Columbia University’s discredited Calkins reading curriculum still used at Berkeley

[Anonymous]

https://edsource.org/2024/berkeley-schools-use-a-discredited-reading-curriculum-why-is-it-still-in-classrooms/704503?amp=1


“And though the lawsuit settled in 2021, the district’s method of teaching reading, a balanced literacy curriculum developed by Columbia University Teachers College professor Lucy Calkins called Units of Study, remains in place.

Rather than teaching students to sound out letters, the curriculum relies on a method called three-cueing — where students use context clues like pictures to figure out words — that has now been discredited and banned in several states. Some Berkeley teachers still use cueing, while others have dropped the discredited practice.”

Why are some still clinging to Calkins, when it’s been discredited and phonics is proven to work?

[Anonymous]

Because school administrators use the fad of the day or yesterday in an attempt to achieve equity rather than have students use tried and true methods to reach their capability, whatever that capability might be.

[Anonymous]

Because old people are resistant to change.

[Anonymous]

Because so many professors of education still are insisting programs like Lucy Caulkins works. It’s so infuriating to read comments from professors of education who think the podcast Sold a Story that exposed the fact that kids aren’t being taught reading through a structured phonics program is a sham.

[Anonymous]

a) ignorance, b) inertia, or c) money. At this point for any district that still clings to this way of teaching I'd follow the money to make sure the decision makers aren't profiting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Because so many professors of education still are insisting programs like Lucy Caulkins works. It’s so infuriating to read comments from professors of education who think the podcast Sold a Story that exposed the fact that kids aren’t being taught reading through a structured phonics program is a sham.

+1. The Ed School mafia continue to push Calkins. Mumble. Sigh.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because so many professors of education still are insisting programs like Lucy Caulkins works. It’s so infuriating to read comments from professors of education who think the podcast Sold a Story that exposed the fact that kids aren’t being taught reading through a structured phonics program is a sham.

+1. The Ed School mafia continue to push Calkins. Mumble. Sigh.

They also push Jo Boaler for math, with similarly poor results. Ed schools are a negative force for student learning.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because so many professors of education still are insisting programs like Lucy Caulkins works. It’s so infuriating to read comments from professors of education who think the podcast Sold a Story that exposed the fact that kids aren’t being taught reading through a structured phonics program is a sham.

+1. The Ed School mafia continue to push Calkins. Mumble. Sigh.

They also push Jo Boaler for math, with similarly poor results. Ed schools are a negative force for student learning.

Good point. She is why Johnny and Jane can’t add…. It is so senseless and tragic that we do not really tech our children. No wonder the US scores so poorly in math on the international PISA tests…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:https://edsource.org/2024/berkeley-schools-use-a-discredited-reading-curriculum-why-is-it-still-in-classrooms/704503?amp=1


“And though the lawsuit settled in 2021, the district’s method of teaching reading, a balanced literacy curriculum developed by Columbia University Teachers College professor Lucy Calkins called Units of Study, remains in place.

Rather than teaching students to sound out letters, the curriculum relies on a method called three-cueing — where students use context clues like pictures to figure out words — that has now been discredited and banned in several states. Some Berkeley teachers still use cueing, while others have dropped the discredited practice.”

Why are some still clinging to Calkins, when it’s been discredited and phonics is proven to work?

Because it feels progressive, while phonics feels very old school, conservative, Christian-private-school-y

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://edsource.org/2024/berkeley-schools-use-a-discredited-reading-curriculum-why-is-it-still-in-classrooms/704503?amp=1


“And though the lawsuit settled in 2021, the district’s method of teaching reading, a balanced literacy curriculum developed by Columbia University Teachers College professor Lucy Calkins called Units of Study, remains in place.

Rather than teaching students to sound out letters, the curriculum relies on a method called three-cueing — where students use context clues like pictures to figure out words — that has now been discredited and banned in several states. Some Berkeley teachers still use cueing, while others have dropped the discredited practice.”

Why are some still clinging to Calkins, when it’s been discredited and phonics is proven to work?

Because it feels progressive, while phonics feels very old school, conservative, Christian-private-school-y

Ha, true, best comment yet.

Imagine getting a B.A. (or worse, an M.Ed.) and realizing you have nothing more to offer than Mary Ingalls did 150 years ago. And that your education and its associated research is a farce, because we've known how to teaching reading, writing, and mathematics for thousands of years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://edsource.org/2024/berkeley-schools-use-a-discredited-reading-curriculum-why-is-it-still-in-classrooms/704503?amp=1


“And though the lawsuit settled in 2021, the district’s method of teaching reading, a balanced literacy curriculum developed by Columbia University Teachers College professor Lucy Calkins called Units of Study, remains in place.

Rather than teaching students to sound out letters, the curriculum relies on a method called three-cueing — where students use context clues like pictures to figure out words — that has now been discredited and banned in several states. Some Berkeley teachers still use cueing, while others have dropped the discredited practice.”

Why are some still clinging to Calkins, when it’s been discredited and phonics is proven to work?

Because it feels progressive, while phonics feels very old school, conservative, Christian-private-school-y

Exactly this! Yet, students who were taught phonics can read while my son who started Caulkins in K through 5th grade in Loudoun county (when they bought in to it hook, line and sinker) struggle to this day. His tutor also an elementary teacher in the county said they paraded them up to NY to sell it as the greatest thing going. Complete BS.

[Anonymous]

Yes amazing that education professionals in an effort to make a name for themselves (Caulkins and Boaler) find a way to do irreparable harm to a system that was never broken to begin with.

Nothing more dangerous than idiots out to prove they are smarter than everyone else. Unfortunately, education administrators not know for their intellectual prowess fall for the new bright shiny object every time.

[Anonymous]

I wish we had pixie dust so our kids all could go back to learning via the methods which worked well for so long. I hesitate to say "back to basics" because some people will read that as meaning something else.

We are glad our school is using Saxon Math, simply because it is working for all the kids. And they finally are going back to Phonics and dumping the Fountas & Pinnel stuff (which did not work for most of the kids).