Whole Language Approach to Teaching -

Franziska Davies
Department of Language & Linguistics
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Philosophy
Features
Aspects of Language
Goodman’s Cues
Whole Language and Phonetics compared
Examples of Whole Language Approach
Downfalls of Whole Language
Suggested reading
Links to Web Resources
References
• The whole language philosophy “...is a belief system about the
nature of learning and how it can be fostered in classrooms and
schools. It is not an approach, though some kinds of activities
can reasonably be characterized as whole language because
they are consonant with this philosophy...Language is kept
whole, not fragmented into 'skills'; literacy skills and strategies
are developed in the context of whole, authentic literacy events,
while reading and writing experiences permeate the whole
curriculum; and learning within the classroom is integrated with
the whole life of the learner.” (Weaver, C. 1990)
The Whole Language approach:
• allows learners to observe real learning, specifically reading
behaviors in non-threatening situations
• encourages students to learn to read by doing the task
• learning is not divided into different skills, kept as a whole
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Children learn to read and write slowly
Learning is stressed over the teacher being in the classroom
Children should read and write every day in the classroom
Reading, writing, and oral language are not divided into
separate parts
(adapted from Weaver, C. 1990)
Dog
Welsh Corgi
Small, tricoloured, loud
• Teachers of Whole Language teach to develop knowledge of
the following aspects of language:
I.
II.
III.
IV.
graphophonemic
syntactic
semantic
pragmatic
Goodman came up with four "cueing systems" for reading, (four
things that allow the reader to guess what is next)
I. graphophonemic: letters and their sounds
II. semantic: structure of the sentence
III. syntactic: grammar of the language
IV. pragmatic: purpose of the text in question
• overlooks spelling and technical mistakes
• too little emphasis on word analysis- young readers might
guess/skip over words they might not know how to read
• present problems for students with reading difficulties
• Richards, J., & Rodgers, T. (2001). Approaches and methods in
language Teaching (2nd ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press.
• Weaver, Constance. 1990. Understanding whole language: From
principles to practice. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
• Goodman, Yetta (2005). Reading Miscue Inventory. Katonah, NY:
Robert C. Owen Publishers, Inc..
• Goodman, Kenneth (1982). Language and Literacy. Boston, MA:
Routledge & Kegan.
• Itzkoff, Seymour (1986). How We Learn to Read. Ashfield, MA:
Paideia Publishers.
• Moats, L. C. (2000). Whole language lives on: The illusion of
“Balanced Reading” instruction. Washington, DC: Thomas B. Fordham
Foundation.
• http://www.rrf.org.uk/archive.php?n_ID=95&n_issueNumber=4
9
• http://www.readinghorizons.com/blog/post/2010/09/23/Wh
at-is-the-Whole-Languagee-Approach-to-TeachingReading.aspx
• http://www.succeedtoread.com/phonics.html
• http://www.halcyon.org/wholelan.html
• Goodman, Kenneth (1982). Language and Literacy. Boston, MA:
Routledge & Kegan.
• Goodman, Kenneth (1996). On Reading. NH: Heinemann.
• Weaver, Constance. (1990). Understanding whole language:
From principles to practice. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

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