It was recently announced that the Maryland public school system will start utilizing the techniques of phonics and vocabulary when teaching students to read, starting next school year. The article from WTOP.com states Interim State Superintendent Carey Wright “unveiled a resolution that calls for all public schools to begin using Science of Reading methods starting in the 2024-25 school year.”

What is phonics based reading exactly? Phonics teaches children how to decode letters into their respective sounds, a skill that is essential for them to read unfamiliar words by themselves. Phonics instruction explains the connections between written language letters and spoken language sounds. Reading proficiency hinges on grasping the alphabetic principle, where letters symbolize the sounds in spoken language. Decoding involves employing letter-sound associations to convert a written word into spoken language.

The transition also accompanies a lofty objective as Maryland endeavors to secure a position among the top 10 states in fourth and eighth-grade reading NAEP scores by 2027. The resolution notes that in Maryland, the NAEP reading proficiency rate is currently 31% for fourth graders and 32% for eighth graders. Notably, Maryland's average score among fourth graders declined from 24th in the nation in 2015 to 40th in 2022, while scores for eighth graders dropped from 18th in 2015 to 25th in 2022, as outlined in the resolution.

What does this mean for your kids? Personally my method of teaching reading skills has always been a phonics based. The phonics approach has worked well for my students, and in fact is supported by decades of brain science. I think this is a step in the right direction for the Maryland school systems.

Using my phonics-based approach and techniques developed through 30-plus years of teaching and tutoring, I’ve brought most kids to reading at their grade level in one to two years. To discuss your child’s needs, contact me at nancy.kachursky@rteseduc.org.