Theoretical Approaches to Reading Instruction

Learning to read can take on many different approaches including the alphabetical approach, words, and meanings. In the beginning it was believed that children should be taught he alphabet in order to learn how to read. However, because the alphabet was difficult to learn a song was created in order to help children learn their ABC's. This process worked for a while until around the 15th century A.D. when paper was made available. A list of syllables was then created emphasizing pronunciation and spelling. It was at this point when children were encouraged to read aloud. However, it was still difficult for children to form connections between the words and the phonetics.

As the years when on spelling came into its own. It was believed that children should learn some words before they leaned the alphabet. The words children would range from anywhere from a couple dozen to hundreds(311). At this point it was also believed that it was easier to understand short words rather than long words but that proved untrue.

In the Age of Enlightenment the meanings of the words began to gain importance. This is the part of the text that confused me the most. I was unsure of what the author was trying to convey. It talks about memorization and the repeating of books and stories. As well as the importance of sentences in our quest for the knowledge of reading. It also goes on to say that the purpose for reading is what became important because if people were reading for their own benefit and not because they had to the would further excel. Finally the subtext 'Meaning' talks about the transition between oral reading to silent reading.

Silent reading began to take a rise in the United States in the 1940's. "Words were introduced through meanings first - to be recognized holistically by sight. When straight recognition failed, the children were encouraged to rely on context and pictures, to narrow in on the word's identity through meaning-based inference"(312). However, in the 1950's children were still having a difficult time learning to read. While in the 1960's new theories on how the mind works were coming about. It was said that children should learn to read "by being encouraged to apply their innately given language-acquisition powers to text"(313). Which means that children should learn to read like they learn to speak and it should be a natural process. Furthermore reading for meaning would help children to further develop their ability to read. The text continues to talk about the mind and its ability to read or learn to read using the alphabetical system and its connection to understanding.

Writing is a Technology that Restructures Thought (Reread)

When I reread this the second time I realized that Ong was not talking about how writing negatively affects us and is bad but rather the positives writing has on our lives. Like computers writing has become much more to us., it is essential and invaluable. The following quote found in subsection 4 it better explains why I came to this realization. " Like other artificial creations and indeed more than any other, writing is utterly invaluable and indeed essential for the realization of fuller, interior, human potentials" (Ong, 23). He goes on to explain how technology is an exterior aid but how when it affects the words it becomes interior.

From Pencils to Pixels: The Stages of Literacy Technologies

I was very intrigued by Baron's writing about well writing. I found it interesting how he says that "the written language takes on a life of its own, and it even begins to influence how the spoken language is used." (p.75) Writing is very important for people and I liked how he connected the advances in technology and how it has not hindered our writing but added to its advancement. His explanation of how even the pencil we first used to write was an advancement in technology much like the computer or the telephone. I was interested in the attention needed to create a simple wooden pencil. Making a pencil is a lot like writing itself a very detailed process that produces an unimaginably gratifying reward in the end. I'm sure their will be more advances in technology in the future that will lead the way to easier ways to write.