Learning to Read Words: Theory, Findings, and Issues

Reading words may take several forms. Readers may utilize decoding, analogizing, or predicting to read unfamiliar words. Readers read familiar words by accessing them in memory, called sight word reading. With practice, all words come to be read automatically by sight, which is the most efficient, unobtrusive way to read words in text. The process of learning sight words involves forming connections between graphemes and phonemes to bond spellings of the words to their pronunciations and meanings in memory. The process is enabled by phonemic awareness and by knowl-edge of the alphabetic system, which functions as a powerful mnemonic to secure spellings in memory. Recent studies show that alphabetic knowledge enhances chil-dren’s learning of new vocabulary words, and it influences their memory for doubled letters in words. Four phases characterize the course of development of sight word learning. The phases are distinguished according to the type of alphabetic knowledge used to form connections: pre-alphabetic, partial, full, and consolidated alphabetic phases. These processes appear to portray sight word learning in transparent as well as opaque writing systems. Life is indeed exciting but demanding these days for researchers who study read-ing. Because many educators are seeking evidence as the basis for decisions about reading instruction, there is great interest in scientific studies of reading processes and instruction. My studies over the years have focused on how beginners learn to read words. My plan is to review what I think we know about learning to read words, particularly sight words; to present some new findings that involve chil-dren’s vocabulary learning and memory for orthographic structure; and to point out some issues that linger. An issue of special interest is whether this research in English is relevant for more transparent orthographies.