The science of reading, beyond phonics

Schools across the country have been shifting their reading strategies to incorporate knowledge and best practices they have learned from the science of reading. More than 30 states have written legislation that requires schools to utilize scientifically researched instructional strategies.

The largest change most states will see as a result is a dramatic increase in explicit phonics instruction. As a result, an increasing number of students will be able to access grade-level texts.

I predict this will be reflected in summative and benchmark scores. However, picking words off the page is only a portion of what is measured in benchmark assessments. If we wish to see continued success, we will need to use everything the science of reading has taught us and provide students with a healthy diet of explicit literacy instruction that includes foundational skills like decoding, in addition to building content knowledge and higher-order comprehension strategies.