🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <1993Jan8.141523.4947@memstvx1.memst.edu> connolly@memstvx1.memst.edu writes:
>Two comments:

>1. If you consult any professor of education, you will discover that it
>has long been known that people read English by recognizing whole words.
>In fact, it was at one time usua;lly taught that way: the "look-and-say"
>method.  And most teachers do teach a lot of sight words.

You have misstated even the educationists; the claim is that good readers
read by recognizing whole words.

And if you consult somebody else, you will be told that this is utter
nonsense.  The "look-and-say" method of teaching produced a generation
of illiterates, and set of the one successful revolution against the
excesses of the educationists.  

Now I do know how their the "reasoning" behind the educationists' claim.
It has long been known that good readers take in even several words at a
glance.  But this does not mean that the brain processes things this way.

Also, I believe that most readers of this group are aware that, no matter
what language is being read, the brain carries out the processing which
recognizes roots and modifications.  It is this ability to use structure
which enables the efficient learning and use of language, not memorizing
lots of minor variations.
-- 
Herman Rubin, Dept. of Statistics, Purdue Univ., West Lafayette IN47907-1399
Phone: (317)494-6054
hrubin@snap.stat.purdue.edu (Internet, bitnet)  
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