Michael Rosen explains the difference between a phonics test and a reading test (Letter from a curious parent, Education, 31 January). In a phonics test, children pronounce words presented to them in a list. In a reading test, children have to understand what they read. Of great interest is the consistent finding that heavy phonics […]
Invest in libraries, not phonics tests | Letters Read More »
Finland’s answer to a slip in standards is to put more ‘joy’ into the curriculum. We visit a school in Yorkshire that aims to show the UK could do the same ‘New core curriculum for basic education emphasises the joy of learning,” reads a recent headline on a government education website. This new, more joyful
In 2011 the schools minister trumpeted the benefits of phonics teaching. But a quarter of seven-year-olds’ literacy skills still haven’t made the cut Back in 2005, the BBC reported David Cameron (you’ll remember him), then shadow education secretary, saying: “The biggest problem facing education today is the fact that one in five 11-year-olds leaves primary
Dear Justine Greening, whatever happened to ‘eradicating illiteracy’? | Michael Rosen Read More »