Former teacher calls for the way reading is taught in Scottish schools to be overhauled

Anne Glennie wants to see the way reading is taught in places like Australia and the USA brought into Scottish primary schools

A Scottish mother wants to see the way reading is taught in Scotland completely overhauled in a bid to boost child literacy levels.

Anne Glennie, herself a former primary school teacher, says the way reading is taught in Scottish schools is “failing” some children and leading to declining literacy rates nationally.

She wants to see a different teaching method called systematic synthetic phonics brought in instead, claiming children will learn to read much quicker and it would allow pupils with additional support needs like dyslexia to learn alongside their classmates.

A petition has been lodged with the Scottish Parliament to overhaul how children are taught to read

To do this, Ms Glennie wants to see the curriculum changed, reading materials replaced, and for the way student teachers are taught at university to be altered to better reflect this teaching method.

In 2021 75 per cent of Scottish children were reading at the required level.

Ms Glennie, who lives on the Isle of Lewis and works and is a literary consultant at The Learning Zoo, said: “Right now the most common practice in Scotland will be doing analytic phonics, which is memorising set words.

“You then get given reading books and if you don’t know a word, you are encouraged to look at the picture, read on and guess based on the context, or use the first and last letter of the word to work it out.

Anne Glennie

“If you don’t know a word, it is because you haven’t been taught that word yet. But the best practice in other English-speaking countries is systematic phonics, which is building up a knowledge of letters and sounds and blending them together.

“This is crucial to learning to read properly rather than just memorising.”

Ms Glennie has been campaigning to get this method of teaching used since 2015. In 2017, she submitted a petition to the Scottish Parliament to try and get MSPs to make a change.

Last year her petition was dropped, so she has now resubmitted it in the hope her calls will be reconsidered.

Anne Glennie

Ms Glennie blames the Parliament’s slow schedule and MSPs not wanting to be seen as telling teachers how to do their job. She said this method was being used in countries like Australia and in a number of US states successfully, adding Scotland was at risk of falling behind.

Ms Glennie added: “I’m at my wit’s end trying to get people to listen and pay attention to this. You can bring every child with you on this because it doesn’t rely on vocabulary or guesswork, it is logical and straightforward.

“Children can very quickly build up confidence because they are successful at that. We should be aiming for 100 per cent being able to read, and you should expect to get close with this method.”

A Government spokesman said phonics was “widely implemented” across Scotland. The spokesman said: “Schools, supported by their local authority, should ensure effective approaches to support children’s progress and to develop a love of reading for pleasure.

“As with other key aspects of the curriculum, it is right too, that teachers should expect appropriate guidance and support at national level. It adds it will provide an initial response to the Parliament regarding this petition.