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Usable Knowledge

The End of the Reading Wars

A national committee conducts a review of interventions targeted for young children at risk of having reading problems
photo of children's books

This 1998 report from the National Research Council brought an end to the raging "reading wars."

Preventing Reading Difficulties in Young Children Book CoverPreventing Reading Difficulties in Young Children — edited by Harvard Graduate School of Education Professor Catherine E. Snow, M. Susan Burns, and Peg Griffin — offers groundbreaking consensus on effective literacy practice for young children. A committee of nationally recognized professors and educators, chaired by Snow, concluded that no single reading method, used in isolation, works best for all children. Recommendations encourage teachers to use a mix of phonics and language experiences to support the development of a wide range of learners in a context where literacy demands are increasing at a dramatic rate.

The book is available online, at no charge, on The National Academies Press website.  

 

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