In 2023, Reid Lyon developed 10 maxims—salient truths that have been learned over the past five decades of scientific reading research. Administrators must attend to these maxims as part of their efforts to build understanding of evidence-aligned instruction and to gain clarity about frequent misunderstandings about the science of reading.
An effort to improve reading instruction by only adding a phonics program to address word recognition is one such misunderstanding. It is essential to attend to the full scope skills, such as spelling, vocabulary, writing, etc., that make up the complexity of reading and issues related to reading.
The Science of Reading Defining Guide explains this in detail. Hollis Scarborough’s reading rope, illustrated on page 19 of the Defining Guide, is a metaphor for this complexity. Although the reading rope strands are separate in the beginning, this does not mean that each skill should be taught and practiced in isolation. Instead, look for opportunities to connect instruction to ensure word recognition, language comprehension, language development, reading comprehension, and writing are all attended to.
In working together to clarify a definition, the Science of Reading: Defining Guide was created to provide all stakeholders with a clear understanding of what the science of reading is, what it is not, and much more. The Defining Guide also includes 11 calls to action for all stakeholders. Pertinent to this Curriculum Decision Makers content is the following call to action: “We call on curriculum publishers and professional learning providers to create and promote products that are aligned with the science of reading and to eliminate non-aligned products from their offerings.” Unfortunately, some publishers continue to offer materials and professional development that claim to be aligned with the science of reading but are not.
Many states have mandated the use of high-quality instructional materials to be chosen from lists based on alignment to standards, useability, and often one other feature—outdated practices. Alignment with the science of reading was frequently not included in the development of these lists. While some have identified aligned practices within curricula, none identified non-aligned practices. As a result, many states adopt curricula featuring instructional practices that can inadvertently prevent students from developing proficient reading and writing skills.
To assist curriculum decision makers, The Reading League developed its Curriculum Evaluation Tool, later renamed Curriculum Evaluation Guidelines (CEGs) in 2022. The most recent update of the CEGs (February 2023) places red flag practices front and center in the review process to help decision makers steer clear of curricula featuring them.In working together to clarify a definition, the Science of Reading: Defining Guide was created to provide all stakeholders with a clear understanding of what the science of reading is, what it is not, and much more. The Defining Guide also includes 11 calls to action for all stakeholders.