Evening star., 1954-06-08
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alton in aptitude for spelling,
even among people in homogen-
Gus groups. One school official
admitted with embarrassment he
always had trouble with spelling
Another said spelling came easy
to him; once he saw a word
spelled out, he had it.
There have been bitter things
said about the teaching of read
ing in recent years and spelling
is involved.
Parents who remember they
read even before they went to
school, or who began to read
promptly in the first grade, be-
come alarmed when their chill
dren are slow to read.
The psychologists, and teach
ers, too, assert there is such a
thing as reading readiness.
Six-year-old children vary in
their development; some travel
faster than others in learning.
Some children, perhaps by de-
ciphering traffic signs at which
the family car is stopped. slowed
or started, read before they go
to school. Others. especially
those who see little or no reading
in the home, may approach it as
a big task.
It is the practice now to start
the child in reading only when
he is ready for it. This readiness
business can be carried too far.
however. "A good teacher can
help develop child's readiness
for reading.
But she has, probably, a
larger number of pupils than
she should have. Some are fast
travellers. They get through as
signed tasks quickly and then
the teacher has to find addi-
tional work for them. There
is a larger group of average
readers. Then there is the
slower group. They will get
there, by persistence, and it is
the teachers job to keep them
perSiSting.
1t is unfortunate, but under
standable, therefore, if the
teacher replies more on hope
than help for the unready
child's readiness to develop.
Apparently, more study has
gone into the teaching of read
ing than in the teaching of the
other elementary skills. A gen.
Grafton ago the stress was on
sounding letters and groups of
letters in syllables, and then
putting the sounds together to
make words. The child read
phonetically. Then he turned
the skill around and phonicS
were help in spelling.
Later the emphasis shifted to
teaching the child to recognize
whole words at sight. It led to
much Speedier reading. There
was the belief. however, it
wasn't good for the spelling. y
A college professor said re-
Gently his son, a junior high
school student, could read much
more rapidly than he. But"
he added; 1.-The boy can't SPELL"
Balance Sought.
Parents charge that teachers
gave up phonics." The schools
deny this. 1t is conceded, how
ever, that the shift frorl phcnics
to sight reading probably went
too far and there is a disposition
now to strike a balance.
1t is still stated that there is
no adequate evidence to support
a fiat statement that the teach
ing of phonics can increase eff
cheney in spelling instruction.
Some children have little ability
to associate letters with sounds.
For example, one fifth grade
child wrote "eanut" for receive
and "elnust" for running"
Despite all the talk about SPELL
ing and the viewing with alarm,
it is doubtful anything will be
done about it unless the public
insists it be made a major subject
of the curriculum, which it is not,
or unless sufficient pressure or
inducement is offered to over
come the dislike of many teach
ers to teach spelling.
Probably this will not occur so