Get the latest tech news
A 1960s schools experiment that created a new alphabet
Decades ago, a generation of UK schoolchildren unwittingly took part in an initiative aimed at boosting reading skills – with lasting consequences
The “reading wars” – the long-running tension between phonics-led approaches, which involve breaking down and sounding out words,and those that emphasise context, comprehension and whole-language exposure – are very much alive. In 2022, a landmark study by researchers at UCL’s Institute of Education found that the current emphasis on synthetic phonics is “uninformed and failing children”, and “not underpinned by the latest evidence”. Photograph: Courtesy of Candida Books and CollectiblesSome defenders of ITA, like Brocklehurst, think its logic wasn’t so far removed from phonics – now a government-mandated method for teaching reading in English primary schools.
Or read this on Hacker News