ABSTRACT
In 1998, as a reaction to static reading scores across the US, the National Academy of Sciences, a non-profit society of distinguished scholars, commissioned one of the best-known documents in the field. The authors listened to presentations from a diverse range of researchers and practitioners in the field. They gathered as many strands of the professional literature as they could in order to present an unbiased, factual account of how best to teach reading. Representatives of whole language and whole word approaches were also listened to and their theories were held up to scrutiny. The National Institute for Child Health and Human Development research had a major influence on government policy and received bi-partisan support. The Child Development and Behavior Branch, headed by eminent psychologist Dr Reid Lyon, oversaw funding for ‘research and research training relevant to the psychological, neurobiological, language, behavioral, and educational development and health of children’ at many major universities in the US.
