What is the Science of Reading?

If you’ve recently attended any of the reading Professional Development sessions in our county, you’ve probably heard the term science of reading or seen the acronym SoR. You may be wondering, is the science of reading another curriculum? Is this just the newest buzz word? What does the science of reading mean? 

The science of reading is not a curriculum nor a new buzz word. In fact, the science of reading is not new by any means! By definition the science of reading is an extensive, interdisciplinary body of scientifically-based research that has been conducted over the last five decades about reading and issues related to reading. It draws on research and information from educational psychology, cognitive psychology, neuroscience and linguistics. In a nutshell, the concept of science of reading is the science behind how our brains learn to read. Leaders in education are utilizing this research to design high quality curriculum and promote effective instructional strategies to teach reading. 

Through this research we have learned that oral language develops naturally, but reading is not a natural process and must be taught explicitly, systematically, and cumulatively. This instruction builds connections to engage the various areas of the brain necessary that are vital to reading. Through scientific research we have learned where our brain processes language. For instance, the occipito-temporal region recognizes written shapes and symbols. The frontal lobe controls processing of speech sounds. The parietal-temporal region allows readers to break down words into sounds and the temporal lobe is responsible for language comprehension. 

 How The Brain Learns To Read (Sedita, 2020) 

In essence, we are teaching students to train their brains for reading by building these connections. While reading, the areas of the brain work collaboratively. The level of engagement in each region varies depending on the reader’s level of proficiency. Literacy expert, Dr. Anne Cunningham, and neuropsychologist, Dr. David Rose explained that children with a higher proficiency show more activity in the occipito-temporal region of the brain, while beginner readers are more active in the parieto-temporal region. 

So how do we teach reading to build those important connections across regions of our brain? In the next blog post we will learn about two important frameworks that can help us to understand the main components of the science of reading.