Kids have to learn that you get something through your own smarts. These are hardly qualities to help children understand their own thoughts and emotions, feel secure about themselves, be creative, assess accurately the views of others, care about others, understand the world, and make sound judgments. Another way to see what underpins the literacy debate is by contrasting the following two questions. This second question encompasses the first, but unlike the first, includes the array of influences, both inside and outside the classroom, that contribute to literacy success and failure. The Children's Defense Fund has identified many of the ways in which resources contribute to classroom teaching and learning.
Money also buys transportation and communication.
Gerald Coles writes on psychology and education. Can Hurt Children's Learning. The Reading Debate , from MiddleWeb, is a page of links to resources and research on teaching reading using phonics and whole language. 1998 Editorial Projects in Education Vol.