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Assignment looking at the relation to the two strands of the Simple View of Reading (SVoR) model, language comprehension and word recognition. I Consider what needs to be done in order to teach reading effectively in a KS1 classroom....

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In relation to the two strands of the Simple View of Reading (SVoR), language comprehension and word recognition, what considerations need to be made in order to teach reading effectively in a KS1 classroom? To understand how to teach reading effectively in a Key Stage 1 classroom it is essential to consider the influential theories and processes which are involved with both teaching reading and learning to read. It is also fundamental to be familiar with the requirements which have been set out in the National Curriculum as this is the most widely followed documentation within schools in England. By giving attention to these aspects, a teacher will become better equipped to understanding the learning stages and needs of the children and will be able to adapt their teaching to promote individual development based on the most effective practices. The complex process for learning to read has been represented by various models, as described by Ann Browne. (Browne, 1998) Each model emphasises different aspects of reading, such as the bottom-up model which highlights the importance of language, especially phonics in early reading. Justly fitting for its name, the top-down model stresses attention towards the opposing process of word recognition, this being language comprehension, and argues that bringing meaning to the text will develop effective readers. The Simple View of Reading (SVoR) is a model which combines the beliefs of the top-down and bottom-up models and portrays language comprehension processes and word recognition processes as having equal importance in developing readers and that each process is reliant on the other. Therefore, both components should be taught separately and children should be aware of which activities teach comprehension skills and which develop word recognition skills. (Rose, 2006) The Rose Review, an independent study into the teaching of early reading, found that synthetic phonics is the most effective method of teaching reading, the Rose Review adopted the Simple View of Reading model and since the review was undertaken, phonics has become the primary approach of teaching reading, and schools are obliged to teach this due to government policy. (DfES, 1998,) A

study by Ofsted found that ‘a very rigorous and sequential approach’ is the most effective strategy for phonics teaching. (Ofsted, 2010) Research into an incremental approach to phonics stems from Jean Piaget’s work into cognitive development. Piaget found that the mind organises information into units known as schema and that learning is most effective when it is based on what the learner already knows. Phonics teaching must be based on what the children have learned in the previous session. (Rose, 2006) The Rose Review has had a great influence to the teaching of phonics in schools, making assessment a crucial part of practice. Individual assessment from the beginning of the programme means that interventions and extra support can be put in place sooner, which will help to prevent the individual’s learning gap from widening, it is also vital in highlighting children with special educational needs. The SVoR model can also support assessment, the quadrant layout allows teachers to identify individual children’s areas of need. This will mean that children will be grouped in one of four areas, ranging from poor word recognition and language comprehension skills to strong word recognition and language comprehension skills. The groups which children are placed in represent their level of development in reading and teachers could use these groups as the phonics teaching groups. The English language has approximately forty-four phonemes, teaching should start with an introduction to the twenty-six, single sound alphabetical phonemes. As progress is made, children will learn to blend sounds together, which is a vital skill in decoding new words and widening vocabulary. Children will go on to learn digraphs, which consist of two letters but make one sound. Alternative sounds will to be introduced early on, this is when a phoneme can make a different sound dependent on the word, for example the letter ‘g’ can also have a ‘j’ sound such as in the word ‘gel’. Although phonics is the ‘best route for children to become fluent and independent readers, (Rose, 2006) not every word in the English language is decodable, some common words will need to be learned by rote due to alternative sounds, these are known as high-frequency words.

Based on the Rose Review, decoding should be the basis of all word recognition and once developed children will be able to recognise words quickly, allowing them to focus more on the meaning of the text. (Rasinski, (2003) cited in Pardo (2004)) Every child’s understanding of a book will be different, due to their own personal characteristics, experiences and knowledge of the world. (Pardo, 2004) Pardo states that fluency can be built through teachers modelling shared reading to the class on a daily basis. (Pardo, 2004) Shared reading provides an opportunity for the children to enjoy books which they may not be able to read at home. The first time a teacher reads a book to the whole class, it should be read without posing questions to the class. The content should contain suitable language and encourage interaction with the children. For the children to effectively engage with the book, the teacher should use books which focus on situations the children can empathise with. Shared reading is beneficial for children of all ability and can help children to gain awareness of the relationship between spoken language and print. The children will also gain an understanding of narrative structure and how punctuation is used within a text. This is essential reading knowledge and will help to improve the child’s independent reading. Similarly to the teaching of phonics, comprehension is constructed by building on prior knowledge, with this is mind, teachers must plan carefully around what the children already know. Teachers should also encourage students to respond to the texts they have read, (Pardo, 2004) this could be written as a review or more informally through talking about the book. Robin Alexander stated that ‘the principal means by which pupils actively engage and teachers constructively intervene is through talk.’ (Alexander, 2008) By expressing their ideas and talking about their favourite books, children are actively participating in what Aidan Chambers describes as ‘The Reading Circle.’ (Chambers,1993) The reading circle revolves around three aspects which encourage children to read, one of which is about having the opportunities for different types of reading, another is that children have the books which they want to read and the last is that the children can make responses about the books they

have read. By providing relevant books for reading and discussions, teachers will be promoting children to want to read. In order for readers to be engaged in a book they will need to concentrate for a period of time. The more time which readers have and the more opportunities they have to read for pleasure will improve how long they can concentrate on a text. In the centre of the reading circle lies the enabling adult who has the potential to introduce the children into the reading circle. This is vitally important in improving the children’s reading competence, as ‘there is a growing body of evidence which illustrates the importance of reading for pleasure for both educational purposes as well as personal development’ (Clark and Rumbold (2006) cited in DfE, (2012)). A reading for pleasure agenda ensures that the children choose their own books, this in itself means that the child will need to make their own reading decisions, which in effect creates their own reading identity. Talking about books will make the reader become thoughtful, how the book affects them and whether they enjoyed it and why they enjoyed it may be questions answered. (Chambers,1993) The effective teaching of reading ultimately revolves around the enabling adult. Chambers tells us that in order to create a desire for reading among children there must first be a desire for reading by the teacher. A reading teacher is more able to recommend books to the children based on their personal reading identity. Chambers also speaks of the importance of ‘the reading environment’, by dedicating a specific area of the classroom to reading, the teacher will be giving reading value. This value could also be enforced by the appointment of book monitors, who would be responsible for the tidiness of the reading area. The reading area should be a special place and the children’s ideas should be considered with the layouts, displays, books and maintenance. (Chambers, 1993) It is important that displays are changed when the novelty has worn off, to do this the teacher should pay close attention and interest to what the children want to read. Books are a useful way of engaging the children whilst offering many teaching opportunities. When choosing a text to focus on in class, the teacher must first read the text at their own level. After this

the teacher should identify what the book can teach the children and plan for opportunities to discuss the book and relate work to it. The most important part of choosing a text is making sure that it will engage the children through curiosity, anticipation or suspense. If the text does engage the children, then it will make easier the teaching of other aspects. By connecting the book to real life experiences (such as role play, singing, writing) we are actively making connections between new schema and prior knowledge. Which Laura Pardo states as a fundamental aspect of teaching children to understand texts. (Pardo, 2004) To conclude, the teaching of reading should be a balance of activities related to improving word recognition and language comprehension. The process of learning to read first begins with phonics, which is a time-limited process. As children develop their phonological awareness, they will be able to focus more attention on understanding the meanings of the text, this will help the children to become thoughtful and reflective readers, contributing to the ultimate goal of creating readers for pleasure.

References Alexander, R. (2006). Towards dialogic teaching. 1st ed. Thirsk: Dialogos.

Browne, A. (1998). A practical guide to teaching reading in the early years. 1st ed. London: Paul Chapman. Clark, C., and Rumbold, K. (2006). Reading for Pleasure a research overview. The National Literacy Trust. Cited in Department for Education, (2013). Learning to read through phonics Information for parents. Crown. Chambers, A. (1993). Tell Me: Children, Reading & Talk. 1st ed. Primary English Teaching Association. Department for Education, (2013). Learning to read through phonics Information for parents. Crown. Department for Education, (2010). Phonics teaching materials: core criteria and the self-assessment process. Crown Ofsted, (2017). Reading by six, how the best schools do it. Manchester: Crown Pardo, L. (2004). What Every Teacher Needs to Know About Comprehension. The Reading Teacher, 58(3), pp.272-280. Piaget, J. (1952). The origins of intelligence in children. 1st ed. New York: International Universities Press. Rasinski, T. (2003) Fluency: Chasing the illusive reading goal. Presentation at the annual meeting if the Michigan Reading Association, Grand Rapids MI. Cited in Pardo, L. (2004). What Every Teacher Needs to Know About Comprehension. The Reading Teacher, 58(3), pp.272-280. Rose, J. (2006). Independent review of the teaching of early reading. Department for Education and Skills. www.standards.dfes.gov.uk/rosereview/...