| To most intermediate, middle, high school, and | | | | On the other side are the "Whole Language |
| college teachers, teaching context clues means | | | | Junkies." These "defenders of the faith" believe |
| helping students consciously identify and apply | | | | that extensive shared, guided, and independent |
| strategies to figure out the meaning of unknown | | | | reading teaches students to read as the readers |
| words through hints in the surrounding text. | | | | gradually acquire the reading strategies (with a |
| These hints include pictures, syntax, text format, | | | | heavy emphasis on context clues) to identify |
| grammatical constructions, mood or tone, | | | | words in the context of reading. Fair to say, |
| mechanics, and surrounding words that provide | | | | these teachers place more emphasis on the |
| synonym, antonym, logic, or example clues | | | | semantic (meaning-making) cueing components of |
| Many of these teachers would also label the | | | | reading, such as the use of context clues, than on |
| structural analysis of the unknown word itself as | | | | the graphophonic (visual and phonemic) |
| a context clue. Using morphemes (meaningful | | | | components of reading. These folks are |
| word parts, such as Greek and Latinates), | | | | nowadays less easily identified, because their side |
| syllabication strategies, grammatical inflections, and | | | | is currently re-trenching in today's "No Child Left |
| parts of speech also can help students figure of | | | | Behind" educational environment. But, you usually |
| the meaning of unknown words. Some teachers | | | | can tell who they are by their CLOZE procedure |
| would also include using hints outside of the text, | | | | worksheets, their vast collection of miscue |
| such as prior knowledge or story schema in their | | | | analyses, their personal class library of over 1,000 |
| definition and application of context clue strategies. | | | | books (crowding out the spaces set aside for |
| Teaching context clues for vocabulary | | | | spelling and grammar workbooks), and their signed |
| development is widely accepted and practiced. | | | | wall posters of Ken Goodman, Margaret Moustafa, |
| However, there is another application of context | | | | and Stephen Krashen. |
| clues that is not as widely accepted and practiced. | | | | Although the generals argue over tactics, the |
| This use of context clues is highly controversial | | | | strategic goals of both sides have much in |
| and stirs up intense debate about how to teach | | | | common. Both believe that their tactics should |
| reading. | | | | lead to independent meaning-making, that is, |
| Because the initial task of teaching students to | | | | reading comprehension should be the objective. |
| read largely falls upon the shoulders of primary | | | | Both agree that reading automaticity (fluency) is |
| teachers, these teachers tend to be more familiar | | | | important and that their teaching methodologies, |
| with this debate than their colleagues who teach | | | | that is, the sound-spelling connections for the |
| older students. However, the underlying issues of | | | | "Phonic-ators," and the "psycholinguistic guessing |
| this debate are just as relevant to intermediate, | | | | games (Goodman)" for the "Whole Language |
| middle, high school, and college teachers who | | | | Junkies," will best lead to efficient, accurate, and |
| teach "reading to learn." | | | | "unconscious" word recognition. Both believe that |
| The issues of this debate involve whether | | | | reading is a complex and interactive process, in |
| context clues should be used as the primary | | | | which prior knowledge and cognitive ability are |
| strategy for word identification. Word identification | | | | important variables to actively address. |
| generally means the process of pronouncing | | | | So, having identified the two uses of context |
| words by applying reading strategies. Word | | | | clues, that is vocabulary development and word |
| identification should be distinguished from word | | | | identification, is using context clues for word |
| recognition, which generally means the ability to | | | | identification a bad thing? My view is that it can be |
| recognize and pronounce "sight words" | | | | when it is taught as the primary strategy for |
| automatically, without applying reading strategies. | | | | identifying words. I personally tend to lean on the |
| The role of context clues in word identification is | | | | research that proficient readers rely more on the |
| the crucial issue behind the Reading Wars. | | | | graphophonic (visual and phonemic clues) as their |
| On one side of the battle are the "Phonic-ators." | | | | primary strategies for word identification, while |
| These "defenders of the faith" believe that | | | | struggling readers tend to rely on context clues |
| teaching phonemic awareness and phonics should | | | | as their primary strategy for word identification. |
| be the primary means of teaching word | | | | Kylene Beers, in her book When Kids Can't Read, |
| identification. Fair to say, these teachers place | | | | summarizes the problem of using context clues |
| more emphasis on the graphic cueing components | | | | for word identification: "... discerning the meaning of |
| of reading, that is the alphabetic code, | | | | unknown words using context clues requires a |
| syllabication, and spelling, than do those on the | | | | sophisticated interaction with the text that |
| other side of the battle. The "Phonicators" | | | | dependent readers have not yet achieved." The |
| de-emphasize the use of context clues to "guess" | | | | proof is in the pudding: if good readers do A, and |
| the meanings of words and teach students to | | | | bad readers do B, then teachers should teach A |
| decode words in and out of context. These | | | | more than B. |
| graphic cueing folks are easily identified by their | | | | It does makes sense that readers need to learn a |
| sound-spelling wall posters, their phonics and | | | | variety of strategies for word identification so |
| spelling worksheets, their assessment data | | | | that when one method fails, they have other |
| matrices, their spelling workbooks, and their | | | | back-up methods to assist. Explicit graphophonic |
| decodable paper-book stories. Their file drawers | | | | instructional strategies should serve as the first |
| are filled with Jeanne Chall, Marilyn Adams, and | | | | line of attack and semantic instructional strategies, |
| Keith Stanovich article summaries. | | | | using context clues, should serve as back-ups. |