Book reveals phonics used to help children read 350 years ago
PHONICS was being used in teaching 350 years ago and is not simply a modern craze – one of the world’s oldest children’s books has revealed.
The method of teaching has seen a surge in interest in recent years and is championed by the Government as key to raising literacy standards.
But despite phonics learning being introduced as a UK pilot in 18 local authorities in 2005, the system actually dates back to the 17th century. It is referenced in a book published in 1667 that has been uncovered in the archives of the University of Keele.
The battered leather pocket book for children includes a guide on phonics, which breaks down words into syllables and makes them easier to learn. The book, A Guide to the Childe and Youth, was published almost half a century before the next known surviving copy of British children’s literature.
Dr Nick Seager, a lecturer in English at Keele, said: “It offers a wonderful insight into what it was like to be a child during this time and this keyhole to the past provides a centrality to current concerns and how teaching back then has shaped our education today.”
The book was published when schools were predominately the preserve of the rich and many poorer parents educated their children at home.
Dr Seager said: “Parents could use this book with their children and children could also read it themselves.”
Research shows phonics can boost reading age by an average of 28 months by the time children turn seven. Boys benefit the most from the system and actually overtake girls after just two years of school, according to a study by Dr Marlynne Grant, an educational psychologist.
Dr Grant analysed the performance of pupils taught to read using synthetic phonics from reception year upwards. The school had high levels of special educational needs.