Teaching Children to Read: An Evidence-Based Assessment of the Scientific Research Literature

Publisher: National Reading Panel
Publication Date: 2000
Full text available online at: http://www.nichd.nih.gov/publications/nrp/smallbook.cfm

Abstract (written by WestEd)

This report by the National Reading Panel, based on a review of the research literature, discusses instructional methodologies for each type of skill students must learn to be successful readers. Skills identified and discussed are alphabetics (phonemic awareness and phonics), fluency (accuracy, speed, and expression), and comprehension (vocabulary and text comprehension). Guided oral reading helps children become fluent readers and is more effective than silent reading.

Phonemic awareness is knowledge that spoken words are made up of tiny segments of sound, referred to as phonemes (e.g., "go" and "she" are each made up of two phonemes). Phonics is the process of linking these sounds to the symbols that stand for them, the letters of the alphabet. Comprehensive explanations are available at www.nichd.nih.gov/publications/pubs/readbro.htm.

Explicitly and systematically teaching children to manipulate phonemes significantly improves a child's reading and spelling abilities. Phonics instruction produces significant benefits for children from kindergarten through sixth grade and for children having difficulty learning to read. The greatest improvements in reading were seen from systematic phonics instruction —— teaching a planned sequence of phonics elements, rather than highlighting elements as they happen to appear in text. The greatest gains for children with learning disabilities and low achievers came from systematic phonics instruction combined with synthetic phonics instruction —— teaching students to explicitly convert letters into phonemes and then blend the phonemes to form words. No single approach can be used for all students.

Vocabulary should be taught apart from and within text passages. Repetition and multiple exposure assist vocabulary development. Students need to learn a variety of techniques and systematic strategies to assist in recall of information, question generation, and summarizing information. Teachers must learn when and how to teach specific strategies.