Literacy news

Warning as schools 'shun traditional reading methods'

20 Jan 2012

Ministers warned that children were being left with poor reading skills because of a refusal to use phonics, the traditional system that breaks down words into individual sounds.

The Department for Education named 10 local councils that have failed to fully adopt a Government-backed phonics programme, even though many pupils in the local area leave primary school with poor reading standards.

Many were named as authorities covering deprived urban areas, such as Luton, Portsmouth, Sheffield and Hull.

Nick Gibb, the Schools Minister, said:

Too many children are missing out on the best possible teaching of reading.

But teaching unions insisted that staff should be free to choose which teaching methods to adopt.

Christine Blower, general secretary of the National Union of Teachers, said:

The Government is determined that all those authorities and schools which do not see the merits of synthetic phonics will be bullied, harassed, named and shamed until they feel they have no choice but to accept the latest dictat from above.

This is extraordinary behaviour from a department whose ministers have made much of trusting the profession and allowing those who know to get on with it.

Last year, ministers announced that funding would be available for schools to spend on new teaching materials and training sessions linked to phonics. The programme was launched in September and schools can claim up to £3,000 to buy products and training until March 2013.

So far, around one-in-five primaries – 3,211 – have taken advantage of subsidised teaching products and almost 1,000 have booked phonics training for staff.

Read the full article at The Telegraph.

Tags: Schools & teaching, Schools Network

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