Jim Cummins University of Toronto Journal of Teaching and Learning 2022
In this article Jim Cummins argues that the basic premises that the Right to Read report are based on are incorrect as he states that the claims are not supported by scientific evidence. He compares Canadian PISA results with other English speaking international schools, namely US, UK, Australia, and New Zealand demonstrating the flaws in the data analysis in the report. Second, Cummins explores the ‘myths of phonics as panacea’ providing alternative experimental evidence for the efficacy of a contextualised/balanced literacy program in the first year of schooling. Finally, he offers the reader with a way forward arguing that instruction should focus simultaneously on ‘ensuring that all students are supported in developing decoding and other foundational skills, while at the same time immersing them into a print-rich, engaging, and communal literacy environment that extends beyond the classroom into children’s homes’.
Link: https://jtl.uwindsor.ca/index.php/jtl/article/view/7279