by Michael Bates

Created on: January 08, 2009

Nearly any old or new method of teaching and learning in education may be termed a "fad", just because there are those that like it and those that do not. Teachers who have had long careers in education tend to have tried and true methods that seem to work with most children. Thus, anything different from these methods may be considered a fad. For example, there are those who insist that the way to teach reading is through intensive phonics instructions. Children learn to decode words letter by letter, searching for sound patterns and sounding out words. Others prefer what many call "whole language", which is a method that downplays phonics in favor of reading words in the context of literature. Some teachers prefer to teach reading to small groups of children with similar abilities. Some of us are old enough to remember the "Bluebirds" and the "Redbirds". Personally, I do not remember my group, nor do I remember which was high or low.

The point is, that a good teacher will assess what is best for the student, the group or the class and rely on a variety of methods in order to help students to succeed. There are no real "fads", because new ideas can become part of the teacher's repertoire of skills that will work with some students. One thing is certain. It is no longer acceptable just to teach to the majority of students, because those are the ones who can learn with a dominant style. Teachers (and parents) must be ready with many different activities and methods in order to make sure that, as the law insists, no child is left behind.

For example, I had a student 12 years ago who could not read. I had him in First grade, and he struggled to read all year. I tried to help him with the phonics and other letter/sound relationships. That didn't work. I tried pairing him with stronger students. That didn't work. I had the same child in Second grade, and by Christmas, the parents were beginning to panic. I was not far behind them, because I was beginning to fear I was failing their child. Finally, I simply began to take about 10 minutes of every day and spend some one-on-one reading time with him. We met privately at my desk and I began to discover what kinds of books and stories interested him. We did various reading activities together that were short, easy and fun. About the middle of January that year, I began to notice that I could not keep this child's attention. He was always looking into his desk for something. It did not take long to realize that the child

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