Roots of Phonics: A Historical Introduction - Hardcover

Balmuth, Miriam

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0070034907 ISBN 13: 9780070034907

Publisher: McGraw Hill Higher Education, 1982

Synopsis

This classic in the literacy literature is back in print to reach the new generation of teachers who need to understand phonics, but probably were never taught about them in school. Through a historical presentation of the relation of English phonics to spelling, writing, and reading (this book) brings to teachers and reading researchers insights into the importance of phonics in education over several centuries. ""The Roots of Phonics"" follows the evolution of English phonics through the change wrought in it by centuries of diverse speakers, ensuing standardization, and the progression of different forms of phonics instruction (from the first edition). This is a classic in the field (Marcia Henry based her thesis work on it) that has gone out of print due to the acquisition of its original publisher. While Miriam is no longer active in the field, she participates in IRA, IDA, and SSSR. Bringing this book back to publication will introduce a whole new generation (many of whom were not taught to read using phonics) to this necessary resource. It has not really been updated since the last edition, other than a new foreword, a new note to the reader, and some new exercises that Tara created.

About this title

Review:

"I always keep this book within easy reach because I can rely on its accuracy, thoroughness, and detailed documentation of historical sources. Balmuth's scholarship is impeccable."--Louisa Moats, Ed.D."author of Speech to Print" (12/01/2008)

"A splendid read and a meticulously researched book. . . offers rich and unique insights on the role phonics plays in different writing systems and its impact on how reading development and instruction are conceptualized. Should be required reading for all engaged in fostering literacy."--G. Reid Lyon, Ph.D."Distinguished Professor of Education Policy and Leadership, Southern Methodist University" (12/01/2008)

"The original "Roots of Phonics "was a major resource for my own dissertation. Thankfully, the book is back in print for linguists, teachers and all persons interested in the history of written language and its importance to reading instruction."--Marcia Henry, Ph.D."Professor Emeritus, San Jose State University" (12/01/2008)

"Simply a must read to anyone who has wondered why they're saying the words they're saying."

About the Author:

Miriam Balmuth is Professor Emeritus of hunter College of the City University of New York. Dr. Balmuth received a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from New York University and an M.S. in Elementary Education with a specialization in developmental and remedial reading at The City College of New York. Formerly Professor of Education, she helped develop and then headed the M.S. program in Reaching Teacher Education at Hunter College. She has been a classroom teacher and a reading clinician. Marilyn Jager Adams, Ph.D., is a cognitive and developmental psychologist who has devoted her career to research and applied work in the area of cognition and education. Dr. Adams' scholarly contributions include the book Beginning to Read: Thinking and Learning About Print (MIT Press, 1994). Among honors, she has received the American Educational Research Association's Sylvia Scribner Award and The International Dyslexia Association's Samuel Torrey Orton Award.Dr. Adams chaired the planning committee for the National Academy of Sciences (1998) report Preventing Reading Difficulties in Young Children and has served since 1992 on the planning or steering committees for the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) in reading. She also developed a vocabulary assessment for the 2014 National Assessment of Adult Literacy (NAAL) and was on the development team for the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts and Literacy.Dr. Adams has authored a number of empirically validated classroom resources, including Odyssey: A Curriculum for Thinking (Charlesbridge Publishing, 1986), which was originally developed for barrio students in Venezuela; Phonemic Awareness in Young Children: A Classroom Curriculum (Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., 1998) on language and literacy basics for emergent readers and students with special needs; Open Court's 1995 edition of Collection for Young Scholars, a program for reading, writing, and literacy development for elementary school students; and Scholastic's System 44 (2009) and iRead (2013), technology-based programs for building literacy foundations. She has also served on the advisory board for several of the Public Broadcasting System's educational programs including Sesame Street and Between the Lions, for which she was Senior Literacy Advisor.Dr. Adams spent most of her career with the think tank Bolt Beranek & Newman (BBN Technologies-"Where Wizards Stay up Late") in Cambridge, Massachusetts. From 2000 to 2007, she was Chief Scientist at Soliloquy Learning, which she cofounded with the goal of harnessing automatic speech recognition for helping students learn to read and read to learn. She is currently a visiting scholar in the Cognitive, Linguistic, and Psychological Sciences Department at Brown University. She has two children: John, who is working toward a Ph.D. in social psychology, and Jocie, who is striving to be a musician. Her husband, Milton, is a rocket scientist at Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Charles Stark Draper Labs.

About this edition

• Publisher: McGraw Hill Higher Education
• Publication date: 1982
• ISBN 10: 0070034907
• ISBN 13: 9780070034907
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 251