USA: 'Tennessee trains thousands of secondary teachers in reading science'

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Debbie_Hepplewhite
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USA: 'Tennessee trains thousands of secondary teachers in reading science'

Post by Debbie_Hepplewhite »

Fantastic news from Tennessee described in this piece by Barbara Davidson via the Thomas Fordham Institute site!

I have long since advocated that ALL teachers should be training in the reading science - not just early years and infant teachers!

I constantly point out the teaching reading and spelling in the English language is challenging, and the perception of 'phonics' needs to be changed from thinking it is 'infant stuff' to understanding it is code knowledge and phonics skills applied to lifelong reading and spelling - as required (such as for new, longer and more challenging words for reading and spelling) - that is, phonics is 'adult stuff' and everyone should appreciate this shift in perception.

One could argue that England has led the way in official (governmental) guidance based on the reading science and leading-edge classroom findings with the need for 'systematic synthetic phonics' teacher training and high-quality provision for children - but this has been directed for those teachers in the infant sector.

This development in Tennessee is great news indeed - bring on the training for the secondary teachers - for ALL teachers:
Tennessee trains thousands of teachers of secondary teachers in reading science

By Barbara Davidson
https://fordhaminstitute.org/national/c ... ng-science
For all the welcome attention being paid to the Science of Reading, and literacy in general, there has been little focus in public policy on how to address the learning needs of secondary students who, for whatever combination of reasons, have failed to learn to read in elementary school.

Earlier this year, the “What Works Clearinghouse,” an arm of the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute for Education Sciences (IES), made steps to elevate the narrative about secondary literacy when it issued a practice guide entitled, “Providing Reading Interventions for Students in Grades 4–9.”
It's a pity all English-teaching countries don't adopt the same phonics check introduced in England in 2012 as a statutory assessment! Then everyone could gain a comparative snapshot of their early teaching effectiveness and avoid the need for so much failure and 'intervention' as learners get older.

Only England out of the United Kingdom ensures teacher-training in 'systematic synthetic phonics' and has rolled out a statutory Year One Phonics Screening Check since 2012. And yet, we need this check across the UK and across the world where English is taught to young beginners.
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