Curate's Egg?
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Some teachers says that the book changed their lives. I'm not one of those. Put off, sometimes, by a rather know-it-all tone - "Until this moment you probably never knew this" - and by sidelines such as some odd assumptions about why a mother's educational background can be seen as an indicator of a child's success (more likely to spend time teaching their child to read and to send them to independent schools), I find myself wondering how sound some of her other statements are, too. Nevertheless, McGuinness does have some sensible, analytical things to reveal, and does so in some order. Her talk about reading as a skilled behaviour that needs to be taught as such is spot on, for example, as is her pre-Literacy Strategy breakdown of the way in which the phonic "Code" develops and is put together. So all in all I find it a Curate's Egg: parts of it are quite good. But not a book on phonics to change my life.
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An accessible insight into the nature of literacy
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McGuinness offers the casual reader, as well as the professional, valuable insights into the nature of the acquisition of literacy, dispelling the anachronistic remainders of learning deficit theory (notably dyslexia), and proposing a structure of learning based upon the logic of the available and largely consistent English-language spelling patterns. The details of her analysis genuinely surpass those of the modern theorists whose views continue to hold sway in British education (Frith, Goodman, etc.), and can be used by reflective practitioners to give much-needed meaning to the word-level objectives stipulated by the National Literacy Strategy. The gulf between received curricular ideas and the mechanisms of learning is apparent after reading this book. A superb achievement, and invaluable reading.
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Not speculation - this is how to teach reading and writing!
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Stephen Pinker famously advocates that language is instictive. McGuinness makes the equally important assertion that writing is not. Dyslexia is not pathological but adoption of the wrong strategy for reading and writing. Written English is a system of associating sounds within a word (phonemes) with symbols (letters). As there are more sounds than letters then letter-to-sound teaching (phonics)is at the very least going to leave gaps. McGuinness examines this and other theories of teaching reading and writing and lays bare their failings both in their failed logic and lack of scientific foundation. She looks at the development of writing systems and the reasons that English writing took the form it has. Thus she explains the problem and how it bears on the solution. Then she presents research which convinces of the effectiveness of teaching reading in the right way. This is one of those books that makes its point then allow you without invitation to skip to the back - to PRACTICAL SOLUTIONS (including diagnostic devices and where to get curriculum materials). If you take this course then return some time - there's some facinating reading which adds sense to the advised methods. Teachers read this book. Parents read this book. There are far too many people who cannot.
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