Reading & Other Learning Disabilities

From Reading & Other Learning Disabilities

A Blog by Dr. Gary G. Brannigan and Dr. Howard Margolis

Recently, Paul Thomas of Furman University asserted, “Those who can, teach. Those who cannot pass laws about teaching.” To a large extent, he’s right. But to increase the accuracy of his statement, I revised it slightly: “Most who teach, can. Most who teach, care, understand, and passionately advocate for their students. Most who pass laws about teaching know little about teaching or education. Many who pass laws about teaching care little.” (2011)  Read more...

If your child struggles to recognize words, should he memorize the “rules” of phonics? Generally, no. Here’s why.

Many of the “rules” of phonics are not rules, but overgeneralizations. The number of exceptions makes them highly fickle, highly unreliable. Often, they don’t work; they confuse children with reading disabilities. That’s why we put quotation marks around the word “rules” and why it’s often better to teach children with reading disabilities how to pronounce common spelling patterns.  Read more...

Many myths surround phonemic awareness and phonics. These myths hurt children, especially children at risk for or with reading disabilities. By understanding the better scholarship about phonemic awareness and phonics, you may be able to protect children from harm.

The quotations below summarize much of the better scholarship. If you’re involved in making decisions about phonemic awareness or phonics, we suggest that you study these quotations, review the sources, and, if appropriate, share these quotations with others.  Read more...

Yes, it’s important if he struggles to recognize words.

One of the many abilities critical to a child’s reading success is his knowledge of the sounds that letters make, and his ability to use this knowledge to figure out unfamiliar words. This is phonics.

Phonics is critical, but it’s not everything. It’s not the child’s comprehension of what he reads, or the fluency with which he reads, or his ability to understand words he hears. But it directly effects each of these. Here are some reasons:  Read more...

Simply put, no reading method or commercial program is best for teaching reading to children with reading disabilities. Every method or program has flaws. As Richard Allington, past President of the International Reading Association, has noted, no program is complete, no program is as important as the teacher:  Read more...

Contrary to the view of most journalists, parents, and politicians, reading disabilities are not necessarily caused by deficits or problems within children. Instead, the cause is often poor teaching, underfunded schools, and poor policies. The simplistic remedy is to blame teachers and schools and demand higher standards. But as H. L. Mencken so justifiably said, “For every complex problem there is an answer that is clear, simple, and wrong.”

So what does this have to do with preventing and overcoming reading disabilities?  Read more...

From Reading & Other Learning Disabilities

A Blog by Dr. Gary G. Brannigan and Dr. Howard Margolis

Reading materials alone can’t ensure high quality reading instruction. Such instruction requires teachers to consistently use sound instructional practices. To assess this, you might discuss your child’s program with his teachers, observe his classes, or have a private reading specialist do both as part of a reading evaluation.

For the moment, let’s assume you hire a reading specialist. Before the specialist discusses your child’s program with his teachers, the two of you should agree on the questions you want answered. Dozens of such questions are listed in Reading Disabilities: Beating the Odds. Here are a few:  Read more...