Changing How Literacy Is Taught: Evidence on Synthetic Phonics
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Abstract
A significant number of people have very low levels of literacy in many OECD countries. This paper studies a national change in policy and practice in England that refocused the teaching of reading around "synthetic phonics." This was a low-cost intervention that targeted the pedagogy of existing teachers. We evaluate the pilot and first phase of the national rollout. While strong initial effects tend to fade out on average, they persist for those with children with a higher initial propensity to struggle with reading. As a result, this program helped narrow the gap between disadvantaged pupils and other groups.Citation
Machin, Stephen, Sandra McNally, and Martina Viarengo. 2018. "Changing How Literacy Is Taught: Evidence on Synthetic Phonics." American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, 10 (2): 217-41. DOI: 10.1257/pol.20160514Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- I21 Analysis of Education
- I24 Education and Inequality
- I28 Education: Government Policy
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