on using our data to drive instruction.
I can’t believe that schools ditched phonics!!! Glad to hear that there are principals who care enough to do the best educational method for her students…even when the superintendent doesn’t agree. She deserves an award!
Liberals forced it out. Being poorly educated keeps Democrat voters.
Maybe they stopped phonics because it was too addicting. When I was younger I was hooked on phonics.
I didn’t know how to read well until 8th grade. I had to teach myself. I learned by going to the school library and just going for it. I also put subtitles on tv. I still remember reading Harry Potter books and struggling through them but then realizing that I’ve learned a lot of new words. I also tried to think about how the word I spoke were spelled out and that helped a lot.
^ You very likely built your reading skills mostly through using your right brain and connecting meanings to whole words, which is exactly what the whole "phonics is the only way" contingency is saying is the wrong way to teach reading skills. In reality, some students learn best through phonics, others learn best through whole word/ sight word skill building activities, and others learn best through both teaching/ learning styles. We cannot take a "one way works for everyone" approach and think that we will have no struggling readers. I'm fine with drilling phonics in the early grade levels. Once you've given students a few years of exposure to and practice with blending sounds, if they're still significantly struggling, it's time to move to sight words. Been in the field of Education/ Special Ed since 2012. Have a master's degree in Special Ed. Thanks for sharing!
@@keithbushsuarez7445i guess America will struggle with reading for a long time
@@kotenoklelu3471 Do you have a masters degree in education, are you a researcher, a neurologist, a dyslexia specialist, do you know anyone who has dyslexia, or do you have dyslexia yourself? If not, then why are you acting like you know how to best help people with dyslexia? Think. Use your common sense. Listen to the people who have dyslexia first, and the people who work every day with trying to help them grow their reading skills. Then, you can act like you know what people with dyslexia need and benefit from.
@@keithbushsuarez7445 I am psychologist. I worked in a mental hospital. Some people would never learn to read I can assure you in it. Sight words don't work. If they don't work with normal people, they wouldn't work with people with special educational needs. There are techniques that work but it surely not sight words. I am not a special education specialist. But I saw in Indian movie that they used movement and tactile senses. Try at least sound credible and realistic like this movie. I have no doubt that your country totally mess up special education. You can even decide who is ill and who is healthy.
@@kotenoklelu3471 I'm sorry but until you've lived in the US and worked in either our healthcare system, education system, or special education, I don't think you're all that qualified to talk about what we are or are not doing in our country. Every student I've ever worked with was capable of reading when given the right supports and when taught in a way that works best for how their brains process and best store information. Indeed, some people do learn best through connecting whole words to meaning, and indeed, there is a lot of research that shows for everyone when we engage visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learning modalities simultaneously during learning, it will often times convert things from short term memory to long term memory more readily.
The parents need to sit down and read with their kids! There’s no excuse for this.
I agree. This saved my life.
Parents are a large part of the problem. Some of them lack basic skills too. I've seen it in my experience as a tutor. I've mostly helped students, and only a few adults, but notice the parents themselves lacking the ability to write well or do basic math. It's nice that they turn to a tutor for help, but some students don't put in the work. I can only help so much. Parents are a child's first teacher, yet I feel I have to be the one really trying to encourage them to get homework done and study.
thank you so much for sharing this story. So important. I've worked with elementary age children as well as babies and I have to say its so true that at home work isn't done to create the foundation or even supplement what is learned. Its very unfortunate. A lot of parents put more focus on their jobs/careers and their OWN higher education than they do on their children. Im glad there are people highlighted like reading specialists because I did not even know that was a career. Every teacher here seems to do amazing work and I wish more parents got on board and cared as much as the teachers. There are babies 15 months that don't even crawl or attempt walking or talking because the parents don't give time and attention and its sad and ridiculous
Watching this report made me want to cry for the US Education System.
BA in "English, Writing Specialization", MS.Ed in "Curriculum and Instruction". Combined teaching experience between Japan and the US, ESL and ELA/Writing: 10 years.
...But it definitely doesn't take someone like me to understand phonics works, and if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
Schools really need to reduce the introduction of tech to lower grades and focus on going back to the basics and using pencil and paper to help build motor skills. The two years I taught in the US, I was at a K-12 school, and every kindergartener even had their own Chromebook they were doing a substantial amount of work on. ...Why?
When I taught abroad, older methods were still being used, and the countries that are doing so are outperforming the United States in education. Look at the typical elementary classroom in East Asia, and young learners do not have smartphones at school or laptops at their desks. There was nothing wrong with how my generation was taught to read and write, in my opinion, and my elementary school growing up did have a computer lab for the occasional project that used it.
Schools also need to "cut the fat"-- paying admin more than teachers who come up with these new teaching techniques and policies that have no scientific backing and create worse outcomes in the classroom. If you have such skilled teachers as you claim, trust them. Appoint a lead teacher for each grade or department and have them report directly to assistant principals on academics. Despite my Master's in C&I and my colleagues' experience, we had to teach methods and content as determined by someone who had the same degree as me but who was quite young and had no classroom experience as a teacher. And she was getting paid double the teacher salary! Not necessary.
Parents-- I know we do a lot on our phones now, but take some time to put the phone down and model reading behaviors, and also read books with your child. It will help!
If you take your child to a private tutor, I also worked at a tutoring center for a while, and just as recently as early 2022 when I was still there, the materials we used were all from the early 70's to mid 90's. Pretest, Practice, Test. And we taught phonics and reading comprehension the good ol' fashion way. So know that when you're paying a tutoring center $70 an hour (of which the tutor gets $15-$20, btw), we're just teaching your kids using the same methods you learned in school. No magic.
Encourage kids to use reading apps on their tablets. Many even offer audiobooks where they can read along while they listen. Leave on the closed-captioning when they are watching videos, movies, or shows and they will learn how to read and pronounce new words automatically. Take them regularly to the local public library and sign them up for a free library card. Ask them about what books they are reading and if they like the story/book. Last but not least, read daily to your kids (I still read to my 10 yo, they are never too old). When they are able to read, let them read aloud to you while you cook dinner or ride in the car.
Signed, a librarian ❤
Parents don’t have time for that these days! They are out at the club
I’m sick of everyone blaming teachers for the failings of parents.
And what happens when they both fail? The schools removed things like phonics and the parents just don’t care. So what now?
They also have to teach the parents how to use the phonics system as well so the kids can continue to learn in the same manner at home. So basically, phonics is a system that breaks down words into phonemes which are the individual sounds that make up words. These phonemes are represented visually by graphemes. Once the kids learn the sounds they then learn to blend them together to pronounce the words (ie: c/a/t/ = cat). So the kids learn to decode words and they also learn sight words (high frequency words). I am currently focused on teaching adults reading and basic English grammar so I had to teach myself all of this from a teaching point of view in case I encounter someone who also needs this level of learning. I am not a teacher - just a person trying to help. I am focused on functionally illiterate adults. Spoiler alert - alphabets and phonics are not the same thing as there are 44 phonemes and 26 alphabets. Happy Learning!!!!!
Good for you!
I grew up learning phonics. I received my masters in the Science of Reading. I learned so much more about decoding words and how word origins can help you with words you see in high school textbooks even medicine.
Ouuu that awesome
This was how I learned to read-I actually was under the impression that this was taught in schools everywhere.
As a speech language pathologist I can say literacy starts at BIRTH. We can screen a child at a year old and tell if they at risk for language and literacy disorders. It starts with family members talking and reading to baby!
YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
We read to our kids all the time. They are dyslexic so appropriate phonics in school is still necessary. Don’t put this all on parents.
@@tammymavery You are the exception, not the rule.
@@tammymavery Who said it was all on parents? I’m just stating that literacy starts at birth. I think phonics is necessary and the base of all language-written and verbal.
What's the screen process called an how do I sign up my baby cousin for it
Phonics is not a fad but phonics is also not everything. Phonics is one needed component to teach a person how to read. It is an important piece of the puzzle. Reading comprehension, spelling comprehension, and writing comprehension are all needed for literacy.
Add fluency to that list!!!
Parents used to read with their children, they used to sing rhymes and interact with their children.... now days parents just hand them a tablet to keep them occupied. 😢
Absolutely agree 100% as an old guy!
either raise your kids properly or don't pump out children
In my day kids weren't interacted with they were told to go away and be quiet. They were only told to do chores and then go away. My parents didn't read to me after age 2. Devices weren't a thing, hell a home PC was barely a thing. Remember DOS. I don't know what your parents did but my boomer parents expected the school to teach me book smarts, they were to drill manners, religion, behavior and work.
@@ajorgy315not my parents! They where very involved in our education. Maybe it’s cultural 🤷♂️
Nothing new about phonics. What's new is parents shoving a tablet into their kids hands instead of taking the time to read with them..
As a homeschool mom of 4, I had no idea they got rid of phonics in the public school system. I have always started with this to teach my kids how to read. Having that said, they have all started reading at different ages. One at 5 another at 6 and now one just starting at 7. It has made me nervous seeing my 7 year old struggle with fluency. I couldn't imagine by 3rd or 4th grade not knowing how to read anything 😮 I am glad the schools have been starting to overcome this.
I think that is a major issue. Many parents think there child is learning phonics and that is not always the case.
I know at the school so taught at phonics was taught! It must depend on the state, because it’s ridiculous if some schools still aren’t using phonics when the research supports it
7????? Homeschooling isn't working, chief😂😂😂
@@DopeyDetector I didn't read until 7 and I went to public school lol Also, when I say read, I mean able to pick up a book and read without help. Not just read a couple of sight words, repeat a story from memory, or sound out cvc words slowly. I'm talking about fluency...
@@rh10033 i was just breakin balls. I'm sure your homeschool is better than public. That's a real horror show
Anyone remember the distar approach to teaching how to read. I do. I learned basic phonics in kindergarten, then moved schools the following summer. The new school taught distar approach, which is a memorization technique. I as a 6 year old was yelled at by my teacher for trying to sound out the unknown word. I taught my daughter phonics when I realized she was struggling in reading. The only issue was they were more focused on retention of what is read over the ability to read. It's sad.
Yes! There is an amazing book called Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons that uses this method. I’ve taught my own kids using it and cannot recommend it enough.
English has so many irregularities with pronunciation though. Like the “a” in “apple” is a different sound than “a” in “are”
@@trawrtster6097 English has 26 graphemes (letters) and 44 phonemes (sounds).
There are outlier words, but not as many as people would like to suggest. There are rules and patterns of letters that children will benefit from learning.
Been teaching for 31 years. The kids who do best are those with actively involved parents who set high expectations and work with the teachers and schools instead of blaming them.
Parents, start reading to your kids every single night and start EARLY.
now im glad that my dad made me have an English tutor from 5-9 years old. Crucial time of my life, and I learned a lot. My tutor was also the greatest woman ever. Unfortunately, the tutor academy shut down for a reason I'm not aware of. I miss her. I want to show her my gratitude.
"as long as government has kept track" is the big problem. Screw government and parent more.
“We don’t necessarily think it’s a miracle that children learn to read.” Wow, the power in these words. This is the way education should be. The standards shouldn’t keep lowering because children don’t reach them. Change the system to ensure they do!
I was a late reader too. I think I was 8 when I learned. But once I learned I felt so powerful and I really started to adore education.
My kids have been reading since the age of 3. If anyone needs motivation to homeschool, they need to watch this! Truly sad.
My wife and I homeschool and its the best decision we have made
I blame the parents. My mother and immigrant became a teacher. My reading level was always way higher than my classmates. When you read well and speak well you are made fun of. I would be told I sounded white. I would say English is my first language how am I supposed to sound. I also busted my behind to learn proper Spanish in high school and get mocked for it. Told no one speaks that way. Both languages I speak too well and it makes people mad.
Wow, this is truly shocking to see. In the UK, phonics had been used for centuries to teach children how to read from kindergarten age.
Thank God for that teacher in Ohio for the boldness to start using phonics in her school.
To be honest Wikipedia say UK also were using whole language
There is a reading curriculum if anyone is looking to help their struggling child.
It's called " All About Reading". Look into it, we homeschool and because of that I have been able to teach my oldest to read, which didn't come easily to her. This curriculum uses the phonics technique mentioned in the video. Its a multisensory curriculum and also has games and letter tiles. It teaches children to read through sight, sound and touch, because not all children learn only through sound.
Kids in France don’t start learning to read until 7 so seems like more is going on here. Lack of parental help at home, class sizes that are too large…
They use whole language approach or whole words approach. You can Google it. It's a disaster. Especially if you read Reddit about it. Some actually teach their kids at home. But like half of the class in middle school can read only words that they know.
Of course the schools have to do a better job teaching our kids to read, but parents have a role in educating their kids as well. My mama taught me how to read before I started school. And I've been doing 10-minute reading lessons with my son since he was 3 years old. It's hard at times, but it's far too important for me to completely trust someone else to do it.
Stories like this is why my hustle during college was tutoring. I tutored in English and Math teaching students the methods I learned in school and everyone passed. We would get the right answers the old school way then apply the methods they were learning in school afterwards so they could still show the work that way when it was requested.
You tutored in English, yet have zero grasp of punctuation 😂😂😂😂
@@DopeyDetector I wasn’t aware that YT comments needed to be formally written. Thanks for letting me know 🙂
@@anjealin259 You're welcome 😘
@@anjealin259 beautiful hair, btw
@@DopeyDetector thanks
Watching this with tears in my eyes broken-hearted about those children 🥺. Thank you teachers for believe and invest on them, the system is sick and want people be ignorant slaves living in poverty. I wish the best future for all these precious kids.
That’s what it is! The system is corrupt. Imagine a teacher having to hide that she’s teaching kids properly. They don’t care about these brown and black kids. So she had to do it herself, and show that it works wonders. They would have never listened to her.
Most of us watching this news report should reflect on how we learned to read and where we learned to read . Then I’m curious about the home environment of many of the children featured…. Are their homes immersed with books? Do family members have a public library card? Are these children seeing their parents and other family members reading? I grew up in the early 60’s before integration and reading was an expectation….. even while being black and poor. Of course we didn’t have the distraction of iPad , Nintendo switch, cell phones and we had a b/w tv. Sometimes it takes investing time with your children in those things that’s most important .
@@marlenamcmurray8067 I agree with you. I’m an immigrant mom, I don’t speak English well but I am always taking my 1st grader to the public library, I read for him since he was little and I encourage him to read every day, I listen him reading to me. Parenting efforts and participation can change the children lives
These policies seem almost arbitrary- why is it so difficult for these administrations to LISTEN to the teachers and principals, you know, the ones in the classrooms everyday 🙄
I teach middle school (special education) and am currently in the position of having to teach basic phonics skills to struggling 8th graders. This crisis is very real.
Also give them practice reading grade level texts with you or a classroom aide helping them read and/ or decode unfamiliar words - build their sight words lexicon, because if they have processing issues like dyslexia for instance, they may never absorb phonics (blending skills) as well as their same age same grade level peers. Research does indeed confirm this. Help them attach meaning to each word they read, if they read a new word and don't know or understand what it really means, give them specific real world examples and show them pictures if you can. Dyslexic people become good readers through sight words and meanings of words, which happens in the right brain rather than the left (left is where decoding and encoding/ sound blending/ phonics skills take place).
@keithbushsuarez7445 Thanks so much. These tips are great! It's a must that I provide direct instruction with unfamiliar words and use images to connect what they already know to the unfamiliar. For example, last week, a student was completing a probe for progress monitoring. The topic was about a parade. I knew the comprehension was there, but by showing a video and images, the student made the connection to carnivale (native to their culture) and the parade, supported their overall understanding of the passage. The student redid the assessment and scored much higher the second time around. Also, this group of students receive exposure to grade level texts through their ELA class where the on level curriculum is taught. Their ESOL needs are addressed in that setting as well 😊
@@NYCAppl3 Yeah so phonics can be useful for a lot of students and should be taught and retaught, but after 12 years of working in SPED and working a lot with students with processing issues and attention issues, and after having read all the research I've read, I really have found that focusing more on sight words/ whole word approaches and attaching strong meaning and real world connections to each word is by far the better way to go for a lot of students with attention and processing issues; basically, you'll know when you see things click for students just like you did with your student who connected an unfamiliar word to carnival which they know from their own culture, those moments are what we constantly have to search for as SPED teachers I think, there's a reason our students reach upper elementary and beyond grade levels and still have as much trouble sounding out and blending as they do sometimes, we have to therefore attack other ways of absorbing new or difficult words, for me asking my dyslexic students to sound out words even after a huge amount of review of sounds and direct support with blending is kind of like asking a paraplegic to climb several flights of stairs with no extra supports in place, it's unrealistic at times and in my experience it's just not how their brains absorb and store new words... Thanks for listening and for working hard out there too, it's a very troubled field and a very troubled time for education and for people in general right now, wish our country prioritized the middle and working classes way more than it does, feels like we're all just hanging on right now...
@@NYCAppl3 mad respect for all sped teachers! But also please do not listen to the dude above. I think he might be the sight word spokesman of the year or something. He is completely right that you support semantic knowledge with context but implementing a sight word heavy approach for the majority of students struggling will absolutely lead to “guess and go” speed first path that led us to this mess in the first place.
@keithbushsuarez7445 I grew up with a special needs class since I was in preschool after I got hospitalized as baby and I remember that I wasn't able to read until age of 10. When I was 10 years old I normally hate reading a book until my mom got me into books like Dork diaries, Diary of a Wimpy kid and Raina telgemeier's comics books. I becoming obsessed with books that I like and able to read. And I love Sailor Moon and others anime books that I would to read everyday. Nowadays I was in normal class in high school.
Parents need to STOP all screen time. No video games! Make them READ. Kids aren't practicing reading/writing enough. Also make your kids memorize spelling words weekly. Both are critical.
It starts with parents doing the same. Kids will do as you do, not as you say
It's not always as simple as ditching the screens. First of all, after working all day, I have zero energy to work with my kid on school stuff. I was seriously considering suicide a year ago because the burnout was so bad. Secondly, my kid hates her peers. Many are impossible to get along with, which as required a lot of work on my part to socialize her and help her make friends (something that, again, I don't have the energy for). Third, I tried to get my kid to read, but the fights and meltdowns over school were nonstop for YEARS! Like literally hours a day every day. Now we homeschool, which I hate because I am literally dragging my kid through her education, forcing her to do it, and she puts absolutely ZERO effort into it. She literally doesn't care about school. How do you change that when they've already decided that they aren't going to do it? There have been so many times when I wanted to just give up and let her quit school for my own mental health. This is not a hill I ever thought I'd die on when I became a parent. And it is literally killing me. My mental health is at an all-time low because my relationship with my kid basically revolves around fighting over school. I think it's caused both of us to turn to screens as a coping mechanism because I don't see another way out of it, and my relationship with my kid is terrible as a result.
Games help with problem solving and can teach real world issues, there's even a link to kids who play video games becoming surgeons due to their mental and physically acuity. Video games are also an easy, harmless form of stress relief for students. I've played games since I was very little, and I'm studying physiology Don't ban, but MODERATE.
Moderate what your kids play, how long they play. Cut off the online games unless supervised because that's where a lot of the problems are coming a lot of the problems are coming from.
Changed career direction recently, started as a middle school science teacher in my 30's. Always telling the kids to sound out the word in assignment questions and not worry about their little spelling mistakes when it comes to science vocabulary. I substituted as classroom support for English and suggested the same strategy when the teacher told me they no longer do phonics in elementary school and probably don't understand how to break down the word.
I couldn't believe it! We learned to read this way without even being told all the technical jargon about phonics.
Phonics is the most effective way to teach a child how to read because it gives a (scientific) method to a seemingly abstract topic especially if English is not spoken at home
It's funny how this is coming out after so many years. Just when there's a major downfall is when they announce it. Not to mention, the structure of early learning, just with the basics such as reading, writing, and math (the THREE which build the foundation in a child's education) are what a kid in preschool/kindergarten needs (not science or history, not until they are a older). This is also something that parents (before becoming parents) should be aware of also. You want your kid to succeed? Be a part of their life and get off the phone.
I started to learn how to read and comprehend in 3rd grade, which was late. I was grateful for two major factors. The first factor was the school giving me extra time outside of class with a teacher to help me. This class was only a few students and it would be done in the middle of the day, so the students weren't tired. I class had 1:1 sessions, computers with programs and collaborative reading groups. This school was labeled a blue ribbon school for a reason. The second factor was the stable environment my grandparents gave me when raising me during this time. They brought structure and safety to my life. There are many factors that contribute to a student's success but schools should play their part as well.
I am a 32 year old black American and i was taught to read during summers by my grandmother long before i attended school. I was too young to attend camp with my older brothers so my grandmother who was a high school history teacher would buy workbooks at the store and work with me a little bit each day before i played or watched cartoons. I was an advanced reader in elementary school and i would bring books into the bathroom with me because i loved them so much. We had African fables, i read about ben carson, Ralph bunch and other notable black American pioneers. My parents also took us to barnes and nobles or borders on the weekend and we would get milk and cookies and pick out books to read to ourselves in the cafe. Sometimes we would purchase the books and sometimes we wouldnt. It was one of my best memories from childhood. I think it starts at home and for some reason the people in my community choose to not make the effort. I bet alot of those kids know every lyric to rap songs though smh. Im going to be having my daughter next year and she will be reading in German and English. Parents do better
💯
Learning to read has to happen at home. No matter how many chromebooks, smart boards, and over-credentialed “learning specialists” schools pay for, they can’t replace reading at home to your kids.
That said, as a former teacher, I wholeheartedly advocate for homeschooling.
As a PARENT AT 9TH GRADE UR SON CANT READ OR SPELL WHAT R U DOING? school is not the end all be all. the PARENTS need to PAY ATTENTION and PARENT
Lord I thank all of the educators and involved parents that are doing the work to encourage reading. I cried watching this video because I loved reading as a child. 😢
Learning how to read should start at home, and schools should be a place to help strengthen it.
exactly! parents need to put as much effort they put in keeping their jobs and into pursuing their own education into their children.
My twins are 4. They’re reading at a grade 2 level. I practice with them multiple times per week about 15 minutes. All it takes is parents setting aside a little time a few days a week to help their children. Don’t solely rely on the school.
my daughter learned to read fluently at 5. she resisted initially but we persisted. you have to persist, and you have to start before 5 years old.
You don’t have to start before 5, many Nordic countries don’t start until 7 and they have excellent reading rates.
It's amazing how old math and reading are and yet still so hard to teach.
I’m a nurse, but to me teachers are the true heroes. I just love teachers so much! Thank you for all you do for our kids. ❤
I am a nurse too and I agree with your statement.
I’m also a nurse and I agree.
We have so much to manage but I think teachers have more.
Wgas that you're a nurse? What a bizarre comment 😂
@@DopeyDetector 🙄
@@flabunny1 just praise a teacher with your queefy humble brag
Not at all surprised they profiled a Louisiana family. I lived there for five years and was shocked to learn how far behind their education system was compared to my home state (Minnesota).
My school never taught me how to read. Never. They were terrible at it. It was my mother who taught me to read every day. God bless her.
I had the same experience.
Mrs. Pleasant was my 4th grade teacher! She is a TREASURE and it's no question she led the charge to help those kids and Warrensville Heights! This absolutely brought tears to my eyes. I didn't struggle to read but as an adult now I have a child with special needs and would give anything for him to have a teacher like Mrs. Pleasant. There aren't many out here like her unfortunately.
So one of the main issues is that they changed the way they teach children to read😯. No more phonics. Just like they changed the way they teach math. Wow!
It’s screens. Kids don’t learn with screens especially young, they need people.
The glaring problem is parent involvement. Learning doesn't just stop at school. Kids need to read with someone individually. Teachers can only provide so much one on one attention. Parents need to do their part.
I am here crying for these kids. 😢
Liar
This is pathetic. iPads, parents, and school districts are to blame. Everyone is becoming lazy and I noticed here in Texas loads of kids are dyslexic.
"Why Johnny can't read" was written almost 70 years ago, yet the discussion about phonics is still going on. It is like school districts do not want kids to learn how to read.
I'm sure the United States isn't the only country with this problem. I grew up in Western Australia. I left school at 15 and started working. My math was so bad that I wasn't placed in any math classes after my first year of high school. I went back to school in Canada as a mature student. I did some 'upgrading' in math and english. English was never a problem for me but I had to start at grade 8 maths. Fractions. I made it to calculus 12 but it took years. I'm currently working on a second Degree in computer science and I'm 50 now. Looking back, I feel angry. Once I understood math, it was fine. The method of being taught math is not fine. I persisted and noticed fellow adults in the same position as me get frustrated, leave the class and never come back. Not all textbooks are user friendly and I was told by one instructor that she could have 3 students in front of her. Two will understand what she's saying and one person won't. She said it's up to that person to overcome any embarrassment they may feel to say they don't understand and it's her job to find another way to explain the concept until that person does understand. It made me feel better when she told me that. It has nothing to do with how smart a person is. Some people are more visual learners or their auditory learning is sharper. Different learning methods should be implemented in schools and individual progress charts might be another way to identify problem areas for students so they don't fall behind and drop out of school.
This makes me glad that my mother read to me every night. It truly does begin at home.
I remember they taught me phonics in kindergarten which helped me grasp proper English pronunciation, and by second grade we were writing and reading stories. Only a few of my classmates struggled with this.
Man, if you can’t read by 4th grade you are really behind. Good luck to them. Literacy is the backbone of our democracy.
So, none is going to bring up Lucy Caulkins and the Reading Workshop model that was implemented in schools across America? Because they are liable.
Yes!
From my perspective, with 3 children, there's more of a Math crisis than a literacy crisis. The math tutoring is costly, but falling behind in math is a total nightmare.
I am someone from Asia (India) who never got less than 90 out of 100 during 12 yrs of education. Math is easy once you understand.
@@SatabdiKundu07Mabey for you.
think about this .......... All the teachers and all the universities, over the past 100 years haven't figured out how to teach reading.
Education has switched between whole word, phonics, and blends more times than can be counted.
The biggest thing is exposure and building a love for reading. Aside from disability, it comes together naturally.
I would say the biggest shift in classeooms over the past couple of decades has been that kids with disruptive/violent behaviors are no longer removed and isolated. If your child has bad behavior kids in their prek-2 classes, do a lot of work at home because those behaviors distract kids and drain the teacher.
To people saying video games are the problem: it's not the games, it's your child's usage.
Games help with problem solving and can teach real world issues, there's even a link to kids who play video games becoming surgeons due to their mental and physically acuity. Video games are also an easy, harmless form of stress relief for students. I've played games since I was very little, and I'm studying physiology Don't ban, but MODERATE.
Moderate what your kids play, how long they play. Cut off the online games unless supervised because that's where a lot of the problems are from .
@autismogamer I'm SUPPORTING them. Read the whole comment before responding.
The games themselves aren't bad and are actually great learning tools. Just depends how you use them, some games require moderation or supervision and moderation over screen time in general has benefits.
@autismogamerOP was defending video games not blaming them. just responding to comments blaming them. They made a comment about the education system before this one too I think
If parents wait for kids to learn reading at school, they're creating this problem.
I am a product of the phonics movement. I had teachers that focused on phonics. I didn’t hear about the battle between phonemic awareness and whole language in the education communities until I took “Reading in the Content Areas” when I was pursuing my certificate and masters in secondary education. What I learned was students read to learn in the upper grades around 4th grade and above. Early literacy is learning how to read which this investigative report illustrates. As we see in real experiences across several districts is the need for a reading curriculum that embeds phonics, phonemic awareness so that students can get from decoding words to reading fluency, (reading without stopping and breaking and decoding or deciphering a word) to reading comprehension. As an educator and chemist I HIGHLY suggest to everyone please become a volunteer at a local elementary school and help a kid. They all need us. 😊
Within the historical context of a people once forbidden to read at the threat of death this is deplorable.
When I learned how to read, it felt like a super power. Being able to decipher the little symbols written on the pages. Knowing how to read was cool. I think that maybe it’s not so much the same now. It’s good that we don’t shame children no matter how old or even adults who can’t read but help how we can.
I’m in complete and utter shock that state legislatures would remove phonics from the students curriculum. That’s INSANE!!! 🤯🤯🤯 It’s literally the foundation of reading.
They clearly never heard the phrase “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it”. Such a weird thing to do
@@asahdo 💯💯💯
This is the beauty of homeschooling - you're not dependent on a local or state school board deciding what fad they want to force on everyone next. You can just teach your child in a way that actually works.
Homeschool kids are extra fucked up.
Parents who read. Parents who read to their kids. Parents who keep books in the home. Parents who get married and stay married. End of story.
When I was a kid, my twin and younger brother struggled with reading, and the teachers weren’t helping them. My mother is a teacher herself, and she knew about phonix, so she took matters into her own hands and had all four of us spend two hours every Sunday learning phonix. She printed out games, got us movies, and spent a lot of time. She made it fun and had all of us do it so my brothers wouldn’t feel left out.
Both of my parents have full time jobs and my mom still found time to teach me to read well before kindergarten. Just saying.
My son's school implemented phonics starting in Kindergarten. My child was a COVID kindergartner. I noticed that many of his classmates are suffering greatly because of the time lost learning from home. Parents were not equipped nor did they have the resources to be a teacher to their children. Fortunately, l am a stay at home mom. I was able to sit there and teach my son. There was a lot of material that had to be covered.. Kindergarten is the foundation of a child's entire education. I can't even imagine how it was for families with two working parents or single working Mom's and Dad's.😢 My heart went out to them during that very trying time.
I'm sorry, its not that hard to learn how to read. The parents should mostly be involved.
As a single father who lives in the South, I KNEW for a FACT it'd be a folly to assume my son was going to get much of an Education down here. So I read to him beginning at a young age--in addition to myriad other things.
These kids are functionally illiterate because their parents are that way--because READING is not a priority of any kind in the household. . ..at least as much as watching TV, playing with their cell phones, drinking beer, getting high, fighting, or watching other adults throw balls around.
(If you want to dispute this, please list ten books you have on your bookshelves.)
Just as much: Why are schools continually dumping PROVEN teaching methods like Phonics for whatever new educational sham is out there? It's been going on like this for a long time; maybe these new gimmicks are hacks they're trying to incorporate to try and make up for DECADES of decline and falling behind.
It should be a complete and utter embarrassment to be so stupid, or to manage things so stupidly. But here we are, giving out little Participation Trophies to Adults for making things slightly less shitty.
In this particular report they did not highlight the importance of language comprehension and it's role in reading instruction. Researchers have found that language comprehension is essential because if students with limited language and vocabulary learn basic decoding skills they still need to know the meaning of the words they are learning to read. For example, if a student from a low-income household successfully decodes many words they do not know the meaning of in a text, that will limit their ability to comprehend the text. Listen to the podcast Sold a Story by Emily Hanford.
Parents its Our Job to teach our children to read, my dad was a hardworking Plumber, who's work day started at 6Am ,and when I was 5-6, every evening before the tv/games he taught me to read, then once I learned, he made me read books out loud to him.