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Especially
for Teachers - Teaching English
Elements of an English Program
Spelling
Why
is spelling important?
The use
of conventional spelling in written text is one of the means used by society
to judge whether or not a person is literate. There is, therefore, some
pressure applied to schools and teachers to ‘get this right’.
It is important that teachers of English have a good understanding of
how students learn to spell and what they can do to facilitate spelling
development.
What is accepted
as ‘correct’ or conventional spelling changes according to such
factors as time and context. The main purpose for learning to spell conventionally
is so that written text is accessible to the reader. As we move further
into an information age, accessible written text becomes more important.
As well, the number of words specific to areas such as information technology
increases, and these also need to be learnt.
‘While
approaches to teaching spelling may differ, it is important that explicit
teaching of spelling is embedded in the context of constructing
and writing
texts in all areas of study.’
P9
Spelling: from beginnings to independence. DECS (1998)
Thus, with
spelling, as with other aspects of literacy, it is important that teachers
in all learning areas take on the responsibility for teaching the spelling
that is required.
‘The
needs of students are best met when teachers, within the context of
daily writing experiences, provide structured learning that leads to
developing knowledge of the spelling system and strategies to use when
writing unfamiliar words.’
P9
Spelling: from beginnings to independence. DECS (1998)
Learning
to spell
Learning
to spell is a complex task, involving inter-relationships among a range
of strategies/cueing systems - grapho-phonic, syntactic and semantic.
Prior to learning to spell, (or read, for that matter), students must
have developed phonemic awareness. This is awareness of the sounds that
make up spoken words. Phonemes are those ‘smaller than a syllable’
units of spoken language that correspond roughly to individual graphemes.
Phonemic awareness is not the same as phonics. It is not about learning
letter-sound correspondences; it involves being able to segment a word
into distinctive sounds and, thus, is a prerequisite to phonics instruction.
Learning
to spell is a multi-sensory process, that is, it requires visual, thinking,
handwriting and phonic skills/strategies. Students will have difficulty
in becoming competent, conventional spellers if they rely solely on one
of these strategies. Students’ differing learning styles may determine
the strategies that they use more comfortably; however, they need to develop
skills in all areas.
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