How Can We Educate Educators Who Struggle with Critical Thinking?
one year ago 87
Learners
generally fall into two categories: approximately 80% of children accept what
their teachers present without question, often learning to read through
patterns and analogies. In contrast, about 20% are logical thinkers who
question everything they encounter. When their lessons conflict with prior
knowledge or fail to make sense, these children may shut down or disengage from
the learning process. This was already discovered by Thorndike in 1913 (More
than 100 years ago). LINK
When children
enter primary school, they bring knowledge acquired from kindergarten and
influences from parents, siblings, friends, and various media.
The Reading
Reform Foundation UK (RRF) and its members often overlook how poorly taught
foundational skills can adversely affect children. When initial learning is
flawed, it becomes challenging for students to build new knowledge on a shaky
foundation.
I have
reached out multiple times to the RRF regarding the negative impacts of certain
educational programs, such as Baby TV.
The RRF's
mission statement emphasizes their commitment to improving reading instruction,
based on extensive research that highlights the
importance of letter-sound relationships, alongside skills in sounding out and
blending. They assert that comprehension requires first being able to read the
words.
However, in
response to my outreach, RRF executives indicated that they receive numerous
requests and viewpoints, making it impossible to address them all. They
suggested that I write and publish my program instead.
Read my
letter to Debbie Hepplewhite and Geraldine Carter of the Reading Reform
Foundation. LINK
While I have
successfully worked with my daughter to remove several YouTube videos that
mispronounced phonemes, many others continue to circulate globally, including
one from January 20, 2014, that has garnered over 6.1 million views. LINK
I believe
there are vested interests keen on maintaining the status quo. The dyslexia
industry is a multi-billion-dollar enterprise, and the more children who
struggle with reading, the more profit these stakeholders stand to gain.