Science of Reading
The science of reading is a vast, interdisciplinary body of scientifically-based research about reading and issues related to reading and writing.
This research has been conducted over the last five decades across the world, and it is derived from thousands of studies conducted in multiple languages. The science of reading has culminated in a preponderance of evidence to inform how proficient reading and writing develop; why some have difficulty; and how we can most effectively assess and teach and, therefore, improve student outcomes through prevention of and intervention for reading difficulties.
Reading is not natural like speaking, but some kids pick up reading very easily—about 5%.
Another 35% of students do okay with “broad instruction.”
The majority of students need explicit, structured, diagnostic, and prescriptive instruction.
Kids with dyslexia need much more repeated, explicit instruction about how letters represent sounds in written words.
This explains why so many children do not learn to read through exposure to books and language.
The Reading Brain
Functional MRIs of the brain prove that “picking up the mechanics” of reading isn’t easy or natural. Reading acquisition is neurobiological and unrelated to intelligence.
The Four-Part Processor
The Four-Part Processor refers to different areas within the left hemisphere of the brain that work together to decode and understand words in text. The phonological and orthographic processors work together to decode words. Once the word is decoded, the process then moves to the meaning processor where vocabulary knowledge is helpful. Finally, the context processor must work with the meaning processor to determine the appropriate meaning of the word(s).
Humans are born with brain circuitry to pick up spoken language, but no one is born with reading circuitry. Reading has to be taught (Psychology Today, May 2018).
The Simple View of Reading
A formula introduced by Gough and Tunmer in 1986 known as “The Simple View of Reading” demonstrates that Decoding and Language Comprehension are separate and necessary skills for Reading Comprehension. For example, a student with strong language and poor decoding will not achieve reading comprehension.
Scarborough’s Reading Rope
Scarborough’s Reading Rope is a famous framework that depicts the complexities involved in learning to read. Dr. Hollis Scarborough spoke of skilled reading as resembling the “strands” of a rope, using pipe cleaners to illustrate the interconnectedness and interdependence of all the components. The Reading Rope consists of lower and upper strands. The word-recognition strands (phonological awareness, decoding, and sight recognition of familiar words) work together as the reader becomes accurate, fluent, and increasingly automatic with repetition and practice. Concurrently, the language-comprehension strands (background knowledge, vocabulary, language structures, verbal reasoning, and literacy knowledge) reinforce one another and then weave together with the word-recognition strands to produce a skilled reader. This does not happen overnight; it requires explicit instruction and practice over time.