‘Phonics’ test fears as kids slip behind

THOUSANDS of young children in Birmingham are falling behind when it comes to basic literacy.

Nearly one in five Year 1 pupils in the city – 19 per cent – are failing their phonics tests, new figures show.

Phonics is a teaching method where children learn to read by sounding out and blending letters. It is designed to give them the skills to read fluently and confidently.

Every year, Year 1 pupils are given a 40-question test to decide whether they meet expected standard in phonics decoding.

In all, 3,074 five-and six-year-old children across the region failed their phonics test this year, and will have to take it again in Year 2. By the end of Year 2, 90 per cent of children in Birmingham had passed the test in 2019 – although that still left 1,647 pupils who had not.

The test itself is controversial – particularly because half of the words children are tested on are actually made up. Some experts remain sceptical that the phonics method is best suited to promoting fluent reading.

Dr Mary Bousted, joint general secretary of the National Education Union, said: “The over-emphasis on phonics has distorted the teaching of reading in schools, and has produced no discernible increase in children’s ability to read with understanding and pleasure. The phonics check is another example of a test which undermines, rather than supports, the principle of a broad and engaging curriculum in primary schools.”