The science of reading: Instruction focusing on phonics proven to produce successful readers

Jul. 21—As Austin Wallace learned literacy basics while in kindergarten at Ernie Pyle Elementary last year, his mom, Jamie, was impressed by his progression.

Her son was taught ways to sound out words to help him read words, Jamie Wallace said.

"This allowed him to build from sounds to words, words to sentences, then to reading short stories by the end of the school year," she said. "Overall, the system built confidence in my son, encouraging him to continue progressing."

The teacher, Stacey Hamrick, used activities that included using Play-Doh to make letters and sound boxes on iPads.

Jamie Wallace says the methodology enabled her son to excel.

South Vermillion School Corp. uses the science of reading, a methodology that uses direct, systematic use of five elements in literacy instruction: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension.

A new state law mandates that effective with the 2024-25 school year, all school districts adopt a curriculum aligned to the "science of reading," which is based on research about how brains actually learn to read.

Many students struggle with reading

In Indiana, one out of every five third-grade students is not proficient in key literacy skills, according to state IREAD test results.

And based on the 2022 NAEP (National Assessment of Educational Progress) testing, only about one-third of Hoosier fourth-graders were proficient in reading, mirroring national results.

The number of children with reading difficulties has prompted "an urgent push in Indiana to promote early literacy development using proven teaching strategies aligned with the science of reading," according to Katie Jenner, the state's secretary of education.

It also has prompted the new legislation, HEA 1558, authored by State Rep. Jake Teshka, which requires school districts to adopt science of reading curriculum.

The law says schools may not adopt curriculum based on the "three-cueing" model, which relies primarily on using context, pictures or syntax clues for literacy instruction.

The new legislation, which passed the 2023 General Assembly, also requires teacher preparation programs to use curriculum based in the science of reading by 2024. If they don't, a teacher preparation program risks losing accreditation.

Teachers licensed after June 2025 to teach a content area involving literacy instruction in prekindergarten through fifth grade must earn a new literacy endorsement indicating they are proficient in the science of reading standards.

Legislation passes without opposition

Commenting on the 2022 NAEP scores of Hoosier fourth-grade students, Teshka said, "We need to do better than that. Reading is the foundation of all other learning."

If a child can't read, it makes learning other subjects very difficult, said Teshka, who serves on the House Education Committee and has two young children, one entering kindergarten and another second grade.

He did a lot of literacy research and saw the American Public Media Podcast, "Sold a Story," which looks at why educators have been using a literacy approach that conflicts with scientific evidence, according to descriptions of the podcast.

Brain science shows "our brains are not naturally wired to read. We are naturally wired to understand spoken word, but then to map those words into the written word is something different," Teshka said.

Over the last few decades, districts may have used a "whole word" or "balanced literacy" way of teaching reading.

"It teaches kids how to become good guessers and not necessarily good readers. When kids go into higher grade levels and encounter complex words ... they are unable to work through those texts and understand them," he said.

The final bill passed without opposition in both the House and Senate.

The legislature approved additional funding, up to $20 million per year, to support Indiana Department of Education initiatives related to the science of reading.

Funds could go to school districts that need help with the cost of things such as literacy coaches and curricula, Teshka said.

Indiana is not alone in addressing the issue through legislation. According to Chalkbeat, dozens of states have passed laws in recent years requiring schools to use materials in line with the "science of reading."

South Vermillion schools emphasize method

The South Vermillion School Corp. uses the science of reading, said Melanie Beaver, director of curriculum, instruction and assessment.

The debate on how best to teach literacy is not a new one, she said.

In past years, schools have focused more on phonics, then the pendulum swung and schools shifted more to "whole language" and then a "balanced literacy" approach.

"Once and for all, the pendulum needs to be held in a place where decades of research point to how the brain truly learns to read. That stopping place is the science of reading," Beaver said.

Whole language includes practices such as the three-cueing system, which Beaver said "teaches children to read a word by guessing, looking at the pictures for clues to what the word might be, asking if it sounds right and making sense in the sentence based on their guess."

The idea is that children learn to read just by loving books and being surrounded by books.

"Whole language suggests that children will learn to read naturally, like learning to walk and talk. Its name suggests that reading must be taught as a whole rather than broken down into sequential, smaller components that build upon one another," she said.

Structured literacy (based in reading science) recognizes that reading is not innate. This approach begins with sound awareness and builds toward sound-symbol correspondence (letter naming), she said.

The only way students learn to read effectively is by decoding the word (sounding it out), not by guessing and using the pictures, Beaver said.

In South Vermillion schools, "Our K-2 teachers ... are years-deep in this research and the actual implementation of structured literacy, and they are so excited for the growth they are seeing," Beaver said.

The district is beginning year six of a switch from balanced literacy to structured literacy practices, Beaver said.

The Vigo County School Corp. uses the Wonders literacy curriculum from McGraw-Hill, which the company's website states is backed by the science of reading.

The science of reading is "basing instruction on what research has proven to work," said Janet Brosmer, the district's language arts curriculum coordinator.

The district's core reading program has been based on the five components of reading instruction: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension, she said.

There is an emphasis on phonemic awareness and phonics in grades K-2. "It has to be deliberate and focused instruction," she said.

There may be gaps and areas that need to be supplemented as well as professional development for teachers. With the new law, which took effect July 1, the district is getting information out to teachers "about anything we might need to enhance in our current program," Brosmer said.

Higher ed impact

The new law also impacts teacher preparation programs.

A recent National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) study suggests Indiana's largest teachers' colleges aren't properly preparing teachers to teach reading, something some of the colleges have disputed.

Eleven of 18 Indiana teacher preparation programs evaluated in Indiana received a D or F grade.

Indiana State University is among many colleges and universities in Indiana that have received a planning grant from the Lilly Endowment focused on science of reading.

"We've been looking at our curriculum throughout this past semester. So we're feeling pretty good about being prepared for legislation that's coming down the pike," said Carrie Ball, professor and chair at ISU's department of teaching and learning.

In the future, teacher preparation programs will have to provide evidence or documentation about how they are aligning with the science of reading in their curriculum, she said. That will be reviewed by IDOE.

Also, after June 30, 2025, new graduates in elementary education, early childhood or special education seeking their initial license will have to pass an exam for a literacy endorsement that incorporates the science of reading, Ball said.

ISU has been preparing to make needed changes, not reflected in the "D" score in the NCTQ study. The university did not provide the level of detail the organization had requested because of the time commitment that would have been involved, she said.

The grade "is probably not a good reflection of what we are actually doing with the science of reading," Ball said.

Based on the new law, ISU will have to make some changes. "We are trying to expand our curriculum from three courses focused on reading to four and we are doing a lot more of that systematic and explicit instruction that the science of reading is expecting," she said.

ISU also will incorporate more practicums and field experiences for students that are focused on early literacy development.

The current focus on science of reading is driven by statistics showing many children are not proficient readers. "So it's pretty clear we have a problem and this is an effort to solve it," she said.

She supports the shift to the science of reading. "I think this is the way to go for more kids. I think the science of reading will help more kids learn to be successful readers," she said.

The science of reading's systematic instruction tends to be helpful for kids that have difficulties learning to read, including those with dyslexia, English language learners and those who maybe for socio-economic reasons haven't had as much exposure to reading and language prior to coming to school, Ball said.

She believes the science of reading "helps capture those kids who need more support."

Successful rebranding?

Christopher Lubienski, director of the Indiana University Center for Evaluation & Education Policy, suggests science of reading is "kind of a new branding" for instruction that focuses on phonics.

The term "science of reading" tends to make it sound apolitical, he said. "It's not new, but it's been very successful with that rebranding," and many states, especially in the South, are adopting it.

While there are advantages to that approach, he suggests that other approaches should not be discounted as completely lacking in research-based support.

He does agree "there is certainly a crisis in U.S. education as far as literacy ... it should be on our policy agenda."

While many conservatives have tended to back the science of reading methodology, others with more liberal viewpoints also believe it will provide greater equity for children from disadvantaged backgrounds, he said.

Sue Loughlin can be reached at 812-231-4235 or at sue.loughlin@tribstar.com Follow Sue on Twitter @TribStarSue