SOME OBSERVATIONS ON BEGINNING READING-INSTRUCTION

In this article, I review findings from 25 years of my own reading res earch that bear on the issue of skill-oriented versus holistic approac hes to beginning reading. Several studies suggested that successful be ginning readers demonstrate early development of word-recognition skil ls. These studies also indicated that both more and less successful re aders make extensive use of contextual information when reading. Two e xperimental studies suggested that increased instructional and curricu lum support for word recognition result in improvements in reading ski ll compared to whole-language instruction. In conclusion, I suggest th at it is a mistake to treat systematic instruction of word-recognition skills as an alternative to instruction that emphasizes reading ''aut hentic'' texts and building language comprehension. Both word-recognit ion skills and building comprehension should be part of a reading prog ram aimed at creating effective independent readers.