Knowledge-Building in the News

In recent years, the New York Times has covered the “science of reading” story like a glove. (See for example, here, here, here and here.) But based on the articles in the Times and most other publications, you’d be likely to conclude that the only “science” related to reading was about the benefits of teaching kids phonics.

To be clear, systematic phonics instruction is crucial. It’s just not enough to equip kids to be good readers at higher grade levels. Studies show that the benefits of reforms focused on phonics and other foundational reading skills generally disappear after fifth grade.

What becomes important at higher grade levels is the knowledge and vocabulary that, as cognitive science tells us, students need to understand increasingly complex text. That knowledge should be built through the curriculum starting in kindergarten if not before. Early knowledge-building is crucial for later success, especially for kids who are less likely to pick up academic knowledge outside school.

An increasing number of elementary schools across the country have been adopting curricula that focus on building knowledge, and teachers in those schools often see students exceed their expectations on a daily basis. But, with a very few exceptions, you wouldn’t know that from the plethora of news stories about the “science of reading” that have come out in the last several years.

Earlier this month, though, there was a stop-the-presses moment for those of us who have been advocating for knowledge-building curricula: the Times devoted a full seven paragraphs to describing what building knowledge looks like in the classroom and why it’s important.

Fifth graders discuss the Renaissance

National education correspondent Dana Goldstein gave readers a window into a Louisiana school serving a low-income population, where “a diverse group of fifth-graders sat, rapt, as their teacher, Lauren Cascio, introduced a key insight: that the Renaissance, the Scientific Revolution and the Reformation all occurred during the same period of human history.”

Goldstein catalogued vocabulary words students were learning, like skepticism and heliocentric, and reported that they discussed Leonardo da Vinci and wrote about “how the ideas of Copernicus and Galileo differed from those of the ancient Greeks.” She noted that kids were using actual books and pencils rather than digital devices.

She also mentioned the Knowledge Matters Campaign, which has been advocating for knowledge-building curricula for almost a decade, and observed that some