Return-Path: <nifl-aalpd@literacy.nifl.gov> Received: from literacy (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by literacy.nifl.gov (8.10.2/8.10.2) with SMTP id hAA9sSV22363; Mon, 10 Nov 2003 04:54:28 -0500 (EST) Date: Mon, 10 Nov 2003 04:54:28 -0500 (EST) Message-Id: <20031110095041.72680.qmail@web14309.mail.yahoo.com> Errors-To: listowner@literacy.nifl.gov Reply-To: nifl-aalpd@literacy.nifl.gov Originator: nifl-aalpd@literacy.nifl.gov Sender: nifl-aalpd@literacy.nifl.gov Precedence: bulk From: tom zurinskas <tzurinskas@yahoo.com> To: Multiple recipients of list <nifl-aalpd@literacy.nifl.gov> Subject: [NIFL-AALPD:807] Re: curriculum development as PD X-Listprocessor-Version: 6.0c -- ListProcessor by Anastasios Kotsikonas Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Status: O Content-Length: 2296 Lines: 57 A friend of mine wrote from California about an article in the papers Oct 23, 2003. Previously he told me that the teaching of phonics in that state was actually "banned" in the school systems until recently. He says optimistically below: "In California, in the days of 'whole word', state tests showed that about 60% of the children learned to read despite the lack of early phonics instruction. In affluent neighborhoods the percentage was much higher. The kids come to school knowing the alphabet and how to spell cat. "State reading and math test scores were just released in California. They show a most promising increase. It made headlines in today's paper. This since the big push to return to the teaching of phonics. The schools are claiming the credit. Not a word is ever written regarding the change from 'whole word' to phonics. They do mention something about the teaching of 'basics'. (love these euphemisms) I don't think 'Reading California' has had much chance as yet to alter scores, but it will. It is now being taught in 85% of the public school districts in California. That is a huge number of students. "It is the 40% that we should be worrying about. That figure is much higher in poorer neighborhoods. I am convinced that a major source of crime in cities like Oakland is a direct result of lack of ability to read. I am also convinced that dyslexia is primarily a term for those poor children who were taught to read improperly in the first place and just can't shake the habit of viewing a word as a logograph, not a sequential arrangement of characters which represent sounds. No wonder their brain scans look different. "I also think that the creation of a tremendous body of illiterates in the US by poor teaching techniques is one of the greatest National tragedies that has ever taken place." ===== Read all about truespel at truespel.com. Read “Truespel Book One: Analysis of the Sounds (Phonemes) of USA English http://www.1stbooks.com/cgi-bin/1st?partner~1st|type~6|Data1~16593 Convert text to truespel USA accent by copy/pasting it at: http://www.foreignword.com/dictionary/truespel/transpel.htm __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Protect your identity with Yahoo! Mail AddressGuard http://antispam.yahoo.com/whatsnewfree
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b30 : Thu Mar 11 2004 - 12:15:24 EST